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These Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes are soft, fluffy and deliciously moist. Super light and airy gluten free cupcakes with a vanilla buttercream frosting. They are the perfect cupcake for all occasions and one of THE easiest gluten free bakes ever!
When it comes to gluten free cake recipes sometimes the simplest recipes are the best – and it doesn’t get much better than my easy gluten free vanilla cupcakes.
These are an a great alternative to a gluten free birthday cake and perfect for parties, weddings and more. Nobody will know they’re gluten free!
These easy gluten free vanilla cupcakes take things right back to basics so they’re great if you’re new to gluten free baking or a gluten free diet.
And once you’ve mastered this super easy vanilla cupcakes recipe, you can then start experimenting with different flavours and toppings.
They are such a versatile bake and you can whip them up and have them in the oven in less than 10 minutes! It honestly couldn’t get any easier than that.
If you love these, you’ll also love my Gluten Free Victoria Sponge Cake, my Vanilla Tray Bake Cake, easy butterfly cakes or my Gluten Free Vanilla Loaf Cake.
And for a dairy free and egg free option, check out my Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes too.
Ingredients
You’ll only need a few basic ingredients to make these easy gluten free cupcakes, and there’s a printable recipe card below with the quantities.
For the gluten free cupcakes:
- Caster Sugar: In the US you’ll want to look for Baker’s Sugar for this recipe.
- Unsalted Butter: Or use a vegan margarine such as Stork Baking Block for a dairy free option.
- Self Raising Gluten Free Flour: If you cannot find gluten free self rising flour then make your own by adding 1 tsp gluten free baking powder to 100g of plain or all purpose gluten free flour blend.
- Xanthan Gum: A little goes a long way! This helps to replicate the texture of the gluten. Omit it if you cannot tolerate it (or if your flour mix already contains it) but you may find the cake a little more crumbly in texture if there is none in your flour mix.
- Vanilla Extract
- Eggs: This recipe uses large UK eggs.
- Milk: I use milk to help loosen the cake batter a little. If making this recipe dairy free you can replace this with a dairy free milk of choice.
For the vanilla buttercream frosting:
- Butter: It’s really important this is at room temperature to make buttercream. I leave mine out the night before to soften. Use a vegan butter for a dairy free option.
- Icing Sugar: Or confectioner’s sugar / powdered sugar in the US.
- Milk: Use a dairy free milk if needed.
- Vanilla Extract
- Gluten Free Sprinkles: Not all sprinkles are gluten free so always double check, as some contain wheat starch. A lot of own brand supermarket sprinkles are safe.
How to make gluten free vanilla cupcakes
There’s a printable recipe card below with the method, but here are some step-by-step photos to show you how to make these easy cupcakes.
To make the gluten free cupcakes:
Preheat the oven to 180’C (170’C fan) / Gas 4. Fill a 12-hole baking tin with cupcake cases and set aside while you make the cake batter.
Add the softened butter, sugar and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric whisk until pale and creamy.
Crack the eggs into the mixing bowl and beat again for 30 seconds to combine. Scrape down the sides of the bowl using a spatula.
Sift in the self-raising gluten free flour and xantham gum, add the milk, and then beat together with the electric whisk until everything is fully combined.
Spoon the mixture evenly between the cupcake cases and then place in the centre of an oven and bake for 20-22 minutes.
Recipe Tip
Did you know a few grains of (uncooked) rice under each cupcake case before you add the cake batter will stop your cake cases becoming greasy when baking?
The cupcakes are done when they are well-risen, golden on top, and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Once cooked, remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Cool in the tray for 10 minutes before removing the cakes from the tray to cool completely.
To make the frosting:
Add the (room temperature) butter, icing sugar, milk and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl.
Beat with an electric whisk on a low speed until it becomes a smooth, pale buttercream.
Spoon the mixture into a piping bag (see notes) and, once the cupcakes are completely cool, decorate them with a swirl of buttercream. Finish with sprinkles.
Storage and Freezing
Once baked, these gluten free vanilla cupcakes can be kept in an airtight container for up to a week. They do not need to be refrigerated – gluten free cakes don’t do well in the fridge!
To make these cupcakes ahead of time: Simply bake the cupcakes and then freeze the cooled cakes, wrapped in clingfilm, for up to 6 months. Defrost and decorate as needed.
To freeze leftover cupcakes: Place the cupcakes on a flat board or tray and place in the freezer. Once completely frozen, transfer to a bag or tub.
Defrost at room temperature as needed, whenever you have a cupcake craving! And if you’ve got leftovers, use them to make my easy gluten free cake pops.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some FAQs about this easy vanilla cupcake recipe. If you can’t find the answer to your question here or in the post above, please comment and I’ll try answer!
It’s really easy to make my gluten free vanilla cupcakes gluten free. Simply swap the butter for a vegan margarine (in the cake and frosting) and the milk for a dairy free milk of choice. Simple!
Instead of trying to substitute ingredients in this recipe, check out my gluten free vegan vanilla cupcakes recipe instead. This is tried-and-tested to make the best soft and fluffy gluten free, vegan vanilla cupcakes – with no egg!
This recipe should produce light, fluffy and moist cupcakes. If the cupcakes come out dry it’s likely they have been over-baked. They should be lightly golden brown on top and spring back when touched.
If your gluten free cupcakes sank it’s likely that they have either been over-mixed or that the oven door was opened too soon. Never open the oven door before the minimum cooking time as the sudden change in temperature will cause cakes to sink. But don’t panic if yours have sunk – frosting hides a multitude of sins!
If you make this recipe and love it, please do let me know by tagging me on my Instagram or using #theglutenfreeblogger. You can also share your creations in my Facebook group! And please do leave a 5* review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ to let others know you loved it too! It would mean the world to me and really helps support my website.
Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes
Equipment
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
- 125 g caster sugar
- 125 g unsalted butter, (softened)
- 2 large eggs
- 125 g self raising gluten free flour
- 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp milk
For the buttercream frosting:
- 175 g unsalted butter, (at room temperature)
- 350 g icing sugar
- 2 tbsp milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Gluten free sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180’C (170’C fan) / Gas 4. Fill a 12-hole baking tin with cupcake cases and set aside while you make the cake batter.
- Add the butter, sugar and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric whisk until pale and creamy. (TIP: If the butter is hard, zap it in the microwave for 10-15 seconds before adding it to the mixing bowl to make it easier!)
- Crack the eggs into the mixing bowl and beat again for 30 seconds to combine. Scrape down the sides of the bowl using a spatula.
- Sift in the self-raising gluten free flour and xantham gum, add the milk, and then beat together with the electric whisk until everything is fully combined. You want a fairly thick batter which looks light and fluffy.
- Spoon the mixture evenly between the cupcake cases and then place in the centre of an oven and bake for 20-22 minutes. The cupcakes are done when they are well-risen, golden on top, and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Once cooked, remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Cool in the tray for 10 minutes before removing the cakes from the tray to cool completely.
To make the frosting:
- Add the butter, icing sugar, milk and vanilla extract to a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric whisk on a low speed until it becomes a smooth, pale buttercream. (TIP: To avoid an icing-sugar dust cloud I tend to ‘mash’ the mixture with a fork until it starts to come together, then use the electric whisk).
- Spoon the mixture into a piping bag (see notes) and, once the cupcakes are completely cool, decorate them with a swirl of buttercream. Finish with sprinkles.
Notes
- Top Tip: For the frosting, it’s important to use room temperature butter to get the right consistency. If it becomes very soft once beaten (especially likely on a hot day) then place the buttercream in the piping bag and refrigerate for 15-20 minutes until it’s an easy consistency to pipe.
- Weighing Scales vs Cups: You can toggle this recipe card to convert the ingredients into cups – I have weighed each item individually to ensure the conversion is accurate as possible. However, I always recommend using weighing scales – these are cheap to buy and much more accurate. And in gluten free baking, a tiny variation can make a huge difference!
- Step-by-Step Photos: Check out the blog post above for step-by-step photos to guide you through how this cupcake recipe should look at each stage.
- Storing, Making Ahead and Freezing: Check out the post above this recipe card for more information on how to make these cupcakes ahead of time and how to freeze any leftovers.
- Like this Recipe? It would mean SO much to me if you could leave a 5* rating and tell all your gluten free friends about this Gluten Free Vanilla Cupcakes!
- Want More Cupcakes? Check out my other gluten free cupcake recipes below this recipe card for more tasty treats!
Nutrition
And to prove how much I love this recipe (and how versatile it is!) here are some of the times I’ve made these gluten free cupcakes with some variations:
More gluten free cupcakes
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Is there a substitute for xanthan gum? And can I use Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Baking Flour?