This gluten free vanilla cake taste just like the classic! It has a moist and tender crumb, rich buttery vanilla flavor and finished off with a creamy vanilla buttercream.
This gluten free vanilla cake has been a loooong time in the making. But vanilla cakes are one of my favorite desserts (plus lemon cake of course), so I had to get it exactly perfectly right.
And I did! This cake is moist, tender, soft with a sweet buttery vanilla flavor and undetectably gluten free.
I promise, you can fool absolutely anyone with this recipe. And did I mention it’s also dairy free?! Even the buttercream. But again, you’d never know! There are a lot of gluten free cake mixes on the market, but homemade versions are SO much better.
This recipe isn’t vegan since it uses eggs, but don’t worry, I already have you covered with my gluten free AND vegan vanilla funfetti cake.
If you love this recipe, try my strawberry cake or orange cake next!
How to make gluten free vanilla cake
PREP PANS. Spray and line two 9 inch round cake pans with parchment paper. You can also use two 8 inch but see notes about bake time etc.
BEAT WET. In a large mixing bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, beat together all wet ingredients. For best results, keep your eggs and milk at room temperature and melt your butter, then let it cool slightly.
BEAT IN DRY. Beat in the dry ingredients until a smooth batter forms, making sure to spoon and level the flour.
Add the batter to the prepared pans, trying to keep them as even as possible.
BAKE. Bake for 28-32 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. 30 minutes is usually perfect in my oven, but all ovens are different.
COOL. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then carefully flip onto a cooling rack to finish cooling.
FROST. If you want to frost it quickly, add the cakes to the fridge for an hour, otherwise just let cool at room temperature, then frost & enjoy!
Vanilla Buttercream
To make the buttercream, cream the softened butter with an electric mixer, then beat in the sugar 1 cup at a time.
Finally, beat in the milk, vanilla and salt. You can replace some powdered sugar with cocoa powdered to make a light chocolate, but regular vanilla is also a favorite!
When the cakes are cool, frost the cake, I like about 1 cup of frosting between each layer, and then 2 cups to cover the outside.
The cakes will be slightly rounded in the middle, so feel free to use a knife or a cake leveler to make them flat. You definitely don’t have to, they will still look great even with slightly domed tops!
Why did it sink in the middle?
Cakes sink in the middle usually because of one of three main reasons. The first is that the cake was over-beaten.
This forces too much air into the batter which causes it to rise and then fall when it cools because the structure isn’t supported, it’s just airy.
The second is because of too much moisture. While no one wants a dry cake, a cake that is too moist is also problematic, especially when no gluten is involved.
This can happen because of an overly moist batter, but also if you live in a humid climate and moisture collects naturally in ingredients like flour.
The final reason a cake can sink is because of too much leavening agent. This cake only uses baking powder, no baking soda, so we use a generous amount, but not so much that the cake structure won’t be able to support itself.
How to store and freeze
Once made and frosted, this gluten free vanilla cake will keep for about 3 days at room temperature or 1 week in the fridge.
Store in an air tight container for best results. The cake can be prepped 24 hours ahead of time, just let cool, wrap in plastic wrap and place in the fridge before frosting.
You can make the cakes in advance, let cool, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, then place in a freezer safe bag for a few days before serving.
You can decorate the cake while it is frozen, and then let it sit at room temperature before serving.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best flour for cake?
There are so many gluten free flours on the market these days. Maybe too many! But, you probably know by now that when it comes to gluten free all purpose flour, I am very loyal to the Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Baking Flour.
You are welcome to use whatever flour you like, but keep in mind there may be some variation in the final result since all blends are different.
Whichever you decide to use, make sure it has xanthan gum in the mix to help bind everything together.
How do you keep gluten free cake moist?
This vanilla cake is made very moist thanks to the butter, oil, eggs and milk. Be sure to keep it covered, either with a cake stand, in a container or covered with foil to ensure it stays moist once it is sliced.
Can I make it funfetti?
Yes! If you’re making this for a birthday, celebration or just want a little more color, feel free to add some sprinkles to the batter and make this a funfetti cake!
Try these next!
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Gluten Free Vanilla Cake
by: claire cary
Ingredients
Wet
- ½ cup butter melted then cooled slightly
- ⅓ cup oil any plain oil will work, I used refined avocado oil
- 1 ½ cups + 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 4 room temperature large eggs
- 4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cups room temperature milk I used almond
Dry
- 3 cups gluten free all purpose flour spoon and level to measure
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
Buttercream
- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 2-4 tbsp milk as needed I used almond
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Spray and line two 8 or 9 inch round cake pans with parchment paper. I like to use these parchment rounds for convenience.
- In a large mixing bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, beat together all wet ingredients. For best results, keep your eggs and milk at room temperature and melt your butter, then let it cool slightly.
- Beat in the dry ingredients until a smooth batter forms, making sure to spoon and level the flour.
- Add the batter to the prepared pans, trying to keep them as even as possible.
- For 9 inch cakes, bake for 28-32 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. 30 minutes is usually perfect in my oven, but all ovens are different. For 8 inch cakes, bake for 30-36 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and let cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then carefully flip onto a cooling rack to finish cooling.
- If you want to frost it quickly, add the cakes to the fridge for an hour, otherwise just let cool at room temperature until completely cool.
- You can also let the cakes cool, wrap them in plastic wrap, place in the fridge and frost the next day.
- To make the buttercream, cream the softened butter with an electric mixer, then beat in the sugar 1 cup at a time.
- Finally, beat in the milk, vanilla and salt. I replaced some powdered sugar with cocoa powdered to make a light chocolate, but regular vanilla is also a favorite!
- When the cakes are cool, frost the cake, I like about 1 cup of frosting between each layer, and then 2 cups to cover the outside.
- The cakes will be slightly rounded in the middle, so I used a cake leveler to make them flat, but you definitely don't have to, they will still look great even with slightly domed tops!
Danielle H. says
Hi Claire! I was wondering if this could be made in a 16 x 16 x 2 inch pan? I have to make a large single layer cake for a graduation party and am worried the center might not cook. My other thought was to use foil and create a ‘wall’ to make two 8 x 16 cakes in the pain or two ‘walls’ for four 8 x 8 cakes.
Thank you!!
Claire Cary says
You can definitely try, I think you should be ok! The bake time will be different than if you make a layer cake, so keep an eye on it as it will need more time. The recipe as written would make enough for a 9×13 pan, so you may want to consider 1 1/2 the recipe for a 16×16.
Megan says
This vanilla cake is awesome! I love the taste and texture.
Terri says
Any thoughts on making this with a Bundt cake pan? Time and temperature suggestions?
Thanks I’m advance!
Claire Cary says
That should work! Keep the temperature the same, for cook time, I would suggest checking it at 40 minutes, though it will likely take longer. Keep an eye on it, I can’t say for certain low long it will take. Let us know how it turns out!
Jane says
Hi, the picture shows 3 layers but your recipe says bake only 2 cake tins? I want a 3 layer cake so are the amounts you give enough to make 3 layers or not? Would be good to know on the recipe. 😉
Claire Cary says
The recipe makes two layers, I just made an extra layer! You can keep the recipe the same but make three layers if you use 6 inch cake pans. Otherwise, just halve the recipe and add that to the existing recipe, or slide the “servings” bar to 21 instead of 14.
monica peters says
This turned out perfectly! I made this for strawberry short cake and it was light fluffy and not too sweet. Almost like angel food cake meets the perfect cupcake!
Claire Cary says
Oh yum!! Strawberry shortcake is one of my favorite desserts, I’ll have to try that!
Shannon says
Could you advise if this could be converted to cupcakes? If so, how long would you bake them for, and at what temperature please?
Thanking you in advance.
Claire Cary says
Yes! It will make about 2 dozen cupcakes. Bake at 350 for 15-22 minutes.
Christine says
This cake turned out delicious! I used dove’s farm gf all purpose flour and added xantham gum. Everyone loved it!
Claire Cary says
oh perfect! SO happy it was a hit!
Cdy says
As nice or better than regular sponge cake….. perfect gf cake. Tks so much
Claire Cary says
Aww thank you! Makes me so happy to hear!
DHolla says
Super easy and really yummy .
I made mine exactly like the recipe , Dairy free and Gluten free
Claire Cary says
Perfect! So happy you enjoyed it 🙂
Olivia says
This is the best cake ever! It is so moist and it tastes not even like a gluten and dairy free cake 🎂!!!!!! It is so delicious 😋 and it makes my mouth water for more!
Christine says
Hi, the flour I am using does not have xantham gum, how much should I add?
Claire Cary says
I would say 3/4 tsp, but I haven’t tested it like that so I can’t say for certain, but 3/4 tsp is a pretty safe bet!