Vanilla Bean Cake Recipe

This sweet Vanilla Bean Cake Recipe is a buttery white cake bursting with sweet vanilla flavor and is the perfect canvas for all your favorite fillings and frostings! Incredibly tender, better than a box mix, and 100% from scratch, this bakery-style vanilla cake will impress everyone!

 

Homemade Vanilla Cake From Scratch 

If you’re passionate about an incredibly good slice of cake, then this Vanilla Bean Cake recipe is for you! This is the ultimate recipe with detailed instructions to create the BEST-tasting vanilla bean cake you’ll ever have!

And don’t worry, it’s super easy to make even if baking cakes from scratch isn’t something you do very often!

Why You’ll Love This Vanilla Bean Cake

You’ll love this cake for its easy ingredients, decadent appearance, and flavor-packed bite! The sweet taste of vanilla starts with the batter that’s made with vanilla bean extract, travels to the baked cakes that are brushed with vanilla simple syrup, and ends with creamy vanilla frosting!

Cake flour, vanilla bean paste, and high-quality butter are standout ingredients that help to make the very best cake! Since cake flour has only a 7 to 9% protein content compared to all-purpose flour, which has 10 to 12%, there’s less gluten that forms in this cake.

This simple flour swap makes a large impact on the final crumb of the cake, giving you a light, fluffy dessert! To go with the tender crumb is that mouthwatering vanilla flavor.

To ensure that this cake has the very best vanilla flavor, I chose to use vanilla bean paste in the batter. This is because the paste has a more intense flavor whose thick consistency also holds specks of vanilla bean seeds that make for an eye-pleasing experience as well!

The last standout ingredient is butter! For the best rich flavor, I suggest using a European-style butter since it holds a higher fat content. I prefer using Kerrygold butter or Finlandia.

How To Make A Vanilla Cake

Step 1: Mix cake flour, granulated sugar, powdered milk, baking powder, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer that’s fitted with a paddle attachment.

Step 2: Add the unsalted butter to the dry ingredients and mix at medium-low speed until the mixture takes on a sandy texture; this is called reverse creaming.

Step 3: One at a time, add in the large eggs and large egg whites, mixing after each addition. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl down as you go.

Step 4: Add in the vanilla bean paste and then the whole milk in three parts. Mix after each addition. Once all of the whole milk has been added, mix until the batter becomes smooth.

Step 5: Use a pastry brush to apply magic cake release liberally to the bottom and sides of the cake pan. You can also grease with nonstick spray or shortening and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Step 6: Pour the batter equally into two prepared pans. Then smooth out the top of the batter and bake until the edges of the cake begin to pull away from the pan and the top springs back when it’s gently touched.

Step 7: As soon as the cakes come out of the oven, brush the tops of them with vanilla simple syrup. Then, allow the cakes to cool in the pans before flipping them onto a wire rack. Once they’ve been flipped onto the wire rack, brush the bottoms and sides with the remaining simple syrup. Afterward, allow them to cool for at least an hour before frosting.

Step 8: Prepare the frosting by creaming the unsalted butter, vanilla bean extract, and salt using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.

Step 9: Add the powdered sugar in one cup at a time, alternating with heavy cream one ounce at a time. After each addition, mix the frosting at low speed only until incorporated.

Step 10: Whip the frosting at high speed until it becomes light and fluffy.

Step 11: Assemble the cakes by placing one layer on top of your cake stand, plate, or board. Then, add some frosting on top to create a thick middle layer of frosting. I recommend using an offset spatula for frosting.

Step 12: Place the second cake layer on top of the frosting and top it with frosting. Spread the frosting all over the cake to create a thin crumb coat. Afterward, place the cake in the fridge to chill and firm up the frosting layer.

Step 13: Remove from the refrigerator and finish frosting the cake with its final layer. Add sprinkles if desired.

Reverse Creaming Method

Also known as the “paste method,” this technique beats very soft butter into the dry ingredients of a cake instead of creaming it with the sugars prior to adding the egg, liquid, and dry ingredients. Rose Levy Beranbaum popularized the method in her cookbook, The Cake Bible, back in the 80s.

This method emulsifies the butter into the dry ingredients, resulting in ultra-tender cake. The butter coats the dry ingredients, which prevents too much gluten from forming as well as limits the possibility of overmixing.

This technique gives cakes more of that storebought texture by bringing the fat and dry ingredients together first to lend to a more velvety cake texture. It also usually leads to flatter cakes that don’t need to be trimmed before frosting and makes a very sturdy crumb that’s perfect for soaking up simple syrup and holding up thick raspberry cake filling!

Vanilla Bean Cake Recipe Tips

• Cake Pan Size – This recipe can be made with 9-inch or 8-inch pans. The 8-inch cake pans make pretty thick layers, and the centers will likely come out with small bubbles. These are the 8-inch pans I use with great success and the 9-inch ones (affiliate links)!
• Lining The Pan – Removing the cake layers perfectly from the pan is an important step to create a flawless-looking cake! To do this, I’d recommend using homemade cake goop! However, you can also spray the pan with non-stick cooking spray and then line them with parchment paper.
• Dividing Batter – For even layers, you’ll want to divide the batter into the two pans equally. I usually aim for 765 to 780g per pan. You can use a kitchen scale to measure for accuracy!
• Cake Doneness – Since all ovens and pans will bake differently, there’s a wide range of doneness time. I’d suggest starting with 35 minutes of baking time and then checking the cake layers for doneness. Once a kitchen thermometer inserted into the center of the cake reads 200 degrees F, they’re finished baking.
• Frosting Consistency – When making the frosting, you can add additional powdered sugar if it appears wet or grainy. If the frosting appears to be too stiff, you can add a tablespoon of heavy cream.
• Assembling The Cake – To secure the cake to a cake stand, board, or plate, first spread a dollop of frosting onto it. Then, place the bottom layer onto it. This will help grip the cake and keep it secure!

Vanilla Cake FAQs

Let’s Connect!

If you’ve tried this recipe, please let me know how you liked it in the comments below and leave a review. I love hearing from you!

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