What are you celebrating? A birthday? An anniversary? Making it to Thursday? No matter how big or small the occasion, this Classic Vanilla Cake will always be the perfect treat for it! There’s a reason this moist, timeless, yellow cake topped with rich, creamy, chocolate frosting is so iconic. You can count on it to be loved by all because each slice is always pure perfection. The Classic Vanilla Cake will continue to be legendary, and hey, that sounds like a good excuse for celebrating with a piece!
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 3 1/4 cups cake flour, spooned and leveled, plus more, to taste, for dusting the pans
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
For the chocolate frosting:
- 2 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
- 5 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 4 tablespoons heavy cream
- 4 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups unsweetened or Dutch process cocoa powder
Directions
Step 1 –Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Step 2 –Grease two 9-inch round cake pans, then use the extra flour to dust the greased pans.
Step 3 –In a bowl, whisk the remaining 3 1/4 cups cake flour, the baking powder, and the salt together.
Step 4 –In a second bowl, add 1/2 cup of the butter, the oil, and the granulated sugar together and use an electric hand mixture on medium speed to beat until it is smooth and combined, about 2-3 minutes.
Step 5 –Add the eggs, 1 at a time, to the butter mixture and beat well, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition.
Step 6 –Add 1 tablespoon of the vanilla extract to the butter mixture and beat to combine.
Step 7 –Alternate adding the flour mixture and the buttermilk to the butter mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Beat until the flour mixture is fully mixed in. Do not overmix.
Step 8 –Evenly divide the batter between the prepared cake pans and smooth the tops.
Step 9 –Bake the cakes until they are golden-brown on top and a toothpick inserted into the centers come out with a few moist crumbs, about 30-35 minutes.
Step 10 –Transfer the pans from the oven and let the cakes cool for 5 minutes.
Step 11 –Turn the cakes onto the rack and let them cool completely.
Step 12 –In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, add the remaining butter and the confectioners’ sugar and mix on low speed; then increase to medium speed until combined.
Step 13 –Add the heavy cream and the remaining vanilla extract to the sugar mixture and mix on low speed until it is combined, about 1-2 minutes.
Step 14 –Turn the mixer off and add the cocoa powder to the frosting mixture; mix on low speed until it is combined.
Step 15 –Increase the speed to medium-high and mix the frosting until it is light and fluffy, about 5-7 minutes.
Step 16 –Place 1 of the cooled cakes on a cake stand.
Step 17 –Use an offset spatula to spread a layer of the frosting over the top of the cake.
Step 18 –Place the remaining cooled cake on top of the frosting layer.
Step 19 –Spread the frosting over the top and the sides of the cakes until they are covered and smooth.
Step 20 –Slice and serve.
