5 Ingredient Vanilla Cake
This easy vanilla cake comes out so soft, fluffy and moist. It doesn't require eggs, butter or milk but you can't tell.
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups (230 g) self-rising flour
- 3/4 cup (148 g) granulated white sugar
- 1 ½ tsp (7 ml) vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup (79 ml) vegetable oil
- 1 cup (237 ml) water, see note
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line an 8 x 8 inch baking pan with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, add flour and sugar. Whisk until evenly combined. Then sift your mixture by running your whisk rapidly back and forth through the flour until it looks light and powdery.
- Add in vanilla, oil and half of the water. Do not add the entire amount of water, otherwise you won't be able to mix your batter. Whisk until your batter is smooth and no flour lumps remain. Once batter is smooth, add in remaining water and whisk again until batter is smooth.
- Pour batter into prepared baking pan. Bake for about 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cake cool completely in pan before removing and cutting. If adding frosting, add it after the cake has cooled.
Notes
- To make your own self-rising flour, add 1 and 3/4 cups all purpose flour, 2 and 5/8 tsp baking powder and 7/16 tsp salt to a bowl. Whisk until evenly combined.
- I used Lily's self-rising flour* to make this recipe.
- Water amount: Depending on the self-rising flour brand you use, you may need to add more liquid. I used Lily's self-rising flour which has 2 grams of protein per 1/4 cup. If your self-rising flour has 3 grams of protein per 1/4 cup (or the all purpose flour you are using to make self-rising flour has 3 grams), then you will need to add 2.5 oz more of water. Also instead of adding only 1/2 of the water initially, add 1 cup initially and then after the mixture has no more lumps, add the additional 2.5 oz and whisk until smooth.
- If you choose to mix your batter using an electric mixer, you do not need to sift the flour and sugar. You do still need to follow the steps for adding the liquids (and not adding them all at once).
- You can double this cake recipe and bake in a 9 x 13 inch cake pan. If you are doubling the recipe, I do not recommend whisking the batter by hand. Use an electric mixer, otherwise it will be very hard to remove all the flour lumps.
- I frosted the cake with a whipped cream frosting. To make whipped cream frosting, add 1 cup of cold heavy cream and 3 tbsp of granular sugar into a mixing bowl. Beat on high speed until stiff peaks form. If you need a dairy-free version, you can also make a coconut whipped cream using coconut cream.
- *This product link is an affiliate link. This means I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases.
Serving: 1slice, Calories: 162kcal, Carbohydrates: 25g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 6g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 205mg, Sugar: 12g, NET CARBS: 25
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. This is not a comprehensive list of all the nutrients in the recipe (i.e., does not include vitamins, cholesterol, etc). I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
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