“The frosting though… it’s AMAZING!” – my little sister. Vanilla cupcakes, simple yet scrumptious and satisfying. Over twenty recipes on my blog and this is the first vanilla cake/cupcake recipe. Something must’ve went wrong in my brain while I was planning out my recipes.
Though I LOVE chocolate and will usually always choose a chocolate dessert over a vanilla one, there’s just something unbeatable about classic vanilla cake. I will definitely come out with a vanilla layer cake recipe in the future but for now I present to you my easy vanilla cupcake recipe. These cupcakes are super fluffy, not too sweet, undetectably gluten-free, and simple to make! The batter is made in one bowl and can be whipped up in a jiffy. I brought these cupcakes to a spring picnic with friends and one girl (that’s gluten-free) said they tasted just like delicious non-gluten-free cupcakes she used to have when she was little. I left a couple cupcakes at home for my parents, and as we had our picnic, I got a text from my mom saying “OMGosh! These cupcakes are A-MAZING!!” Which made me positive this cupcake recipe was on point because mom never uses capital letters (haha)! Anyway, I hope that now you are dying to make these and that you will enjoy!
This post contains affiliate links to some of my very favorite ingredients. This way it is easy for you to find the ingredients I used at the best price I’ve found. If you click on any of them and purchase anything from Amazon, I will receive a very small percentage of the sale, to support what I do here. Thank you!
Link to my favorite gluten-free flour blend is here.
Cupcake pan is linked here.
Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes (dairy & nut free options)
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup neutral flavor liquid oil
- ¾ cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 ½ tsps baking powder
- 1 ½-2 tsps vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp almond extract omit if you're nut-free
- 1 ⅓ cups (189 grams) Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free 1:1 Baking Flour
- ½ cup milk or non-dairy milk of choice
For the Frosting:
- ¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) soft unsalted butter or vegan butter
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp almond extract omit if you're nut-free
- 1-2 tbsps heavy cream or milk (of choice) if needed
- food coloring if desired
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (177 C). Line a standard size cupcake pan with 12 cupcake liners.
- In a large bowl using a hand mixer (or stand mixer), mix the oil and sugar together. Add the eggs and mix very well until light and fluffy.
- Mix in the salt, baking powder, vanilla, and almond extract. Add the GF flour and mix until combined. Scrape the sides of the bowl. Add the milk and mix very well.
- Evenly distribute all the batter between the 12 cupcake cases. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean or slightly crummy (but not doughy). Let the cupcakes cool completely.
For the Frosting:
- In a mixing bowl, cream the butter until it is light and fluffy. Add the salt. Add ½ cup of powdered sugar at a time, mixing well in between each addition, until you reach 2 cups. Scrape the sides of the bowl, with a spatula. Mix in the vanilla extract. If your frosting isn't a very spreadable consistency, add 1 tbsp of milk/heavy cream and mix well. If it is still too thick, add 1 tbsp of the liquid at a time, mixing well in between each addition, until you reach a smooth spreadable consistency. If you would like colorful frosting, add a couple drops of food coloring and mix well.
To Frost:
- I just spread a glob of frosting onto each cupcake, but you can pipe frosting on top, using a piping bag and piping tip if you would like too. At this point you can decorate with sprinkles or anything you want. Serve, eat, and enjoy!
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