Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe is the recipe that Lucia makes every most universally beloved birthday and every most elegantly simple individual celebration when she wants to create the most completely extraordinary and the most genuinely definitive individual homemade vanilla layer cake that achieves the most brilliantly moist and the most properly fluffy individual crumb through the most specifically designed individual recipe approach — because the most authentic and the most genuinely extraordinary individual Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe requires the most perfectly balanced individual combination of the most generously measured individual softened butter for the most essential individual flavor and the most proper individual creaming base.
The most precisely measured individual extra egg yolks for the most essential individual richness and the most natural individual golden color, the most individual sour cream for the most essential individual moisture and the most gentle individual acidity, and the most beautifully whipped individual vanilla buttercream beaten to the most extraordinary individual lightness through the most dedicated 4-minute individual butter-beating session before any individual powdered sugar is the most added for the most gloriously cloud-like and the most genuinely extraordinary individual finished individual vanilla buttercream frosting.
Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe is the most easy and deeply extraordinary 1-hour moist buttery vanilla sour cream two-layer celebration cake made by creaming butter and sugar adding eggs extra yolks vanilla sour cream and milk alternating with flour baking at 350°F for 28 to 32 minutes and frosting with the most glorious whipped vanilla buttercream. Come follow us on Pinterest where we share beautiful cake recipes and easy birthday favorites from our kitchen every single week.
Table of Contents
Why You Will Love This Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe

This Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe is the most completely extraordinary and the most genuinely perfect individual from-scratch vanilla birthday cake that delivers the most beautifully moist and the most properly fluffy individual crumb through the most precisely calibrated individual ingredient combination — the most generously measured individual butter for the most essential individual flavor, the most extra individual egg yolks for the most essential individual richness, and the most individual sour cream for the most essential individual moisture — all working together to produce the most genuinely extraordinary individual homemade vanilla cake.
The most critical individual distinction between this Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe and every the most conventional individual vanilla cake alternative is the most additional individual two extra egg yolks beyond the most standard individual three whole eggs — the most extra individual yolk fat without the most individual egg white binding protein creates the most essential individual richness that defines the most genuinely extraordinary individual homemade vanilla cake crumb. Our Moist Vanilla Layer Cake makes a beautifully equally moist vanilla bean and equally silky frosted companion for a complete and wonderful homemade vanilla cake collection.
Ingredients Needed for This Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe
For the Homemade Vanilla Cake Layers:
- 3 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- ½ tsp Salt
- 1 cup Unsalted Butter, softened
- 2 cups Granulated Sugar
- 3 large Eggs, room temperature
- 2 large Egg Yolks, room temperature
- 2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
- ½ cup Sour Cream, room temperature
- ½ cup Whole Milk, room temperature
For the Whipped Vanilla Buttercream:
- 1½ cups Unsalted Butter, room temperature
- 5 to 6 cups Powdered Sugar, sifted
- 3 to 4 tbsp Heavy Cream
- 2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
- Pinch of Salt
- Sprinkles for decoration (optional)
How to Make This Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans and line with parchment paper.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat the softened butter on medium-high for 1 to 2 minutes until the most creamy. Add the sugar and beat for 2 full minutes until the most light and the most beautifully pale and fluffy. Add the eggs and extra yolks one at a time, beating the most thoroughly after each individual addition. Add the vanilla extract and mix until combined, cara mia.
In a small bowl, stir together the sour cream and whole milk until smooth.
With the mixer on low, alternate adding the flour mixture in three additions with the sour cream-milk mixture in two additions, beginning and ending with flour. Mix just until combined between each addition — do not overmix.
Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans. Bake for 28 to 32 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the individual tops spring back when touched gently. Cool in pans for 10 minutes then transfer to wire racks to cool the most completely.
For the whipped vanilla buttercream, beat the room-temperature butter on medium-high for a full 4 minutes until the most incredibly pale and the most beautifully aerated — this most dedicated individual beating creates the most cloud-like individual base. Add the sifted powdered sugar one cup at a time on low speed. Add the heavy cream, vanilla, and salt. Increase to medium-high and beat for an additional 3 minutes until the most incredibly light and the most beautifully fluffy.
Assemble the individual two layers with a generous individual buttercream layer between and frost the exterior in the most beautiful individual swoops. Decorate with sprinkles.
How to Serve This Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe
Serve at room temperature for the most beautifully softened individual vanilla buttercream and the most properly moist individual vanilla cake crumb. The most individual vanilla buttercream is at its most gloriously cloud-like and the most perfectly creamy individual texture at room temperature after 20 to 30 minutes out of the refrigerator.
For the most completely extraordinary individual birthday celebration, use a most large individual offset spatula to create the most dramatically beautiful and the most gorgeously textured individual swooping pattern in the most individual vanilla buttercream exterior for the most elegantly rustic and the most genuinely charming individual homemade vanilla birthday cake presentation. Our Moist Vanilla Layer Cake makes a beautifully equally moist and equally celebration-worthy companion for a complete and wonderful vanilla layer cake collection.
How to Store This Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Refrigerate for up to one week — allow 30 minutes at room temperature before serving for the most properly softened individual vanilla buttercream. Freeze individual unfrosted layers wrapped tightly for up to 3 months.
Tips to Make This Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe

Beat the most individual butter for the whipped vanilla buttercream the most full 4 minutes before adding any individual powdered sugar — this most critical individual pre-beating time produces the most pale and the most properly aerated individual butter base that creates the most cloud-like and the most gloriously fluffy individual vanilla buttercream that is the most dramatically different from the most insufficiently beaten individual conventional buttercream result.
Bring all individual ingredients fully to room temperature before beginning — cold individual butter, eggs, sour cream, and milk all prevent the most complete individual emulsification and produce the most lumpy and the most improperly combined individual batter. The most full 45 minutes to 1 hour at room temperature for all individual ingredients is the single most important individual preparation step.
Helpful Notes for This Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe
This most individual Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe is the most genuinely perfect individual blank canvas that accepts any most individual flavor enhancement the most beautifully — adding the most individual lemon zest produces the most vibrantly bright individual lemon vanilla cake, the most individual almond extract produces the most classically nostalgic individual almond vanilla cake, and the most individual fresh orange zest produces the most beautifully fragrant individual orange vanilla cake all using this exact most individual recipe as the most beautifully designed individual foundation.
Variation of This Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe
Maria made a version using the most brown butter in place of regular softened butter for the most completely extraordinary and the most deeply caramelized individual brown butter vanilla cake with the same most cloud-like individual vanilla buttercream. Teresa tried adding a most thin individual layer of strawberry jam between the most individual layers before the individual buttercream for the most completely extraordinary and the most beautifully vibrant individual strawberry vanilla layer cake.
For a three-layer version, divide the individual batter among three 8-inch pans and bake for approximately 22 to 26 minutes for the most completely extraordinary and the most dramatically tall individual three-layer homemade vanilla birthday cake. Our Vanilla Sheet Cake makes a beautifully equally buttery vanilla and equally crowd-feeding companion for a complete and wonderful vanilla cake collection.
FAQs About This Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe
How does this compare to other vanilla cake recipes on the site?
Each individual vanilla cake recipe on the most Nonna’s Kitchen site uses the most specific and the most purposefully distinct individual approach: this most individual Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe uses three whole eggs PLUS two extra individual yolks with sour cream and milk for the most properly golden individual crumb, the most Moist Vanilla Layer Cake uses four whole eggs PLUS one extra individual yolk with sour cream and buttermilk for the most refinedly balanced individual result, and the most individual Vanilla Sheet Cake uses three whole eggs PLUS two extra individual yolks with pure buttermilk for the most conveniently crowd-feeding individual sheet format.
Why does the recipe cream the butter before adding sugar?
Beating the most individual softened butter alone for one to two minutes before adding sugar incorporates the most essential individual air into the most individual butter base that creates the most beautifully aerated and the most properly light individual creamed butter base — this most initial individual beating produces the most pale and the most properly creamy individual butter that most effectively incorporates the most individual sugar for the most complete and the most properly light individual creaming that produces the most beautifully fine individual vanilla cake crumb.
Can I use this batter for cupcakes?
Yes — fill individual lined cupcake cups two-thirds full and bake at 350°F for approximately 16 to 18 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean for the most completely extraordinary and the most beautifully individually portioned individual homemade vanilla cupcake using the same most precisely calibrated individual sour cream and extra egg yolk individual batter formula.
Conclusion
This Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe is the most completely extraordinary and the most genuinely definitive moist buttery sour cream vanilla two-layer birthday celebration cake that makes every birthday and every gathering feel genuinely and completely magnificent through the most beautifully moist sour cream extra egg yolk vanilla crumb and the most gloriously cloud-like whipped vanilla buttercream in every single perfectly individual and completely irresistible homemade vanilla cake recipe slice.
We hope it brings the same deeply joyful from-scratch vanilla birthday cake celebration and the same completely delighted table to your kitchen that it has always brought to ours. Make it, share it, and come back to tell us all about it. With all our love, Maria, Lucia, and Teresa.
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Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe The Most Easy Moist Buttery Sour Cream Egg Yolk Vanilla Whipped Buttercream Two Layer Celebration Cake
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes including cooling
- Yield: 12 to 14 servings 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
The most extraordinary moist Homemade Vanilla Cake Recipe made by preheating oven to 350°F greasing flouring and lining two 9-inch pans whisking 3 cups flour 2 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt beating 1 cup softened butter medium-high 1 to 2 minutes until creamy adding 2 cups sugar beating 2 minutes light and pale and fluffy adding 3 room temperature eggs and 2 extra yolks one at a time beating thoroughly then 2 tsp vanilla stirring 1/2 cup room temperature sour cream and 1/2 cup room temperature whole milk on low alternating flour in 3 additions with sour cream milk in 2 additions beginning and ending with flour just combined between each not overmixing dividing between pans baking 28 to 32 minutes until toothpick clean and tops spring back cooling 10 minutes then on racks then beating 1 1/2 cups room temperature butter medium-high full 4 minutes until incredibly pale and aerated adding 5 to 6 cups sifted powdered sugar one cup at a time on low adding cream vanilla and salt increasing to medium-high beating 3 more minutes incredibly light and fluffy assembling with generous buttercream between and over layers decorating with sprinkles. A completely perfect moist buttery sour cream extra yolk vanilla whipped buttercream two-layer birthday celebration cake recipe.
Ingredients
3 cups All-Purpose Flour
2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1 cup Unsalted Butter softened
2 cups Granulated Sugar
3 large Eggs room temperature
2 large Egg Yolks room temperature
2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
1/2 cup Sour Cream room temperature
1/2 cup Whole Milk room temperature
1 1/2 cups Unsalted Butter room temperature for buttercream
5 to 6 cups Powdered Sugar sifted
3 to 4 tbsp Heavy Cream
2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract for buttercream
Pinch of Salt
Sprinkles optional
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F 175°C. Grease flour and line two 9-inch pans.
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. Beat softened butter medium-high 1 to 2 minutes until creamy. Add sugar. Beat 2 minutes light and pale and fluffy.
4. Add eggs and extra yolks one at a time. Beat thoroughly. Add vanilla.
5. Stir sour cream and milk. On low alternate flour in 3 additions with sour cream-milk in 2 additions beginning and ending with flour. Mix just combined. Do not overmix.
6. Divide between pans. Bake 28 to 32 minutes until toothpick clean.
7. Cool 10 minutes. Transfer to racks. Cool completely.
8. Beat butter medium-high full 4 minutes until incredibly pale and aerated.
9. Add powdered sugar one cup at a time on low. Add cream, vanilla, and salt. Beat medium-high 3 more minutes incredibly light and fluffy.
10. Assemble with generous buttercream between and over layers. Decorate with sprinkles.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 32 minutes
- Category: Dessert, Cake, Birthday, Vanilla, Celebration
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 565
- Sugar: 60g
- Sodium: 210mg
- Fat: 28g
- Saturated Fat: 17g
- Unsaturated Fat: 9g
- Trans Fat: 1g
- Carbohydrates: 74g
- Fiber: 0.5g
- Protein: 6g
- Cholesterol: 155mg
Keywords: homemade vanilla cake recipe, easy moist homemade vanilla cake recipe sour cream extra egg yolk butter vanilla whipped buttercream, best from-scratch vanilla birthday cake, moist buttery sour cream extra egg yolk vanilla whipped buttercream birthday cake
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