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.
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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.
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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 sea 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.
I am NO baker or chef by any means, so I apologize in advance for the stupid questions. Can you use egg yolk powder or what would be the best egg yolk you would suggest buying? Is real butter ok to use? What is the difference in baking powder and baking soda? Is fine salt the same as just salt?
Hi Jennifer! We recommend using a real egg yolk (from a real chicken egg, separated from the white, in addition to the whole egg). We do not recommend using powdered or replacement eggs. Real butter (unsalted) is also recommended. Fine salt is just regular salt (as opposed to coarse or flaked salt). As for baking powder vs. baking soda, Tessa discusses the differences between the two in-depth in this article here. I hope this helps!
if trying to leave out egg yolks for a white cake, add more buttermilk or more butter?? (white velvet cancer free party and we are ditching the pink theme this year and going all white)
Could I fill these cupcakes? I would like to find a good yellow cupcake recipe, but I am planning to fill with lemon curd. Will these hold up?
We haven’t tested that ourselves, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work! Let us know how your cupcakes turn out!
I’ve made these a few times and they are always a huge hit. Thanks!
So happy to hear that!
Can I double/triple this recipe? Or do I need to make it one batch at a time?
Hi Samantha! We haven’t tried that, but it should be fine! Just make sure that your mixer can that hold that much 🙂
Good recipe however it only made 10 not 12 and I had to scrape for the 10th one
Wow, I’m surprised! How full did you fill each cavity? Did you use a digital scale to measure your ingredients? All cupcake pans have slightly different cavity volumes depending on the brand and style, but usually more, not less, is the result.
Is it possible to fold in something like sliced strawberries without totally throwing off the recipe chemistry?
We haven’t tried that before, though it shouldn’t throw off the chemistry too much. Let us know how that goes!
These taste great however, I have attempted this recipe 3 times and each time they sink in the middle. I live in the mid west so my elevation is low, I did not over mix, and my leaving ingredients was just opened, the last time was the best but they were still con-caved, DO NOT OVER FILL – if you over fill they spill out and look like sugar cookies on top of cupcakes lol. The taste is GREAT but they don’t give you that risen look of a usual cupcake or muffin. I’m a little disappointed because I really like the taste.
I’m so sorry you’ve experienced issues with this recipe, unfortunately, it’s so tough to figure out what went wrong without watching your process! If only we could bake along with you! I live in Michigan and had issues with sinking the second time I made this recipe, and it was due to my butter being too warm. You definitely want to make sure your butter is at a cool room temperature, 67°F (along with your eggs and buttermilk). Not overfilling your liners is definitely key like you suggested, we’ve found that 2/3 full has been a popular solution in the HTH Facebook group. I’d double check to make sure your oven temperature isn’t running too high as well, as that can cause the cupcakes to rise rapidly but then sink due to not-quite-baked middles. I’m so happy you enjoy the taste of these cupcakes, and I really hope that you give this recipe another try, I’d love for them to turn out perfectly for you!
Although I couldn’t eat these delicious cupcakes due to my coeliac, my husband and several others said they were the best. My four year old granddaughter even commented on the buttercream icing which had been made as raspberry flavour. She is a definite conneseur of icing, (if you get me drift!)
Have these been made with gluten free flour, or a mix of rice flour etc, with any success and if so would you please share the recipe.. thanks again for the yummy are there any more cupcakes.
PS I live in Victoria in Australia
Hi Eirene! I’m so happy to hear that everyone enjoyed these cupcakes! Are you a part of the Handle the Heat Facebook Group? We have quite a few members who have made our recipes using gluten or dairy free options, and I think that would be the perfect place for you to ask! Here is a link to join, make sure you answer all three questions 🙂 https://www.facebook.com/groups/handletheheatcommunity
Can I use cake flour?
We haven’t tried that!
As you mentioned in your intro that you share trusted recipe’s I am sure about that now I tried baking this cake for my wife following your recipe it turned out to be instant hit thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe with us
Wonderful to hear that, Vishal! Thanks so much for letting us know 🙂
These were the best yellow cupcakes I ever made. Am not going to look for any other recipe now.. This will be my go to forever!!!!
So happy to hear you enjoyed them, Ruchi, and that they’re now your go-to recipe! Thanks for letting us know 🙂
Would you consider this recipe a “vanilla” cupcake as well as a “yellow” cupcake?
Hi Paula! Both white and yellow cakes are actually vanilla cakes. The difference is that yellow cupcakes contain egg yolks, whereas white cupcakes contain only egg whites; however, they are both vanilla cakes. Here is a great article explaining more in detail: https://www.thekitchn.com/whats-the-difference-between-white-yellow-and-vanilla-cake-230663. Hope that helps!
Hi Emily and thank you for the great article. I have gone around and around with flavors and colors for a long time. I did read a great article from Tessa Huff explaining the differences. She said “vanilla” is simply the flavor, it’s about what kind of crumb/structure you are after: butter cake; sponge cake…..that was a great article. So…if I wanted to make this yellow cupcake recipe, but didn’t want a strong yellow color, more of a mix of the white and yellow (does that make sense), would I eliminate the extra yolk? Prob not….over thinker here.
We haven’t tried that, so I can’t say for sure! I’ve made this recipe 6 times so far (I test all of our recipes prior to publishing), but the eggs (and yolk) add extra richness and moisture (these cupcakes are SO good), and I don’t think I’d mess with it! What I would suggest is to try the recipe as written, see what you think, and then experiment with a second batch removing the yolk and compare the difference. Sorry I can’t help more! If you experiment, let us know what you find out 🙂