Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: Sweet without being cloying, these even taste good without frosting!
Texture: Ultra moist and fluffy.
Ease: Very easy!
Pros: Classic go-to cupcake recipe for so many occasions.
Cons: None.
Would I make this again? Absolutely.
This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.
These Ultra-Moist Yellow Cupcakes are the most crowd-pleasing cupcakes ever!
Recently I set out on what turned out to be a very tedious and often frustrating baking adventure.
I had made my Yellow Layer Cake recipe into cupcakes but didn’t love how they turned out. They were too fine-crumbed for how I prefer cupcakes. I want my cupcakes to be a bit looser and ultra-moist.
You see, cupcakes don’t need quite the structure a layer cake demands to hold steady. They just need enough to support a generous amount of frosting.
I thought it would be easy enough to tweak my layer cake recipe for cupcakes, but that was not the case.
It took over 8 experimental batches to get this Yellow Cupcakes recipe just right. I was SWIMMING in failed cupcakes. When. Finally. After weeks. My team and I finally nailed the recipe!
I wanted to create Yellow Cupcakes that were as moist and tender as the box mix cupcakes but without the cloying artificial flavor. The result? Yellow cupcakes that actually taste good on their own but are phenomenal with my Best Ever Chocolate American Buttercream recipe or my Best Buttercream Frosting.
Sprinkle of Science
How to Make Ultra-Moist Yellow Cupcakes
How to Make MOIST Cupcakes:
- Measure your flour correctly: I highly recommend using a digital kitchen scale to weigh flour. If you don’t have one, use the “spoon and level” method to measure with measuring cups. This helps to prevent dry or crumbly yellow cupcakes because it’s so easy to compact too much flour into your measuring cups.
- Don’t reduce the sugar: Sugar does SO much more than simply sweetening these cupcakes. Learn more about sugar’s role in baking cupcakes here.
- Additional rich ingredients: The egg and egg yolk add richness and moisture, and the buttermilk also tenderizes and adds flavor (more on that below). Oil also assists in this – more on that just below.
Using Butter and Oil in This Cupcake Recipe?
One of the keys to Ultra-Moist Yellow Cupcakes is a little bit of oil! Because oil is an unsaturated fat (liquid at room temperature), it helps provide the sensation of moisture on the palate. We also cream sugar and butter, which allows air to whip into the batter for a light texture. Using butter also provides unparalleled rich flavor.
The Secret Ingredient to Ultra-Moist Cupcakes: Buttermilk!
- The goal for this Yellow Cupcake recipe was something super tender and moist, and buttermilk was the clear winner for both texture and taste!
- Real buttermilk in this recipe makes a WORLD of difference (often sold as ‘low fat’ in the grocery store).
- Buttermilk substitutions simply don’t work as well.
- I’ve tested variations of this recipe with whole milk, as well as sour cream. The whole milk doesn’t provide as much flavor. The sour cream provided tons of flavor but made for a tighter, finer crumb.
- You can see my extensive testing on buttermilk substitutions in my Buttermilk 101 article.
What is the Best Baking Pan for Cupcakes?
I like the Wilton Recipe Right Muffin Pans for baking cupcakes. Avoid using anything with a dark or gold-colored lining as this can result in browning or burning the bottoms and edges of the cupcakes.
Note that every brand of muffin / cupcake pan will have cavities of slightly different diameters and volumes. Some pans have smaller cavities than others. Always fill yours with batter 2/3 to 3/4 full and not more.
How to Prevent Cupcake Liners from Sticking
Oftentimes this is due to the brand of liners either being cheap or overly decorative. This is my favorite brand of cupcake liner, available on Amazon. If this is a common problem for you, check out my article on how to prevent cupcake liners from sticking here.
How to Prevent Cupcakes from Sinking
- Overmixing, expired baking powder, opening the oven door too much, or underbaking can all cause cupcakes to sink in the center.
- Overfilling your cupcake pan cavities can also cause sinking. Fill 2/3 to 3/4 full. You may end up with more than a dozen cupcakes since every brand and style of cupcake pan has a slightly different cavity volume.
- If you’re 3,000 feet or more above sea level, you’ll most likely need to reduce the baking powder in this recipe to avoid the cupcakes sinking or collapsing in the center. Start by cutting the amount of baking powder to 1 teaspoon if at 3,000 feet, and 3/4 teaspoon if at 5,000 feet or higher. This may require some experimentation depending on your specific microclimate.
- Learn more about How to Prevent Cakes & Cupcakes From Sinking here.
How to Decorate Cupcakes
To match the Ultra-Moist Yellow Cupcakes you see in these photos, place the frosting in a piping bag fitted with a large plain open tip and pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes. Sprinkle with pastel rainbow sprinkles. You can also use an open star tip, like the Wilton 1M tip.
How to Serve Ultra-Moist Yellow Cupcakes in Warm Weather
If you plan on serving Yellow Cupcakes outside in a warm, humid, or sunny environment, store in the fridge just until you set up for the party. By the time everyone is ready for cupcakes, it should be the perfect temperature without running the risk of melting.
How to Make Yellow Cupcakes Ahead of Time
Ultra-Moist Yellow Cupcakes can be baked a day ahead of time. Note that the tops of the cupcakes will become slightly sticky the longer they’re stored but the frosting mostly camouflages this.
The buttercream on its own can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week or the freezer for up to 1 month. If frozen, let defrost in the fridge overnight. Let come to room temperature and re-whip in the stand mixer until light and fluffy again.
How to Store Ultra-Moist Yellow Cupcakes
Frosted Yellow Cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 day, or in the fridge for up to 3 days. Allow to come to room temperature before serving.
Buttercream Recipes You’ll Love:
- The BEST Cream Cheese Frosting
- Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream Frosting
- Peanut Butter Frosting
- Best American Buttercream Frosting
- Classic Swiss Meringue Buttercream
More Birthday Recipes:
- Best Birthday Cake
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake
- Best Chocolate Cake
- Chocolate Cupcakes
- Red Velvet Cupcakes
Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
Become a Baking Genius!
Sign up for our free email newsletter for NEW recipes & baking science secrets.
Yellow Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons (175 grams) all-purpose flour, measured correctly
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
- 6 tablespoons (85 grams) unsalted butter, at cool room temperature
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 large egg, at cool room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk, at cool room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1/2 cup (119 grams) buttermilk, at cool room temperature
- 1
Batch of Best Chocolate American Buttercream
Instructions
Make the cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a standard muffin tin with paper liners.
- In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.
- In a large bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed. Add the oil and beat for another minute, or until smooth. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla one at a time, beating very well between additions until combined.
- On low speed, add the flour mixture and buttermilk in three alternating additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Mix until just combined. Do not overmix. Batter will be fairly thick.
- Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake cavities, filling each about 2/3 to 3/4 full. Don't overfill – you may need to bake up to 15 cupcakes if using a pan with smaller cavities. Bake for about 15 to 18 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean and the tops are springy to the touch. Let cool for 20 minutes in tin before turning out onto a cooling rack.
Frost the cupcakes:
- Use an offset spatula to frost each cupcake. Alternatively, place the frosting in a piping bag fitted with a round or star tip and pipe the frosting onto the cupcakes.
- Frosted cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 day, or in the fridge for up to 3 days. Allow to come to room temperature before serving.
My cupcakes came out good but they almost had a corn bread texture to them from the top part, and they weren’t as moist at i thought they’d be. Does anyone know what I possibly did wrong??
Hi! Can you substitute another cooking oil in place of vegetable oil? Thanks!
Any neutral tasting oil, like canola or avocado, would work just fine 🙂
How many cupcakes does this recipe make??
Hi John! This recipe should make about 15 cupcakes, filling each about 2/3 to 3/4 full. However, it will depend on the size of your cupcake pan cavities. Hope that helps and let us know how they turn out! Happy baking!
At first I was scared because the batter was thick. I’ve tried some recipes in the past with thick batter and the cupcakes turned out dense. I was surprised with how soft and moist these cupcakes are. I just started to have my small home business specializing with floral cupcakes and cupcake bouquets. I wanted to focus on the texture and the taste of my cupcakes aside from the intricate design. I am pretty sure my cupcakes would be a hit. All of the flavors I offer I am now getting from this website as newly improved cupcakes. They are foolproof recipes. Thank you for sharing and helping people making dreams come true.
I adored this recipe it was INCREDIBLE!!!!!
This recipe looks delicious! Have you tested it in a mini cupcake pan? Thoughts on baking time? 10 minutes?
Hi Ashley! We haven’t tried that, but it should work just fine – mini cupcakes usually need about 9-12 minutes in the oven. I hope that helps! Happy baking 🙂
I am the now the hit of the men’s church groups taste buds and tummies! I baked these for my husbands event and when he came home his eyes were huge and he said they were better than any bakery cupcake and that every single man at the group was in love with them. I am now making these today (2 days later) for my sons 25th birthday! Thank you for such an awesome recipe. They were so delicious. I also used the Best Buttercream frosting recipe on top. Perfect icing!
I’ve made these cupcakes a few times now. I’ve always doubled the batch. They’ve been fine. A little dense; maybe a little too much buttermilk taste. But they were edible, and people said they liked them. (I was never all that impressed.) However, I just decided tonight to make them in a pinch for a Christmas party tomorrow. BUT, I measured in grams tonight, whereas I had never done that before. Pardon my language but holy sh*t – what a difference it makes! They are freaking delicious!! To anyone reading this: trust me, measure in grams for the ingredients that call for it. You will not be disappointed.
These cupcakes are so, so good! The texture is amazing – it is light and fluffy; the small amount of oil gives them the satisfying moisture of a box mix. This will be my go-to recipe from now on! Thank you Tessa!
So glad to hear it, Bonnie!!
Hi Tessa. Thank you for your lovely website. I’d love to make these cupcakes. Would it be possible to tell me how many grams correspond teaspons of baking and soda? Many thanks. Caroline
Hi Caroline! Tessa prefers not including gram measurements of teaspoon measurements because most home-use kitchen scales aren’t accurate enough at such a small level, so these ingredients need to be measured by the teaspoon/half teaspoon/quarter teaspoon. I hope that helps 🙂