Super Moist Vanilla Cake
Looking for a good basic recipe for vanilla cake with the most creamy, light frosting that is not too sweet or overly buttery-tasting? Look no further. This is my go-to recipe for a basic, deliciously light, crumbly and -dare I say- sophisticated cake. You can add your own toppings or layers, you can't go wrong with a good base cake!
Besides Bread
Note 1: For the cake, I use the reverse creaming method in this recipe. With this method, you coat the dry ingredients in the softened butter, instead of creaming the butter and sugars first and then adding the dry ingredients. It works especially well for layer cakes, because the fat from the butter coats the flour, which limits gluten formation more than the normal creaming method. This results in a crumblier, shorter texture for your cake, and a flatter top after baking, since you incorporate less air into the mixture at the start, so the cake rises more evenly.
Note 2: If you don't have cake flour available to you - this is not a thing in Dutch grocery stores - you can easily make your own by mixing AP flour (tarwebloem) with cornstarch! I use these ratios: for every 125g AP flour I add 15g cornstarch. This means if you want a total of 450g cake flour, your ratios should be 402g AP flour mixed with 48g cornstarch. Whisk well before using. If you want to make sure there are absolutely no lumps of cornstarch left in your cake flour, you can sift the flour-cornstarch mixture once or twice before using.
Super Moist Vanilla Cake
A delicious basic vanilla cake that you can add your own twists to, with a heavenly frosting that contains WAY less sugar than standard buttercream, and is very easy to make.
Ingredients
- For the cake
- For the frosting
Method
Start with making the base (a roux) for the frosting. In a medium saucepan, add the flour and sugar. Whisk well and put on stovetop, at medium heat. Slowly add the milk and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Keep whisking, the mixture should start to thicken. Make sure there are no lumps forming, especially on the sides and bottom of the saucepan. When the mixture is thick as a stiff pudding and your whisk leaves a trail, you're done. The final consistency of your frosting depends on how thick you cook this mixture. The thicker, the better your frosting will hold shape.
Take your saucepan off the heat and scrape the mixture in a bowl. Take a piece of cling film and put directly on top of the mixture, preventing a skin from forming. Let cool until the mixture is at room temperature.
Preheat your oven to 375F (190C). In the bowl of your stand mixer, mix the dry ingredients (see note 2). Add the room temperature butter and with the flat beater attachment, mix the butter and dry ingredients until a sandy mixture forms, about 2-3 minutes at low speed.
Add the sugar and mix again at low speed, for about 1 minute.
With the mixer running, add the oil, then the eggs and the vanilla extract. Mix until a thick batter forms, about 2 minutes total, again at low speed.
Now add the buttermilk while the mixer is still running on low, in about 3 additions. The mixture should now be velvety and thick.
Divide the mixture into 3 lined baking pans. If you don't have 3, just bake them one at a time. Bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pan for 5 minutes before flipping them onto a cooling rack.
Let the cakes cool completely. While baking and cooling the cake layers, make the frosting. With a hand mixer or your stand mixer with the flat beater attachment, beat the butter on high speed until it is light and fluffy. This usually takes 4-5 minutes. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl with a spatula a few times.
When the butter is ready, start adding the flour mixture while mixing on high speed, 1 tbsp at a time. Keep going until all of it is incorporated, then add vanilla and salt. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl and mix one last time. The frosting should be light and smooth.
Now it's time to assemble! start by placing the first cake and adding your frosting. I like to measure how much frosting I put on each layer, for a symmetric end-result. Add your next layer and frosting, and add your final layer. Now coat the whole cake in the leftover frosting! There you have it, a blank canvas that tastes delicious. You can decorate this cake with whatever you like, let your creativity run free. One of my favorites is raspberries, their tartness cuts through the sweetness of the cake nicely. This cake stays soft and moist for about 4 to 5 days when kept at room temperature. Enjoy!