Simple Vanilla Cake is simple as the name suggests. I’m sure you will feel proud when you make this amazing two layered white cake. It is so easy that everyone can make it. I’m never very good at making layered cakes aka birthday or wedding cakes.
But I achieved making this one! Thank you mom for the recipe! If I could do, I’m sure you can too. This is the recipe you are looking for the best homemade white cake. No, this is not a bakery style cake, you might go back to your childhood when you have a bite because this cake tastes like home.
Simple Vanilla Cake is one of those ultimate recipes everyone should know. You can always make your guests feel special with this easy cake. Keeping things simple always works fine. Mom always uses plain yogurt in her cakes and this one is not an exception. She says it makes the cake soft and moist. Another ingredient which is a must for her is butter. She always warns me about using real butter when making a layered cake. Margarine or oil doesn’t work as fine.
I never feel very comfortable when making a cake. Maybe because I’ve experienced several failures before. But hey you know one should try to overcome her fear rather than escaping from it. So getting this idea as a motto and being successful in making this gorgeous looking Classic Red Velvet Cake, I decided to make layered cakes more often. I really want to get experienced about making perfect layered cakes. So I started with the basic Simple Vanilla Cake. Hope I’ll improve my skills. Believe or not I’m very bad even at cutting a cake into slices and I mostly give this responsibilty to someone else or I just let our guests cut their own slice. I’m just afraid of ruining the whole cake or cutting inequal slices. So the best thing is to ask someone to take up this task for you. And this one is sliced by Yusuf, he’s much better than me.
When I say Simple Vanilla Cake, believe me it is simple; both the baking process and the flavor. This is simply a vanilla cake, with no additional flavors. Pure vanilla.
I bake the cake in a 9-inch cake pan and split it into two using a cake slicer, but you can use two 8-inch cake pans and bake two cakes so that you don’t have to slice. Just make sure the cake cools completely before splitting if you want to work with one cake pan. It’s even better if you chill it for 1-2 hours. You will see it’s much easier to handle when slicing with a knife or a slicer.
I used a classic white frosting flavored with vanilla for icing the cake, but you can use any icing you like.
As always: If you make this recipe, let us know what you think by rating it and leaving a comment below. And post a pic on Instagram too—tag @give_recipe so we can see!
Sign up for the FREE GiveRecipe Newsletter to get the new recipes into your inbox! And stay in touch with us on Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube and Instagram for all the latest updates.
📖 Recipe
Simple Vanilla Cake
Super easy vanilla cake with a classic vanilla frosting. Perfect for any occasion.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened almost as creamy
- 1 and ¾ cup sugar
- 1 whole egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 egg whites, at room temperature
- 1 and ¼ cup plain yogurt
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- A pinch of salt
Frosting:
- 3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 5 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (180C).
- Grease a 9-inch cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. You can use two 8-inch round cake pans if you like and share the batter equally. Put it aside.
- In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Beat the butter with an electric mixer for about 30 seconds. Add in sugar, 1 whole egg and vanilla extract. Beat until combined well.
- Add egg whites and beat for about a minute.
- Add plain yogurt and mix well.
- Stir n the flour mixture. Stir with a spatula until combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Let it cool for 10 minutes and remove from the pan. Let it cool completely. Better if chilled.
- Slice the cake horizantally using a cake slicer or a knife.
For the frosting:
- Maket he frosting right before you start icing the cake.
- Mix butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until creamy.
- Add in the powdered sugar gradually. Add in vanilla and milk. Mix until smooth.
- Add 1 or 2 tablespoons more milk if you think the frosting is too thick.
- Place the bottom layer on a stand and spread 1 cup of icing on it. Gently place the top layer and spread some frosting over it. Try to spread it evenly on the sides until the entire cake is thinly coated. Chill for about 30 minutes.
- Remove from the refrigerator and coat the entire cake with the rest of the frosting. Chill at least for 2 hours before serving.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 1047
- Sugar: 119.6 g
- Sodium: 427.6 mg
- Fat: 49 g
- Carbohydrates: 145.5 g
- Protein: 10.1 g
- Cholesterol: 150.8 mg
Keywords: simple vanilla cake, simple vanilla cake recipe
Marty says
I just made this cake. Wondering why it was dry? I baked it too much. But my oven is crazy. Also looked like yogurt curdled after putting in. What did I do wrong??
★★★★
Zerrin & Yusuf says
Hi Marty,
Sorry to hear that. Yes, you might have baked it too much. It is interesting that yogurt curdled after adding it as yogurt curdles when it is directly exposed to heat. We often use yogurt in cakes and have never experienced this.
CYNTHIA M IRWIN says
Are you using plain greek yogurt or plain yogurt in this recipe?
Chhiwat maghribya says
it looks moist and delicious!Thanks for sharing the recipe,
★★★★