Moist & Delicious Homemade Vanilla Cupcakes

Baby, it's cold outside! Well, at least it is in Southeast Texas.

Couple that with the fact that it's my baby girl's 16th birthday, and that's a great reason to try my hand at baking some good ole homemade cupcakes.

I browsed all over the Internet and found several recipes that looked good, but the blend of ingredients in this recipe matched most of what I already had in my pantry (sorry, cake flour is not a regular around here).  

The scent of vanilla was so intoxicating as these little gems of sweet goodness baked, the birthday girl could hardly wait until it was time to pop them out of the oven.

Check out the moist crumb on this! 

I've only seen this kind of fluffy decadence on The Food Network. Who knew I'd be pulling off this kind of baking magic in my own kitchen?!

Here's the recipe I used. I only made a few alterations.

I used four teaspoons of vanilla extract instead of three. This really intensified that yummy vanilla flavor!

Also, I baked my cupcakes longer. Instead of the recommended 15 - 18 minutes, I left them in for about 20 minutes. Made for a delightfully delicate crunch on top while keeping them super moist inside. And since the villagers around here couldn't wait to get their hands on these babies, I decided to skip making homemade frosting and just used store-bought. Then I let the birthday girl add some sprinkles just for fun. 

I guess it's true. You're never too old for sprinkles. :)

Prep time: 45 min

Cook time: 30 min

Ready in: 1 hour 15 min

Yields: 12-24 cupcakes

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup butter
• 3 eggs
• 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 3 teaspoons vanilla (add more for a super-vanilla taste)
• 1 1/4 cups milk
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

Instructions

1. Prior to starting, preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Bring the eggs and butter to room temperature. Grease and flour two cupcake/muffin pans or insert cupcake cups.
2. Stir together the salt, baking powder, and flour.
3. Beat butter with an electric mixer on high for 30 seconds. Add sugar and beat until combined. Continue to beat and add the eggs and vanilla.
4. Add part of the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Then add some of the milk. Beat on low. Continue alternating like this until all of the milk and flour mixture have been added. Mix well. Pour into cupcake pans, filling to about halfway.
5. Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the cupcakes are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean from the center. Cool for at least 15 minutes before removing from pans. Frost.

Try this easy recipe and let me know what you think in the comments. I'd also love to know what kind of sweet magic you're creating in your oven this season, so please share!

Happy Holidays!