Moist Vanilla Sheet Cake

My Moist Chocolate Cake has been the most popular recipe on this website since it was first published over a decade ago, and after so many requests, I have developed a vanilla version! This is my Best Moist Vanilla Sheet Cake that is just as easy to make with few simple ingredients and produces a very soft, tender and moist vanilla cake that is delicate yet doesn't crumble. It melts in your mouth and is still sturdy enough to stack and decorate. You'll only need a couple of bowls and you don't even need a mixer! Just like my chocolate cake, this recipe is as easy as a box mix yet tastes so much better! This is the perfect cake for any occasion and you can pair it with my viral Hybrid American Buttercream, Fudgy Chocolate Frosting or my Best Chocolate Buttercream.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

• Super easy recipe - just like my popular Best Moist Chocolate Cake, this recipe is so easy! You don't need a mixer and it comes together with just one bowl and a whisk.
• Tender soft texture - you will love the soft texture of this cake that is a result of a blend of butter and liquid oil, in combination with warm milk and sour cream. Blending the flour with sugar first means that sugar will compete for water when you add the liquid ingredients to prevent the wheat proteins from hogging all the moisture and forming gluten, which can make the texture more tough.
• Moist vanilla cake - the cake is super moist! It has a soft texture, it's not crumbly and it stays moist for days without drying out. Heating the milk helps activate and set the starch granules to trap moisture before it even hits the oven.
• The BEST vanilla frosting - you must try my Hybrid American Buttercream frosting which is so creamy, silky smooth, light and stable. It is perfect for piping and not too sweet at all with almost half the sugar compared to traditional American buttercream.

INGREDIENTS FOR MOIST VANILLA SHEET CAKE

• Unsalted butter - butter will add rich creamy flavor. This recipe uses melted butter, so there's no need to wait for butter to soften.
• Oil - for the softest texture, this recipe uses a combination of butter and oil. Butter brings rich flavor while oil keeps the texture soft. Oil is liquid at room temperature which means it won't harden once cooled and makes softer crumb with a greater perception of moistness.
• Pure vanilla extract - vanilla is the main flavor in this cake so use your best one. I like this Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla extract.
• Milk - I prefer whole milk for this recipe and it is important that you warm it slightly just like how I use hot coffee in my best Moist Chocolate Cake recipe. Heating the milk dissolves the sugar and gives the starch a head start to set which locks in the moisture.

• Egg - one whole egg will provide structure and a light golden yellow hue to this cake. Make sure it is at room temperature, which means you should take it out of the fridge 2 hours before baking or let it sit in a glass of warm water for 10 minutes.
• Egg whites - this is the secret for a tender and bouncy crumb. The delicate texture of egg protein provides structure while not setting the crumb too tight so you get a lovely "short" texture. That means the crumb will not be tough and breaks apart easily without being crumbly.
• All purpose flour - regular unbleached all-purpose flour is best for this recipe. Just be sure to measure your flour correctly since adding too much flour can lead to tough and dry cake. The most accurate way to measure flour is using a scale. If you don't have one then fluff your flour with a spoon, spoon it into your measuring cup and use a knife to level it off. This batter is meant to be on the runny side so refrain from adding more flour to make it thicker.
• Sour cream - just like my best Moist Chocolate Cake, this vanilla cake uses sour cream to add body and rich dairy flavor that carries the vanilla so nicely.

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS: HOW TO MAKE MOIST VANILLA CAKE

• STEP 1). Combine dry ingredients. Use a fine mesh sieve to sift flour, baking powder and baking soda into a large bowl. Add sugar and salt and whisk to blend very well so the ingredients are evenly combined.
• STEP 2). Combine wet ingredients. Add egg, egg whites, melted butter, oil, sour cream and vanilla to a medium bowl and whisk to blend well.
• STEP 3). Warm the milk. Place cold milk in a heatproof jug and heat it in the microwave for 1 minute until steaming but not boiling.
• STEP 4). Combine wet and dry ingredients. Use a spatula to make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, then pour in the wet ingredients. Mix with an electric handheld mixer on medium-low speed until blended. You can also mix it in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on medium speed or mix by hand using a wire whisk starting in the center and slowly dragging the dry ingredients in from the sides to combine evenly with the wet ingredients. It will be thick and somewhat dry.
• STEP 5). Add the hot milk gradually in two stages to minimize clumps forming and mix until evenly combined and the batter is smooth. The batter will be quite thin.
• STEP 6). Bake. Pour batter into the prepared pan and tap the pan on the countertop to allow any large air bubbles to surface and pop. Bake for 23-27 minutes until the cake springs back when pressed gently and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer pan to a wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes before running a knife or offset spatula around the sides and transferring the cake onto the rack to cool completely.
• STEP 7). Prepare my Hybrid American Buttercream or my Vanilla Whipped Ganache Frosting.
• STEP 8). Assemble the cake. Once the cake is cooled, use a large offset spatula to spread frosting over the cake or pipe it on.

EXPERT BAKING TIPS FOR MOIST VANILLA CAKE

• Use room temperature ingredients - this is especially important when making a simple one bowl recipe like this that doesn't have many mixing steps. Having all room temperature ingredients means that they will incorporate more evenly.
• Use a blend of butter and oil. The key to a quick and easy yet tasty vanilla cake that stays soft is to use oil AND butter. Butter is superior for its flavor, and oil will make cakes softer and come across as being more moist. It's the simple science behind the type of fat. Oil is made up of mostly unsaturated fats that are liquid at room temperature, whereas butter contains more saturated fats that are solid at room temperature. As a result, the texture of a butter cake will be more crumbly and firm.
• Use a neutral tasting oil like pure sunflower oil for the cleanest flavor to let the vanilla taste stand out.
• Use FRESH oil. If oil is not fresh then even the slightest rancid note will be exacerbated after you bake it into a cake.  
• Do not reduce the sugar - the right amount of sugar will make cake moist because it binds water so that it stays tightly in the batter and doesn't evaporate excessively during baking. Reducing the sugar will compromise the soft texture.
• Keep an eye on the baking time. Set a timer for the first time stated in the recipe and check with a skewer; it should come out clean.

RECIPE FAQ

HOW TO MAKE THE BEST VANILLA FROSTING

Here is my recipe for the BEST Vanilla Buttercream Frosting. Since I do not like American Buttercream for its dense and gritty texture and heavy mouthfeel, I created this life-changing Hybrid Buttercream that is just as easy, but has ZERO grittiness and it not too sweet with half of the amount of sugar compared to typical buttercream recipes. It is a must-try!

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Moist Vanilla Sheet Cake

Christina Marsigliese, Food Scientist MSc.

This is my Best Moist Vanilla Sheet Cake that is just as easy to make with few simple ingredients and produces a very soft, tender and moist vanilla cake that is delicate yet doesn't crumble. It melts in your mouth and is still sturdy enough to stack and decorate.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Servings 15 servings

Ingredients

  

Vanilla Cake Batter:

• 1 ⅔ cups (235g) all-purpose flour
• 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 ¼ cups (250g) granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 2 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 6 tablespoon (84g) unsalted butter, melted
• 3 tablespoon (30ml) sunflower oil
• ½ cup (120ml) full fat sour cream
• 1 ½ teaspoon (7ml) pure vanilla extract
• ⅔ cup (160ml) whole milk, warmed

1 x Recipe for Hybrid American Buttercream Frosting

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 13x9-inch metal baking pan with parchment paper leaving a 2-inch overhang along the long sides for easy removal.
• Combine dry ingredients. Use a fine mesh sieve to sift flour, baking powder and baking soda into a large bowl. Add sugar and salt and whisk to blend very well so the ingredients are evenly combined.
• Combine wet ingredients. Add egg, egg whites, melted butter, oil, sour cream and vanilla to a medium bowl and whisk to blend well.
• Warm the milk. Place cold milk in a heatproof jug and heat it in the microwave for 1 minute until steaming but not boiling.
• Use a spatula to make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, then pour in the wet ingredients. Mix with an electric handheld mixer on medium-low speed until blended. You can also mix it in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on medium speed or mix by hand using a wire whisk starting in the center and slowly dragging the dry ingredients in from the sides to combine evenly with the wet ingredients. It will be thick and somewhat dry. Add the hot milk gradually in two stages to minimize clumps forming and mix until evenly combined and the batter is smooth. The batter will be quite thin.
• Bake. Pour batter into the prepared pan and tap the pan on the countertop to allow any large air bubbles to surface and pop. Bake for 23-27 minutes until the cake springs back when pressed gently and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer pan to a wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes before running a knife or offset spatula around the sides and transferring the cake onto the rack to cool completely.
• While the cakes are cooling, prepare my Hybrid American Buttercream or my Vanilla Whipped Ganache Frosting.
• Assemble the cake. Once the cake is cooled, use a large offset spatula to spread frosting over the cake or pipe it on.