Basic easy vanilla cupcakes
This is my recipe for basic vanilla cupcakes. The recipe makes 12 to 14 standard sized cupcakes. There really easy to make and really tasty. They can be finished with any colour buttercream and any decorations. However, you choose to decorate them is very much up to you and they will always look stunning. There great for presents, celebrations or just a treat just for yourself.
Ingredients
Makes: 12 cupcakes
- For the cupcakes
- 180g baking spread or unsalted butter, room temperature
- 180g caster sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 large eggs
- 180g self-raising flour
- 1 generous teaspoon baking powder
- For the buttercream
- 250g unsalted butter, room temperature
- 300g icing sugar, sifted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 to 3 tablespoons whole milk
- 3 to 4 tablespoons double cream
- a few drops of gel food colouring (any colour)
Method
Prep:20min ›
Cook:14min ›
Ready in:34min
- Preheat the oven to 180 C / 160 C Fan / Gas 4. Prepare a muffin tray with 12 cupcake cases.
- Cream the butter and sugar together till light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract, then add the eggs one at a time.
- Sieve the flour into the mix and add the baking powder. Mix until well blended and smooth.
- Using a ice cream scoop, spoon the mixture into each cupcake case (one scoop per case).
- Bake in the middle of the oven for 10 to 14 minutes. Allow to rest in the tray on a wire rack for 5 minutes before taking the cupcakes out of the tray to cool completely for an hour.
- To make the buttercream, sift the icing sugar into a large bowl and add the vanilla. Cube the butter and add to the mix. Mix until smooth (this may take a while).
- Divide the buttercream into separate bowls and add a few drops of the gel food colouring into each bowl and blend briefly again.
Decant into a piping bag with a nozzle of your choice and pipe the icing over the cooled cupcakes.
Decorate however you choose.
Cook's note
The buttercream that I use for this recipe is also a fairly standard recipe that I use as a base for the majority of my cupcakes. Generally I find that 250g butter and 300g icing sugar will make enough buttercream for at least 14 individual cases with a little left over... for the chef of course! :)
Tip
When you first cream the icing sugar and the butter together to make the buttercream, place a tea towel over your mixer. This prevents the icing sugar and its cloud of dust from covering your kitchen. Trust me it's worth it.
