Hello friends.
Let this be a bit of sunshine in your day.
This is a very vintage Joy the Baker recipe I’ve brought back to life for this modern day. Cupcakes feel… I dunno… maybe a little trivial considering our current reality, but even as strange as things are, some things remain the same – our sweet teeth and need for little cakes.
This recipe is a wonder in that it uses one simple stick of butter to make and frost 12 tender little cupcakes. We’re making a lot from a little these days, in more ways than one.
I hope this moment finds you well and helps to take a refuge in the kitchen with sugar and sprinkles for a few hours.
Here’s what you’ll need for these fishes and loaves cupcakes:
• One stick of butter: 3 tablespoons for the cupcakes + 5 tablespoons for the frosting. All softened, of course.
• Flour, leavening, and salt for the cupcakes.
• Granulated and powdered sugar for the cupcakes and frosting respectively.
• An egg to bind the cakes.
• Vanilla extract though a dash of almond extract would also be nice.
• Whole milk for both the cupcakes and the frosting.
These cupcakes start rather unconventionally.
Instead of creaming just the butter and sugar we’ll whisk together all of the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Add the softened butter and, using electric hand beaters, work the butter into the dry ingredients.
You’ll come to a sandy mixture – that’s right.
This isn’t the same texture as creaming together only butter and sugar.
Sandy with a few small bits of butter that remain is absolutely spot on.
Whisk together the milk, egg, and vanilla extract until the yolk and white are well combined.
Add the wet ingredients, all at once to the buttery dry ingredients.
Beat until smooth and a little soupy.
The batter should be smooth and glossy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, we’ll need every bit of batter for 12 cupcakes.
Line a muffin tin with cupcake papers and fill each cupcake to 3/4 full with cake batter.
I’ll tell ya now, you’ll need every bit of batter to fill 12 cupcakes so scrape the bowl well.
Bake the cupcakes to puffed and golden. They really are the sweetest little cakes!
While the cakes cool whip together the powdered sugar, remaining butter, milk, and splash of vanilla.
Add a few dashes of whatever food coloring you fancy. Yellow feels appropriately sunny.
Spread each cooled cupcake with frosting. Use a butterknife or offset spatula to spread the frosting, we’re not making enough frosting to use a piping bag for these cupcakes.
Top with a few sprinkles for ya know… festivities sake.
Enjoy with milk. Live in this fine moment.
Photographs with my dear Jon Melendez.
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- a scant 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- pinch of salt
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2 tablespoons whole milk
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a medium bowl whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Add the butter and use electric hand beaters on medium-low speed to combine the mixture to sandy. There still may be a few small bits of butter, that's ok!
- Gradually pour in half of the milk and beat until the milk is just incorporated.
- In a small bowl whisk together the egg, vanilla and remaining milk together and pour into the flour mixture and continue beating until just incorporated. Scrape any unmixed ingredients from the side or the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Continue mixing on high speed until the batter is smooth, about 2 minutes.
- Spoon the batter into paper lined muffin tins, dividing between the 12 cups. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until light golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool slightly in the pan, then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
- In a medium bowl, combine powdered sugar and butter. Using electric hand beaters, on low, start to incorporate the two. Combine the milk and the vanilla extract and slowly stream it into the butter and sugar mixture. Once incorporated, turn the mixer to high and beat until the frosting is light and fluffy, at least 5 minutes. The longer the frosting is beaten, the fluffier and lighter it becomes. If you find that your frosting is getting to warm in the summer months, stop beating and set in the fridge for a few minutes. Once chilled, hook the frosting back up the the mixer and beat once more until you reach the desired consistency.
- Whip in desired food coloring.
- Use an offset spatula or butterknife to spread frosting on each cupcake. Top generously with sprinkles and enjoy! Cupcakes will last covered at cool room temperature for 3 days.
Ali Allen
It IS perfect timing. My birthday is next week and my kids are so excited to have cupcakes. I love that this uses minimal ingredients. Thank you for sharing and I hope you are well!
Emily
No handmixer and don’t want to drag out the kitchen aid. Would beating the butter in by hand work equally well?
joythebaker
Absolutely give it a shot!
Danielle
Perfect timing, Joy! My daughter turns four on Sunday. In an effort to conserve ingredients and our obvious people-who-live-in-this-house-only celebration, we’ll be making these! Many thanks!
Ann
My daughter turns 4 on Sunday as well! Wishing I’d found this recipe before making a full 24 cupcakes from a box mix for the 4 of our in our household, but I won’t complain too much about extra cupcakes throughout next week.
LB
Thank you for being you. You are always a bright light and even more so during our current situation.
Erin
These look so delicious, and would be perfect for my husband’s birthday this weekend. Could I use 1% milk instead of whole? It’s all we have on hand and we’re being very strategic (of course) about grocery store trips. Thanks for your uplifting posts and IG feed, they’re extra appreciated during this crazy mess.
joythebaker
Yes yes – feel free to use 1% milk that’ll be totally fine! Happy Birthday to your husband!
Cyndie
I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about you in NOLA hoping you are healthy and continue to be well. You bring so much joy to so many. Thank you.
Renee
I think a little playful indulgence can really go a long way right now. I’m almost out of sugar, and hoping to find more at the store today. I have a feeling I’m going to need to bake a lot of cakes to get me through this. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Florence
Look delicious…just wondering if this recipe is in one of your books? Thank you
Erin Raine
Will this bake the same (just more time) if I make this in to a sheet cake or double round?
joythebaker
I don’t think it’s enough batter for a sheet pan. I have a recipe called Everybody’s Birthday Cake that bakes in a sheet pan properly. This could likely bake into one single 8 or 9-inch round.
Angela Soll
Will half and half work? Or a combo of whip cream and plant based milk? I don’t want to go to the store :))))
Barb Larson
Half & Half is literally half heavy cream and half milk. I’d maybe dulite it a bit, or try it out for a richer cupcake.
Carolyn
I use Pet milk in buttercream icing. Great sub.
Suzy Parker
Greetings Joy,
Thank you for the memories of this sweet little gem. Making vanilla cupcakes brings back memories of being the “room mother” when my son, now 31 years old?, was in elementary school. These times too will be but a memory… Please stay well.
Laurie Venora
Do you think that i could use gluten free flour in this recipe?
joythebaker
Yes, Laurie – I think you could use a 1-1 gf flour blend for these cupcakes!
Dale
Thank you from Vermont My husband does need a bit of sweet every now and then .
Stay well and healthy! Dale
Kelli
Cupcakes=comfort. We all need cupcakes every day.
Just a FYI I noticed a typo. I bet you meant REFUGE not REFUSE.
autocorrect ?
joythebaker
You’re right, thank you Kelli!
Maggie
These are perfect! I never want to make a batch of cupcakes due to how many the recipe makes. Will make once I buy butter and milk!