These Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes are dairy-free, simple to make, and lend a bakery style texture and a vanilla bean finish. You can bake up a batch of these perfect homemade gluten-free vanilla cupcakes in no-time.
If you like these Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes, you might also like my Gluten-Free Chocolate Cupcakes. They are simple to make and bursting with chocolate flavor. I’ve also recently updated the photos for my Gluten-Free Lemon Cupcakes. If you’re a lemon fan, you’re going to love them.
For more cupcakes and desserts please visit my Gluten-Free Desserts.
Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes
These are seriously the most incredible, better-than-bakery style Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes! They’ve been shared thousands of times and people come back weekly to tell me how amazing they are.
I’ve been making these gluten-free cupcakes for years and this is the third time I have redone the photos. I really want you guys to see how lovely they are and be excited about how amazing they taste. Just read the comments below. You will fall in love with these cupcakes.
Here’s an old photo that I took of these gluten-free cupcakes. You can see how perfect the texture is.
Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcake Recipe
I use vanilla bean paste these days, but you can easily use Rodell’s vanilla extract. Rodelle Vanilla Paste is my newest favorite item to bake and cook with and that’s why I use it in my vanilla cupcakes.
Now that I’ve tried it, I may never go back to extract again. It has such a deep, rich flavor and it’s never too much. I do love Rodelle’s Vanilla Extract, but the paste is dreamy, especially in these Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes.
When I first developed this gluten-free cupcake recipe, I used vanilla extract, so please don’t think that you have to use vanilla bean paste. Extract lends a lovely flavor too. You are going to love it in these gluten-free vanilla cupcakes.
Gluten-Free Cupcakes
I have been working on perfecting my gluten-free vanilla cupcake recipe since 2010. It’s not that it’s a complicated recipe or anything. I usually work on new recipes, not improving old ones.
My old gluten-free cupcake recipe was fine but I wanted a better texture. I wanted it to be fluffy and crumbly at the same time. I made these Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes a couple of times in January for one of my daughters birthday’s.
Finally the last time I made them I found the right amount of ingredients to get the exact flavor and texture that I had been dreaming about. From frosting to cake, they are now perfect. They’re buttery (even though dairy-free), tender, crumbly, and have the perfect amount of vanilla.
And guess what? These gluten-free vanilla cupcakes only cost about $5 to make. Can you imagine what you’d pay at a bakery for these? They are easy and you can make them yourself.
How to make gluten-free cupcakes
There are a couple of tips and tricks to getting the right texture with gluten-free cupcakes. First, you have to follow the recipe. So many people comment on recipe posts saying that they made a ton of substitutions and the recipe didn’t turn out.
Other than the dairy substitute, I haven’t tried other substitutes in this recipe. If you use substitutions, you are doing so at your own risk.
Second, you want to mix at the right time and not over-mix. When you are beating the oil, sugar, and eggs you’ll want to beat it for the time listed. This adds air which in turn helps the cupcakes rise.
Once you add your flour mixture, you’ll only want to beat until combined. Beating any longer will cause the batter to stiffen.
Why did my cupcakes explode?
First off, you may have overfilled the cupcake wells. Never fill more then 3/4 of the way full, and it’s best to stick to around 2/3’s of the way full. I use a 1/4 measuring cup to fill mine. Another reason could be that you added too much leavening agent, or that you are at higher elevation. Baking powder tends to work twice as hard at higher elevations. Consider cutting your baking powder in half if you are at a higher elevation.
All those tips are relevant to most cupcake recipes, not just these Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes.
Why did my cupcakes sink?
There are several reason why cupcakes sink, one is from over beating the batter and adding too much air. Also, cupcakes often will sink when there is too much moisture. This is more common in humid climates where added moisture can collect naturally in ingredients such as flour. When this occurs, cupcakes may rise rapidly and then fall during baking. In higher elevations, the leavening agent works twice as hard and may cause the batter to rise rapidly and sink before it’s had a chance to set up.
Did you make these gluten-free vanilla cupcakes? Stop back by and let me know what you thought of this gluten-free vanilla cupcake recipe.
Gluten-Free Vanilla Bean Cupcakes
These Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes are dairy-free, simple to make, and lend a bakery style texture and a vanilla bean finish.
Ingredients
For the cupcakes:
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil (or oil of choice)
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups all purpose gluten-free flour blend (I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 cup dairy-free milk
- 2 teaspoons rodelle vanilla paste or vanilla extract
For the frosting:
- 1/2 cup dairy-free butter (1 stick), room temperature
- 1 teaspoon rodelle vanilla paste or vanilla extract
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons dairy-free milk
Instructions
- For the cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Position rack in center of oven. Line cupcake pan with paper liners; set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl combine oil and sugar.
- Add eggs and beat with an electric mixer at medium speed for one minute. Add flour, salt, baking powder, dairy-free milk, and vanilla paste; beat at medium speed for one minute.
- Spoon batter evenly into cupcake liners. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until the centers springs back when touched and cupcakes are very lightly browned.
- Let cool in the pan on rack for five minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan onto rack and cool completely before frosting.
- For the frosting: In a medium mixing bowl, beat together dairy-free butter and vanilla paste until smooth and creamy.
- Gradually add powdered sugar, one cup at a time, beating well. Alternate one cup of powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon of dairy-free milk until all ingredients are blended.
- Beat in additional dairy-free milk if needed to obtain desired constancy.
- Frost and enjoy!
Notes
When working with or measuring gluten-free flour, spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level. Do not scoop your measuring cup into the gluten-free flour. The best method really is to weight it but I don't have the ingredient weights for all my recipes yet.
Nutrition Information:
Serving Size:
1 cupcake w/frostingAmount Per Serving:Calories: 440 Total Fat: 20g Saturated Fat: 8g Cholesterol: 5950mg Sodium: 200mg Carbohydrates: 63g Sugar: 40g Protein: 4g
Suhina Sirkisson says
Hi Chrystal,
I just discovered your website and am really excited to try this recipe out! I was just wondering what type of flour you used. We don’t have red mill here in South Africa as far as I am aware. Could you maybe suggest an alternative I could use or the type of flour I could look out for? Thanks
chrystal says
Hi Suhina,
I’m not sure which flour blends are available in South Africa. You could look for a blend that has rice, tapioca, and potato in it. Bob’s Red Mill also has sourgum flour, but you can still make cupcakes with just the rice flour, potato starch, and tapioca starch.
I hope that helps,
Chrystal
Les says
Hi and a billion thanks for creating the easiest and best vanilla cupcake recipe I’ve yet to find! Chocolate- no probs. Vanilla, they come away from the cases, are heavy or just do that grim dissolving thing in yer mouth. This recipe works so well and i made a batch of unicorn cupcakes for my granddaughter yesterday which went down excellently (the test is that non gfs cant tell…). The REAL test will be in two weeks when i will be knocking up a hundred for a wedding!
I thank you again and am now off to explore the rest of your recipes! Happy baking!
chrystal says
Hi Les,
I’m so glad you like them! I have a chocolate cupcake recipe too, if you’re interested. Good luck with the wedding baking.
Best,
Chrystal
Cassie says
What kind of dairy free milk and butter did you use? Can you use regular flour too and get the same turnout?
chrystal says
Hi Cassie,
We use almond milk, but you can use your milk of choice. I haven’t tried regular flour but it should work. Hope that helps.
Best,
Chrystal
April Demello says
Do you have a variation to make chocolate cupcake? Can i just add cocoa powder or will that mess up the recipe?
chrystal says
Hi April,
I have a easy recipe for chocolate cupcakes – https://www.glutenfreepalate.com/easy-gluten-free-chocolate-cupcakes/
Best,
Chrystal
JC says
Hi, can you do these with normal butter and get the same result?
Thanks!
chrystal says
Hi JC,
Yes, the texture will be a little heavier and have a slightly different crumb.
Best,
Chrystal
Emily says
Can I just add cocoa powder to the frosting?
chrystal says
Hi Emily,
Yes, you can add cocoa to the frosting. You might need to add additional milk/dairy-free milk if its too thick.
Best,
Chrystal
Sarah says
These will be perfect for my daughter’s birthday party this weekend! How many cupcakes does the recipe make?
Thank you!
Emily says
Would almond flour work?
chrystal says
Hi Emily,
Almond flour won’t work in this recipe. You can make my paleo chocolate chip muffins and leave the chocolate chips out. https://www.glutenfreepalate.com/paleo-chocolate-chip-muffins/
Best,
Chrystal
Sarah says
Hi! This recipe looks great! Could you make them into mini cupcakes? How would you need to adjust the baking time for that? Thanks!
chrystal says
Hi Sarah,
Yes, you can make these into mini cupcakes. Start with a cook time of 11-12 minutes and watch them from there.
Best,
Chrystal
Sarah says
Thanks! Will try them out soon! Also, do you think it would be okay to add some mini chocolate chips to the batter, or would they just sink to the bottom?
chrystal says
The batter is thick enough that they’d only sink a little. Definitely let me know how they turn out!
Best,
Chrystal
Tash says
Hi there, my cupcakes came out more like a sweet bread any reason why, maybe it was the gluten free dough blend I used? Thanks!
chrystal says
Hi Tash,
What blend did you use?
Best,
Chrystal
Rachel Z says
These.are.PERFECT!!! I’ve tried several different vanilla cupcake recipes this week and have tossed them all in the trash! But not this one!!! I live in Denver at 5000 feet so baking has more challenges for me, plus the whole gluten/dairy free thing. I’m so happy I found this recipe!!! They are the perfect fluff, the perfect texture, and they look and taste beautiful! I used coconut oil and coconut milk, and also reduced my baking powder to 1 teaspoon for the altitude (I actually used homemade baking powder from baking soda and cream of tartar and this still turned out perfect!). Next time I will try vanilla paste, but they taste lovely with the extract. THANK YOUUUU!!!
chrystal says
Hi Rachel,
I am so glad you like this vanilla cupcake recipe! Thank you for stopping by to share your experience and how they turned out.
Best,
Chrystal
Tanya says
Can you freeze these prior to frosting? I would like to have them in the freezer for my daughter for special occasions.
chrystal says
Hi Tanya,
You can freeze them. I’d freeze them without frosting, then bring to room temperate when you are ready to frost them. You can freeze them with the frosting, but the frosting will be firm, even after defrosting. I hope that helps.
Best,
Chrystal
Jenni says
Fantastic! I used milk instead of a dairy substitute but they were just lovely! Tasted wonderful and rose perfectly at 5600 ft.
chrystal says
Hi Jenni,
I am so glad you like these cupcakes! Thanks for letting me know.
Best,
Chrystal
Janine says
I made mini cupcakes of these and they were a huge hit! Thank you for sharing the recipe! Can this recipe be made into a cake?