An easy Vanilla Cake with a soft and moist crumb and great vanilla flavor. We used our popular Buttercream Frosting here but it’s also fantastic with a Chocolate Frosting. This Vanilla cake recipe is the perfect base for a birthday cake or any special occasion.
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
Watch the Easy Vanilla Cake Recipe Video:
This cake really is easy and can even be made ahead. Watch the video tutorial for how to make the perfect vanilla cake and best Buttercream Frosting (which isn’t overly sweet like most American buttercreams).
Why we Love this Vanilla Cake!
Everyone needs a great vanilla cake base and I hope this becomes your new favorite! It’s made from scratch and the combination of ingredients gives it amazing texture and flavor. We used the same base as our famous Vanilla Cupcakes and made this stunning cake. You’ll love the perfectly level cake layers – there’s no need to trim them.
How to Make a Vanilla Cake from Scratch:
Here is a quick visual reference for homemade vanilla cake. Get the full print-friendly recipe below.
- Butter and flour two 9″ cake pans and preheat oven to 350˚F.
- Whisk together dry ingredients.
- With an electric mixer, beat Butter and Sugar 5 minutes.
- Beat in eggs 1 at a time then beat in vanilla.
- Add flour mixture in thirds alternating with buttermilk and mixing between each addition.
- Divide between 2 cake pans and bake at 350˚F for 28-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes then transfer cakes (we use this cake release tool) to a wire rack and cool completely before frosting.
How to Frost a Cake:
Frosting a cake is the fun part. Once your cake is fully at room temperature, make your Vanilla Buttercream Frosting. We love the vintage vibe of waves in the frosting like we did with our chocolate cake but you can also crumb coat the cake and pipe the frosting onto the cake.
- Place the first cake layer on a cake platter.
- Spread a generous layer of frosting over the top, going to the edges.
- Cover with the second cake layer with the top side down for a perfectly level cake surface.
- Coat the top and sides of the cake with remaining frosting and use an offset spatula or spoon to create waves in the cake.
Add sprinkles if desired. Sprinkles are the easiest way to turn a plain cake into a birthday cake!
Our Best Baking Tips:
- Room temperature ingredients are critical so your batter blends well without separating or becoming grainy.
- Avoid Substitutions! We always recommend trying the recipe as written before experimenting.
- Measure Correctly – check out our post on how we measure ingredients for baking.
- Weigh your pans – we use a digital food scale to make sure the layers are evenly divided.
How to Keep Leftover Cake Moist:
If you have sliced your cake and want to refrigerate leftovers for later, cover the cut side of the cake with plastic wrap, placing it directly onto the cake. This will prevent moisture loss and keep your cake from drying out.
More Top-Rated Cake Recipes:
These are the best-loved and best-reviewed cakes on our site. These are the ones we make most often.
- Chocolate Cake – rich, moist and decadent
- Tiramisu Recipe – coffee-infused Italian dessert
- Tres Leches Cake – the moistest cake you’ll try
- Perfect Cheesecake – with irresistible cherry sauce
- Pumpkin Cake – with the best cream cheese frosting
Vanilla Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 Tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp fine salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 4 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk, or plain kefir, room temperature
- 1 Buttercream Frosting Recipe
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚F. Butter and flour two 9" cake pans, tapping out excess flour.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Set flour mixture aside.
- In a large mixing bowl using an electric hand mixer (or stand mixer), beat butter and sugar on medium-high speed for 5 minutes until thick and fluffy, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- Add 4 eggs, one at a time, beating well with each addition then scrape down the bowl. Add 4 tsp vanilla extract and beat to combine.
- Reduce mixer to medium speed and add the flour mixture in thirds alternating with the 1 cup of room temperature buttermilk, allowing the flour and buttermilk to incorporate with each addition. Scrape down the bowl as needed and beat until just combined and smooth.
- Divide batter evenly between 2 prepared cake pans and spread out the batter into the pans smoothing out the tops with a spatula. Bake on the center rack at 350˚F for 28-30 minutes. Rest in pans for 10 minutes then run a knife or thin spatula around the edges to loosen and turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely before applying Vanilla Frosting.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
I used with gluten free flour and 1/4 cup less sugar and it turned out great. I also used almond milk instead of buttermilk but I added vinegar to it. Awesome!
That’s fantastic! I’m glad that turned out well, thank you for sharing that with us.
Can you please tell me what GF mix you used? Was it still it still light and fluffy?
Hi! I would love to make this cake for my grandpa’s birthday. Can I use Salted butter instead of unsalted butter for the cake?
Hi there, that sounds like a good plan. Yes you may use salted butter but lessen or omit the salt in the recipe.
Hi,
I followed the recepie exactly how it was written and followed the video. The cake was delicious, but When I cut the cake, noticed it was dry and hard. What do you think I did wrong?
Hi Myri, It’s hard to say without being there but a dry cake is usually due to overbaking. I wonder if it was due to baking for too long?
Hi Natasha, I made your Vanilla Cupcake recipe and Loved it and now I would like to make your Vanilla Cake recipe. I always measure my ingredients using metric. Is the metric amount stated for sugar in your recipe correct as it states 354.88g? Should it be 300g instead? Thanks so much!
Hi Nona, thank you so much for pointing that out. I have no idea why it showed incorrectly but you are absolutely correct. It should be 300 grams. Maybe there was a glitch in our system the first time we ran the numbers. I’m sorry about that and thank you so much for asking! I have corrected it to be 300 grams of sugar.
In the video it says the recipe for vanilla is in the notes but I’m not seeing it?
Hi Patty, if you click Jump to Recipe at the top of the post that will take you to the printable recipe card, you will see the vanilla ingredient is highlighted in red. You can click that link to see the recipe. You can also find it HERE. I hope this helps!
Hello,
Can powdered buttermilk be used in this recipe?
Thank you and I can’t wait to make this!!
Hi Lindsay, I haven’t tried it with powdered to advise on the outcome. I imagine you will need to make a few adjustments.
Can I use 2 x 8 inch pans instead? Do I need to reduce the amount of ingredients to it better? I don’t have any pans bigger than 8 inch 🙁 love the cupcakes recipe btw!
I have no tested it in 8″ pans but that should be fine. Just make sure you do not overfill the pans. I am not sure how deep your pans are but you may have some leftover batter but I cannot say what adjustments need to be made to avoid this. As far as baking time, you may need to check a few mins early but it shouldn’t make too big of a difference in baking time. Hope that helps!
Hi!! If I want to use this recipe for 7” cake and to make a 3 layer what would the ratio ingredients be then? Or should I just double the recipe fill the 3 pans 2/3 of the way and have left over batter for cupcakes etc?! Also to make the cake easier to work with, without breaking apart do I leave it in the cake pan until cool then remove to chill more and refrigerate for 20mins before frosting? Or take them out of the pan immediately once out of the oven to cool on pan? I don’t want it to break apart again. It’s so frustrating! Thank you!!
Hi Sabrina, without testing that myself, you would need to experiment on timing, but I would keep the temp the same and do your best to fill the pans the same as you would for two pans. It might work to divide them into three 7-inch pans.
I’m going to try this cake recipe for my Caramel Cake! I love all your recipes!!!!
Thank you, I hope you love it!
Aw man, this is a dangerous recipe! I made this in a 9 by 13 pan and baked it for about 35 minutes at 350. I couldn’t wait until it was all the way cooled before trying it, so I cut a piece for myself and frosted it with Natasha’s vanilla frosting. Wowza!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
What do you think was the reason my cake(Bundt type) of this recipe came out so dense?
Hi Pat, check that your leavening is working and not expired. Also, see our post on how we measure dry ingredients since too much flour can be a culprit.
Of all the cake recipes on the internet, this one is the most practical with excellent results! No need to go purchase expensive cake flour and no separating your egg whites – what a relief! My 2 year old loves to bake with me and we were able to quickly make delicious cupcakes with this recipe (baked at 350 for 19 minutes). I especially love that this produces such soft cake that isn’t overbearingly sweet. You can slightly taste a hint of butter and to me that is the hallmark of homemade, from scratch. Thank you, Natasha! We are long-time fans beginning with your jello and pretzel layered dessert years ago!
Thank you for your great review, Amy! I’m so happy you enjoyed that!
Hi there!!
Can I make this the night before and store in an airtight container once cooled? I’m hoping it won’t dry out. I have made your vanilla cupcakes several times and they are amazing.
It’s always better to make it on the same day so it will really be fresh but making it ahead shouldn’t be a problem too, just let it thaw after from the fridge before serving.
Am eager to try this recipe. Thank you for all your great recipes, videos and tips. I tried the link to the cake pans, but it did not come up with the same type seen in your video. Could you cite the source for the gold pans? Thanks.
Hi Maria, you can find our favorite kitchen tools in our Amazon Affiliate Shop HERE.
Baked it on our wedding day and on Christmas eve. It’s now my husband’s favorite cake. Thanks natasha
Wow, that’s wonderful!
Natasha this cake is perfect, I was worried about baking a whole cake for the first time but this recipe was so easy. The video helped a lot as well. I also tried the cupcakes my children love them, Thank you love from Trinidad..
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you all enjoyed it, Trini!
This cake is delicious – did not use an electric mixer but it was easy enough to do “the old fashioned way”. Made it for my son’s 5th birthday and we all loved it. Thank you so much for this recipe
You’re most welcome! I’m glad that you enjoyed this recipe!
Hi! I want to make this for my daughter’s first birthday. I was wondering if I could make one layer of cake in a 9 x 13 pan? If so, do you have baking times? Thank you!
Hi Sarah, I haven’t tested that yet to advise of the baking time. You may check the other comments at the bottom of the recipe if others have tried it.
Made this and the frosting. Followed the instructions carefully and exactly. Turned out perfect and tasted great for a basic vanilla cake. I am a tragic baker – so this recipe must be pretty foolproof. Thank you so much for posting this and the video!
Wow, that’s awesome! Thanks for sharing that with us, I’m glad it was a success!
Hi Natasha- what is your elevation where you bake? Wondering if I need to adapt for high altitude. We’re about 5,000 feet here.
Hi Anne, we’re at about 2500 feet here. I don’t have experience with high-altitude baking but you can find more tips on High Altitude Baking HERE.