Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Icing - Non Vegan

Vanilla cupcakes are one of the simplest bakes you can do, in fact I'm pretty sure they're the first thing I baked without the help of my Mum! There's no need to turn to a box cake mix when you have this simple recipe to follow, what are you waiting for? Bake them now!

Admittedly these aren't the most exciting thing you could bake, however they are super easy to make and always go down a treat, and have often been a lifesaver when I have guests coming but have forgotten to prepare a pudding or snack. The simplicity of the recipe means it's easy to remember, it's one of the few recipes I can always do no problem from the top of my head!

This is the recipe I used for my birthday cake and the Seaside Cupcakes. 

This is a basic cake recipe, which can easily be turned into a chocolate cake mix by substituting out 40g of flour for 40g of cocoa powder. Feel free to make the icing  more colourful by adding a few drops of food colouring!

Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Icing

Total time: 45 Minutes Plus Cooling Time

Yield: 18 Cupcakes

Ingredients

Cupcakes 

• 200g Butter (Room Temperature)
• 200g Caster Sugar
• 4 Eggs
• 200g Self-Raising Flour
• 1/2 Tsp Vanilla Extract

Icing

• 250g Icing Sugar (Sieved)
• 80g Butter (Room Temperature)
• 1-2 Tsp Milk
• A Few Drops Vanilla Extract

Cooking Directions

Cupcakes

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line a cupcake tray with cases.
2. Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then beat in the eggs, one at a time.
3. Fold in the flour gradually, until it is well incorporated.
4. Mix in the vanilla extract.
5. Spoon the mixture into the cases, until the cases are 2/3 full.
6. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until the cupcakes are starting to turn golden.
7. Leave to cool completely on a cooling rack.

Icing

1. Beat the butter until soft, then gradually add the icing sugar, mixing well.
2. Add the vanilla extract, then add enough milk to make a smooth consistency of icing.
3. When the cupcakes are completely cool, spread the icing on top, then decorate with sprinkles (I used a mixture of chocolate beans, chocolate sprinkles and sugar sprinkles).

This post has been long overdue, but I'm finally getting into the swing of allowing time in my diary to bake and write up blog posts. Also, UPDATE, I gave up chocolate and biscuits for lent! It's more of a test of myself to see if I can actually manage to cope without them for 40 days! However, this probably means that I won't be baking anything chocolatey or biscuit shaped until after Easter :( Those of you who have noticed that I used chocolate sprinkles on these cupcakes, don't worry, I gave these to my flatmates and friends!

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