Baking cakes from scratch can seem intimidating, but this easy stovetop vanilla cake recipe proves that impressive desserts don’t have to be difficult or time-consuming. With just a handful of pantry staple ingredients, you can have a tall, fluffy vanilla cake cooling on your counter in under an hour. In this article we talk about how to make Fluffy Stovetop Vanilla Cake- Recipe and ingredients.
The beauty of this cake lies in its simplicity. Relying on ingredients you likely already have on hand, like all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, milk, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla extract, it comes together in just minutes right on your stovetop. No stand mixer, no fancy pans, and no fussy techniques required.
Read on for the full stovetop vanilla cake recipe, as well as tips for ensuring your cake bakes up light, moist, and melt-in-your-mouth tender every time. This just might become your new favorite vanilla cake!
Stovetop Vanilla Cake Ingredients
As mentioned above, this cake recipe truly utilizes simple, versatile ingredients you can easily keep stocked in your pantry and fridge. Here’s what you’ll need:
- All-purpose flour: The base of the cake relies on this pantry staple. Be sure to spoon and level your flour when measuring to get an accurate cup.
- Granulated sugar: White sugar sweetens the cake and helps give it both moisture and structure.
- Baking powder: This leavening agent produces carbon dioxide bubbles that make the cake rise high as it bakes.
- Salt: Just a pinch balances out sweetness and enhances overall flavor.
- Milk: The milk adds moisture, richness, and tenderness. Whole or low-fat milk both work well.
- Vegetable oil: Oil gives the cake extra softness and moisture. Canola, grapeseed, or another neutral-tasting oil works best.
- Eggs: Eggs act as an emulsifier and give the cake lift, structure and extra richness. Large eggs are ideal.
- Vanilla extract: What would vanilla cake be without vanilla? This concentrated extract provides deep vanilla flavor.
- Butter and powdered sugar (for frosting): The crowning touch is a simple yet heavenly vanilla buttercream frosting.
How to Make Stovetop Vanilla Cake from Scratch
Baking this easy, from-scratch vanilla cake only requires a few steps:
- Whisk dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt until thoroughly combined. Set aside.
- Mix wet ingredients: In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the milk, vegetable oil, eggs, and vanilla extract until smooth and fully incorporated.
- Combine everything: Pour the wet ingredient mixture into the dry ingredients. Gently whisk everything together, being careful not to overmix, just until no streaks of flour remain.
- Cook on the stove: Pour the batter into an ungreased 9-inch round cake pan. Place the pan directly on your stove burner over medium heat. Cook for 12-15 minutes, rotating occasionally, until the cake is lightly golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool completely: Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack. Allow it to cool completely.
- Make frosting: While the cake cools, use an electric mixer to whip together softened butter and powdered sugar. Beat in milk and vanilla extract. Spread over cooled cake.
And that’s truly all there is to it! In less than an hour you can have a pretty two-layer cake ready to serve. Talk about easy baking from your pantry.
Tips for the Best Stovetop Vanilla Cake
With just a few helpful tips and tricks, you can master this simple stovetop method for an extra tender, fluffy vanilla cake:
- Don’t overmix the batter. Gentle mixing preserves the delicate rise from the baking powder. Overbeating will deflate it.
- Use an oven-safe pan placed right on your stovetop burner. Cast iron or stainless steel work well. This unique baking method eliminates the need to preheat an oven.
- Rotate the pan occasionally as it cooks. This allows even browning and cooking on all sides.
- Test doneness with a toothpick. An inserted toothpick should come out clean with no wet batter clinging to it.
- Invert onto a rack immediately to prevent sogginess. Allow ample time for cooling before frosting or slicing.
Now that you know the easy play-by-play for whipping up tall, fluffy vanilla cakes on your stovetop, let’s go over some serving suggestions and storage tips.
Serving and Storing Your Stovetop Vanilla Cake
This light, tender vanilla cake begs to be shown off! After spreading on a silky vanilla buttercream frosting, decorate it with fresh berries, sprinkles, toasted coconut, chocolate shavings, citrus zest, or your other favorite cake toppings.
For gift-giving, the frosted cake layers can be stacked into a tower and wrapped decoratively. Or, thin cake slices can be individually packaged as sweet homemade treats for friends.
Leftover unfrosted cake layers can be well wrapped in plastic wrap then foil and frozen for 1-2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before using. Frosted cakes taste best kept refrigerated and consumed within 3-4 days.
Now that you’ve got all the tips, tricks, and info on this simple stovetop vanilla cake, it’s time to get baking! Whip up this pantry staple recipe the next time you need an easy, impressive dessert. It’s sure to satisfy any sweet tooth with its super moist, light crumb and rich vanilla flavor. I sincerely hope you find this “Fluffy Stovetop Vanilla Cake- Recipe and ingredients” article helpful.