These moist vanilla sour cream cupcakes are simply delicious. This is a simple easy and effortless recipe. A perfect recipe to have when you want to make delicious cupcakes quickly and without any fuss. Also, the sour cream keeps these cupcakes moist and creamy. Enjoy them as a tea cake just on its own or make some delicious sweet cream buttercream to go with it.
Table of Content
These are an adaptation of my favorite vanilla cupcake recipe. It's really simple and easy. You do not need any mixer or special equipment. Just a bowl and whisk is great for these no-fuss recipes. I make them so often that my kids eat them just as tea cakes without any frosting. However, I do want to give you this easy to make sweet cream buttercream that you will love.
I will be honest and tell you every time Aadi's school teacher ask me to send cupcake treats for the kids - I always go for these. The praises I get on these is just always such a wonderful feeling.
Ingredients and substitutes
- All-purpose flour - I use all-purpose flour for most of my cupcakes. This plain flour is easily available at most supermarkets. There is no need to look for any special self-raising or cake flours.
- Butter - Unsalted butter helps me control the amount of salt in my recipe. And yet, if salt' ed is all you have just omit salt in the recipe.
- Eggs - It's always best to use large eggs for baking. Large egg size is usually about 55 to 60 grams in weight.
- Sour cream - Adds a soft crumb to the cake or cupcakes. Also, making sour cream at home is very easy and affordable. See here for my recipe how to make sour cream at home.
Step by step instructions
Bake cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 170 C / 340F.
- Line your muffin pan with cupcake wrappers.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt - mix thru.
- Lightly cream butter and sugar.
- Add the eggs one at a time.
- Followed by the sour cream.
- Lastly, fold in the flour mixture.
- Divide batter into the cupcake wrappers about ¾ full.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes until lightly golden on the top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool until ready to frost.
Prepare whipped cream buttercream
- Mix all ingredients in a bowl.
- Whip until light, fluffy and white. (The more you whip the better)
Frost the cupcakes
- Prepare a piping bag with a large star tip.
- Add a few different gel colors to the piping bag surface (not too much).
- Then drop in the buttercream.
- Use a skewer to swirl the buttercream in the bag so it's a bit marbled.
- Close the bag and pipe frosting.
12 Tips for baking perfect cupcakes
- Follow the recipe properly with minimum substitutions.
- Always use good quality ingredients.
- Make sure the ingredients are all at room temperature.
- Never over mix the batter.
- Use a scoop for baking similar size cupcakes.
- Always preheat the oven before baking - a hot oven works best for cupcakes.
- Bake cupcakes at the right temperature.
- Always bake cupcakes on the center rack one tray at a time.
- Never open the oven during baking - no peeking.
- Remove cupcakes from their pan no later than 7 to 10 minutes after baking.
- Store cupcakes properly after baking. Place them in an airtight container at room temperature. Cupcakes dry in the fridge unless wrapped properly with plastic wrap.
- Simple syrup the cupcakes if don't plan to eat them on the same day.
Frequently asked questions
Bake them until just done - over-baking can dry them out.
Use ingredients like sour cream, buttermilk, yogurt, apple sauce that help keep the cupcakes moist.
Add simple syrup to cupcakes before frosting.
Moist fluffy cupcakes are all about adding volume to your batter when mixing. Which means that knowing how to mix your batter is important.
Over mixing the batter can collapse cupcakes, thus taking away all that fluffiness. As a rule of thumb, cream butter and sugar until the sugar has almost melted - 2 minutes.
Add eggs one at a time - and make sure each one is well incorporated.
Then, add the flour and liquid - but mix until just incorporated. It is easy to over mix at this stage.
There are a few things you can do - we discussed it in this post -- how to avoid cupcake liners peeling after baking.
There are few things you can do to bake similar size cupcakes - we discussed that in detail here - How to bake same size cupcakes.
I like to bake at 160 - 170 C, or 310 to 325 F, or Gas mark 2 - 3.
Depending on how hot your oven temperature is, cupcakes usually take between 18 to 22 minutes. If your cupcakes bake quicker than 18 minutes or longer than 22 minutes, it's probably best to check if your oven needs calibration.
Can I make these as chocolate sour cream cupcakes?
Absolutely. Replace 3 tablespoon all-purpose flour in this recipe with cocoa powder to make these sour cream cupcakes chocolate flavor.
What other buttercream or frosting can I use for these brown sugar cupcakes?
Oh, these cupcakes are delicious with just about any frosting. I have shared with you more than 30 different buttercream flavors here on the blog but these are just a few suggestions.
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Printable Recipe
Vanilla Sour Cream Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Buttercream
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Conversions Used
1 lb = 453 grams, 1 cup = 240 ml, 1 stick = 113g, 1 tbsp= 15 ml, 1 tsp= 5 ml,
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup (160 g) All-purpose flour
- ¾ cup (150 g) White sugar
- 4 oz (113 g) Unsalted butter ((1 stick, ½ cup) room temperature)
- ¼ cup (60 ml) Sour cream
- 3 Eggs (large)
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon Baking soda
- 2 teaspoon Vanilla extract
Whipped Cream Buttercream
- 4 oz (113 g) Butter ((1 stick, ½ cup) unsalted, room temperature)
- ½ cup (120 ml) Whipping cream
- 2 cup (240 g) Powdered sugar (confectioners sugar)
- 2 teaspoon Vanilla extract
Instructions
Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 170 C / 340F.
- Line your muffin pan with cupcake wrappers.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt - mix thru.
- Lightly cream butter and sugar.
- Add the eggs one at a time.
- Followed by the sour cream.
- Lastly, fold in the flour mixture.
- Divide batter into the cupcake wrappers about ¾ full.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes until lightly golden on the top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool until ready to frost.
Whipped cream buttercream
- Mix all ingredients in a bowl.
- Whip until light, fluffy, and white.
Assemble
- Prepare a piping bag with a large star tip.
- Add a few different gel colors to the piping bag surface (not too much).
- Then drop in the buttercream.
- Use a skewer to swirl the buttercream in the bag so it's a bit marbled.
- Close the bag and pipe frosting.
Nutrition Information
The nutrition information and metric conversion are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee its accuracy. If this data is important to you please verify with your trusted nutrition calculator. Thank you
Cindy
Is this frosting considered very sweet? Can the amount of sugar be lessened without jeopardizing the outcome?
Veena Azmanov
Cindy, you can omit the butter and reduce the sugar to just 2 tbsp to make a simple whipped cream frosting. However, if you use butter, you will need powdered sugar to hold it together.
Angel
Hello veeena... Is their any substitute for sour cream. As ots not available here.. Can I use this cupcake for fondant toppers. ? Thanks in advance 🙂
Veena Azmanov
Look on my blog under Basic recipes - how to make sour cream for baking <3
Premlata Kundalia
egg ka substitute because hum log veg hi
Veena Azmanov
You can try an eggless recipe from my blog - I have not tested this but 1/2 cup yogurt might work. Thanks
Komal Munot
What can be used as a substitute of egg
Veena Azmanov
You can try an eggless recipe from my blog - I have not tested this but 1/2 cup yogurt might work. Thanks
Marian
I made these yesterday, I never got a chance to decorate them.
I wanted to see if they were cooked inside so I cut open one and the next thing you know my hubby and kids were eating them warm out of the oven.
They are so moist and delicious. You are right sour cream does give them a nice soft crumn. Need to make more today for an order. Thanks for the recipe.
Usha Arjun
Hi mam... Is this frosting stable during hot temperatures....?
Please reply....
Veena Azmanov
Usha. Whipped cream usually never stable in hot temperatures.