Only 5-ingredient vanilla cupcake recipe you’ll ever need to get a perfect bake every time

Cupcakes are a perfect sweet treat to enjoy at any time of the year and are great for special occasions like birthdays.

They are super versatile and can be made in almost any flavour, but getting a perfect rise all comes down to the ingredients and mixing.

One cupcake recipe I have used for many years involves using the traditional egg-weighing method, and it has never let me down.

It makes 12 gorgeous fluffy cupcakes, all with a perfect rise and golden brown top.

The first step is to line a 12-cupcake tin with cases and set the oven to 180C or 160C Fan, or even lower if your oven runs hot.

Ingredients:

180g unsalted butter or baking butter

180g caster sugar

Three medium eggs

One teaspoon of vanilla extract

180g self-raising flour

Method:

Using the egg-weighing method involves weighing three medium eggs in their shells and noting this number down, it should be around the 170g to 190g mark.

Then, take that number and use it to weigh out the butter and cater sugar, creaming these together until light and fluffy in a large bowl.

I often use my stand mixer for a lot of recipes but find cupcakes are so quick and easy to make using a handheld electric whisk.

Once creamed together, add in the three eggs and the vanilla extract before mixing again until combined.

The mixture can look a little scrambled at this stage but this will all be sorted when the self-raising flour is added in.

Add in the flour and mix until combined, making sure it is completely smooth and no flour bits remain.

It is important not to mix the cake batter too much at this stage, but it is also important not to under-mix, so stop when all of the ingredients are combined.

I then like to take a spatula around the edge of the bowl to scrape down any of the remaining flour, gently folding it into the mix.

Then taking a tablespoon, I evenly divide the mixture between the 12 cupcake cases, making sure they are just over half full.

Put the tin in the oven, making sure it is on the middle shelf and cook them for around 30 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean.

Leave to cool in the tin for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

Leaving them to cool in the tin can result in the paper cases coming away from the edge, but removing them too quickly can also cause this issue too.

Decorate with icing or buttercream and enjoy the delicious light and fluffy bake.