Super Simple Cake Recipe In 7 Easy Steps

by Ann Mifsud

closeup of vanilla birthday cake colorful balloon topper picture id1285783152

This cake recipe has been tried and tested by us at easykidsparties.com over and over again. It is a cake recipe that is super simple and easy to make even if you have never baked a cake in your entire life. It is as versatile as it can get in terms of flavors.

We highly recommend using the simple ingredients in this cake recipe whether you wish to make a zesty lemon-flavored cake, a tangy orange-flavored cake, a finger-licking vanilla-flavored cake, a divine chocolate-flavored cake or an adventurous chocolate-mint-flavored cake. We stick to this recipe whenever we want to make moist, light, soft and fluffy cakes or cupcakes. We also use this recipe to make the crumbs for our cake pops. Hand-on-heart…it has never failed us!

And because this cake recipe is so easy to make, kids can join in the fun too! They are sure to enjoy this experience, whether you are baking a cake for a party or for a cosy evening inside.

You could even try this easy cake recipe as part of your kids’ math curriculum, teaching kids to estimate, calculate and measure. They will also benefit from learning to follow a set of instructions. This may not be your goal at all, but it’s just fun to learn through baking. We hope you will enjoy it as much as we do.

What ingredients would I need for a basic and easy vanilla cake recipe?

 

  • 2¼ cup sifted cake flour
  • 3 tsp baking powder
  • 1¼ tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1⅓ cup sugar
  • â…” cup vegetable oil
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 tsps vanilla
  • 1 cup water

 

What equipment do I need to bake the cake?

  • Medium-sized bowl
  • Large bowl
  • Electric mixer
  • Spatula (optional)
  • 6-inch (15cm) round cake tin
  • Oven

What is the best method to bake a cake without much baking experience?

Step 1. Sift the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium-sized bowl.

Step 2. In a large bowl, beat the oil, sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla for 5 minutes using a high-speed electric mixer.

Step 3. In the large bowl, add one-third of the dry ingredients mixture and mix on low speed.

Step 4. Then add one-third of the water, beating on low speed.

Step 5. Keep alternating between steps 3 and 4 until you would have mixed in all the dry ingredients and water.

Step 6. Oil and flour a 6-inch (15cm) cake tin and pour the above batter in.

Step 7. Pre-heat oven at 375°F (190°C or gas mark 5). Bake cake for around 50-60 minutes. You will know that your cake has been cooked through when a skewer or knife inserted in the middle of your cake comes out clean.

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How can I turn this basic cake recipe into a lemon or orange-flavored cake?

This is very easy to do.

Keep the same ingredients as the basic vanilla cake recipe. Replace the vanilla with the juice of half a lemon or half an orange to the wet ingredients.

Alternatively, if you have high-grade, therapeutic, 100% organic essential oils, you could add a drop or two of either lemon or orange essential oil to the wet mixture.

Add the finely grated zest of three lemons or three oranges to the dry ingredients.

Important: Make sure the peel of the lemons or oranges that you are using is edible. Lemon and orange peels that would have had pesticides on them are not good for consumption.

How can I turn this basic cake recipe into a chocolate-flavored cake?

Instead of the flour measurements indicated in the vanilla cake recipe above, use 1¾ cup of flour and add ½ cup of dark cocoa powder to the dry ingredients mixture. You could also add a packet of chocolate chips to the batter for that extra chocolaty flavor.

Can I turn this basic cake recipe into a chocolate-mint-flavored cake?

Just add one or two drops of peppermint essential oil to the wet mixture. Make sure you only use high-grade, therapeutic, 100% organic essential oils for internal consumption. Et voila’, you have taken your chocolate cake to the next level.

Why does my cake take so long to bake?

You may have noticed that our cake recipe takes between 50 minutes to an hour to cook through. This is because the batter in this cake is somewhat runny. The result is that it yields a soft and fluffy cake, but due to all the moisture from the liquids, it takes a bit longer to cook.

Besides, it is good to keep in mind that the deeper your cake tin, the longer it takes for your cake to cook through.

The above recipe will yield a cake with a diameter of 6 inches (15cm) and 3 inches (9cm) tall. If you place the same batter into a cake tin with a larger diameter (9 inches or 23cm), your cake will be shallower (a bit less than 2 inches or 5cm tall) and will reduce the overall baking time.

How many individual cake portions will I have using this cake recipe?

Based on a 6-inch round cake tin, this recipe will yield between 8 and 10 generous cake portions, each piece as tall as 3 inches (9cm). This excludes any frosting in between layers which you may wish to add.

If you intend to serve this cake at a kid’s party, you might want to cut each serving into 2 portions, doubling the amount your cake yields. We suggest this, given that at a party this will not be the only dessert the kids will eat. Besides savory items, during a party, kids are typically served an assortment of cupcakes, cake pops, ice cream and a variety of candies.

What can I do if I want more servings?

You can easily increase the ingredients in this cake recipe to yield more servings. For example if you want 14 to 20 generous portions, use an 8-inch (20cm) cake tin instead and double the ingredients.

If you use larger-sized cake tins, you will have more servings.

Cake tin size in inches

Cake tin size in cm

Number of servings

6 inches

15cm

8-10 servings

7 inches

17.5cm

10-14 servings

8 inches

20cm

14-20 servings

9 inches

22.5cm

20-28 servings

Can I use this cake recipe for cupcakes?

This cake recipe is just as good for cupcakes. It will yield approximately 12 large cupcakes. Your kids and other party guests are sure to enjoy every bit and crumb of these delicious cupcakes, whichever flavor you choose to make them.

Important: Because cupcakes are smaller in size, they will cook through much faster than a 6-inch cake. Typically they will take around 20 to 25 minutes to bake, so make sure you set your timer to check on them at about this time.

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Can I use this cake recipe for cake pops?

This is definitely the cake recipe we at easykidsparties.com recommend for all your cake pops. Just choose the flavor or flavors you want your cake pops to be and get baking. Remember to let the cake cool down before breaking it into crumbs. Check out our article 10 Easy How-to Steps for the Perfect Homemade Cake Pops.

Typically we would not recommend using the whole cake recipe for your cake pops. A 9-inch cake would make tens of cake pops. So unless you plan on feeding the army, you could choose to either half the above recipe or else make 6 cupcakes and use the rest of the recipe mixture to make a cake that you will eventually break up for your cake pops.

Halving the recipe ingredients should yield enough mixture to make around 15 cake pops. If you do make extra though, cake pops refrigerate well and can be enjoyed just as nicely in the following days.

Final thoughts on following the ultimate and versatile super simple cake recipe in 7 easy steps…

This cake recipe is as easy as it can get. So even if you have very little or no baking experience, trying this out one evening will prove to be a success. Follow through the guidelines and you should have a very delicious and mouth-watering cake to enjoy with your loved ones in a matter of an hour or two.

Hi I'm Ann Mifsud!

Hi I'm Ann Mifsud!

Co-Founder, Editor & Writer

For most of us, when we think back on our childhood, it seems like it lasted a little more than a few minutes. We relish the beautiful memories we had, our many ‘firsts’ and countless adventures. And of course, we think of those occasions where we were given centre-stage or somehow felt extra special.

 

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