The best vanilla cupcakes are made with sour cream! The sour cream makes these cupcakes better because it makes them extra tender, soft, and moist.
While I love our easy vanilla cupcake recipe, and I still make it from time to time, this recipe has managed to knock it from my top spot! Whenever I have sour cream on hand, I always opt to make this recipe instead.
The reason for that is the fact that fat = flavor. Sour cream does a few things for cakes, that no other ingredient can really do:
1. The acidity reacts with the baking powder to help the cupcakes rise. Which means more air bubbles in the center. Which ALSO means ultra tender cupcakes!
2. It’s acidity also adds a subtle tangy flavor to the cupcakes.
3. The fat in sour cream helps keep the cupcakes moist for days!
So moral of the story is sour cream and vanilla cupcakes make the perfect match! In a pinch, you can also use yogurt as a sour cream substitute. But use sour cream whenever possible!!
Aside from sour cream, another tweak I’ve made that makes this recipe different from our previous vanilla cupcake recipe is the addition of oil. Something I’ve been loving lately is using a combination of butter AND oil when making cakes.
The butter adds flavor while the oil makes for extra moist cupcakes and cakes! It’s something new I’ve picked up, but I’ve been hooked on this new technique ever since!
How to make vanilla cupcakes:
These cupcakes are incredibly easy to make (which gives you extra time to make some frosting!)
Make the cupcakes:
1. Preheat your oven and prep your cupcake tin.
2. Combine dry ingredients. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. Combine wet ingredients. First whisk together butter, oil, and sugar until smooth. Then add your egg, sour cream, and vanilla, and whisk to combine.
4. Combine wet and dry ingredients. Whisk until just combined!
5. Portion into cupcake tin and bake! Cool completely before frosting.
Make the buttercream:
1. Beat butter and sugar until smooth. The mixture should be a pale yellow color and airy.
2. Add salt, vanilla, and cream/milk. Beat again until smooth and fluffy. Add more liquid as needed.
3. Frost cooled cupcakes!
How to store vanilla cupcakes:
For maximum freshness, keep your cupcakes stored in an airtight container or plastic bag (if not frosted!)
These cupcakes will keep for around 3 days (unfrosted) or 2 days (frosted) set out at room temperature. They’ll keep (frosted or unfrosted) for up to a week in the fridge.
Frosting for vanilla cupcakes:
I love, love, LOVE vanilla cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting! That’s what I grew up on, so that’s what I’m sticking to. But that being said, you can frost these cupcakes with basically any frosting you love!
For some ideas, you can also make these vanilla cupcakes with chocolate frosting, peanut butter frosting, cream cheese frosting, chocolate ganache, or even just some simple whipped cream!
If you liked these vanilla cupcakes with sour cream, check out some of these similar recipes!
• moist chocolate cupcakes
• no bake vanilla biscuit cake
• sour cream pound cake
• sour cream glazed donuts
• easy vanilla cupcakes (without sour cream)
• marble cake
• carrot muffins
• blueberry muffins
Sour Cream Vanilla Cupcakes Recipe
Ingredients
For the sour cream vanilla cupcakes:
- 1 & 1/4 cups cake flour
- 1 & 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the vanilla buttercream frosting:
- 3/4 cup (1 & 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 to 4 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line a standard size, 12 count cupcake tin with paper liners, and set aside.
- Make the vanilla cupcake batter: In a medium bowl, whisk together your flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine sugar, butter, and oil. Whisk together until incorporated. Some clumps of butter are fine, but just try to get them to be smaller than a pea. Add you egg, sour cream, and vanilla extract. Whisk to combine.
- Combine the wet and dry ingredients. Mix together until just combined. Take care not to over mix! Portion out the cupcake batter into your prepared cupcake tin, filling each cup no more than 3/4 of the way full.
- Bake in the center of your preheated 350°F oven until a skewer inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean of any batter. Cool completely to room temperature before frosting!
- Make the vanilla buttercream frosting: In a large bowl, combine butter and powdered sugar. Beat together using an electric mixer (or by hand – but it'll take some serious elbow grease!) for about 3 to 4 minutes, or until the sugar is fully dissolved and you're left with a smooth and airy mixture.
- Add in your salt, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons of milk/cream. Beat for another 30 seconds to a minute, or until the mixture is light and fluffy. If needed, gradually add more milk/cream until you reach your desired consistency. Frost your cupcakes!
Enjoy!
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