Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line two cupcake pans (or a muffin pan will do) with paper liners. You can also bake one pan at a time if you only have one cupcake pan. This recipe will make about 24 cupcakes.

Step 2

Combine the vanilla and buttermilk in a separate measuring cup and set it aside.

Step 3

Next, add the eggs and oil to a separate bowl then whisk and set them aside.

Step 4

Add the cake flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda to the bowl of your stand mixer with the paddle attachment. You can use a large bowl and an electric mixer if you don’t have a stand mixer, just mix for longer. Use these photos as a guide instead of mixing by time.

Step 5

Then add the softened butter to the rest of the dry ingredients and mix on low until the mixture resembles a sandy texture. Depending on how soft your butter is, this might take a minute or two.

Step 6

Pour the milk mixture into your dry ingredients and increase the speed to medium (speed 4 on a KitchenAid, speed 2 on a Bosch). Mix for 1 1/2 minutes to develop the fluffy structure of the cupcake. The batter will go from being yellow to a fluffy white.

Step 7

Slowly add your egg mixture in three parts and mix on low until it's fully combined.

Step 8

Fill your liners 2/3 of the way full with the cupcake batter. I use my kitchen scale to measure out 1.5 ounces of batter per cupcake.

Step 9

Bake the cupcakes for 15-20 minutes or until they are just starting to turn golden brown and the center of the cupcake springs back when you lightly touch it. I rotate my cupcakes halfway through baking for even browning. If you’re making mini cupcakes, bake for less time.

Step 10

Let your cupcakes cool in the pans for five minutes, then move them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Step 11

Place your favorite frosting into a piping bag with a tip, I like a 1M or a 2F, and pipe a swirl on top. I love using my easy vanilla buttercream and topping them with a few sprinkles. Swiss meringue buttercream or strawberry buttercream would also be delicious.

Step 12

Place the pasteurized egg whites and powdered sugar in the bowl of your stand mixer with the whisk attachment. Combine the ingredients on low and then whip them on high for 4-5 minutes (until shiny) to dissolve the powdered sugar.

Step 13

Now add in the salt and vanilla extract. If you want to add in any food coloring, now is the time.

Step 14

Add in your softened butter piece-by-piece, then whip it on high. It will look curdled at first. This is definitely normal. It will also look pretty yellow, just keep whipping.

Step 15

After your buttercream looks like this, remove about 1 cup of buttercream and melt it in the microwave for 10-15 seconds.

Step 16

Pour it back into the whipping buttercream to bring it all together.

Step 17

Whip it on high for 8-10 minutes until the buttercream is white, light, and shiny. If it tastes like sweet ice cream, then it’s ready!

Step 18

Finally, switch to a paddle attachment and mix the buttercream on low speed for up to 15-20 minutes to make the buttercream ultra smooth and remove any air bubbles. This step is optional, but if you want really creamy frosting, you don’t want to skip this final step.

Step 19

For extra white buttercream, add a drop of purple food coloring. The purple counteracts the yellow in the butter, toning the buttercream to make it white.