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This recipe for Sprinkles Copycat Vanilla Cupcakes with vanilla icing is even better than the original! Moist, dense cake that is packed with vanilla flavor.
On this Memorial Day (or anyday), let us take a moment to remember all those men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our Country and our Freedom.
All things considered, I think a holiday celebrating the brave men and woman who protect our Freedom calls for cupcakes. While definitely not ideal for shipping overseas, I know these Sprinkles Copycat Vanilla Cupcakes will bring a smile to any serviceman’s face when delivered with a “Thank you”.
Sprinkles Cupcakes is the only place where I have ever loved the vanilla cupcake with vanilla icing more than chocolate. That’s right, more than even this triple death by chocolate cupcake! I also love their triple cinnamon cupcakes enough to make another copycat recipe.
Sprinkles Cupcakes opened up a store in Atlanta several months ago, and my Husband and I were obviously there the day opened. What of it?
Accordingly, hubs and I have had a healthy (or possibly unhealthy) obsession with Cupcake Wars for several years now. We have seen every single episode, ate macarons at the Paris bakery where Florian was executive pastry chef, and search for Cupcake Wars winners in every new city that we visit. There is an obsession between us with Sprinkles Cupcakes, but I think I already mentioned that one!
My husband and I were eagerly waiting for months for the new Atlanta shop to open and the night before he said, “I would probably break the law right now to have a Sprinkles cupcake.”
Certainly, he was 100% serious.
I have been scouring the Internet for Sprinkles Copycat Vanilla Cupcake recipes for months to try and replicate the dense, chewy texture and perfect vanilla flavor at home, and I think I have finally found it. For the vanilla cupcake recipe I adapted a recipe I found at Layers of Happiness and I modified the “official” Sprinkles vanilla frosting recipe that I found on Food.com. Quite frankly, I felt the one posted couldn’t possibly be right because it didn’t have any vanilla bean paste in it, so I changed it. In similar fashion I bumped up the vanilla extract.
You’ll never need another vanilla cupcake recipe again because these are the BEST! Additionally, I actually used the same cake recipe in these Salted Caramel Cupcakes. Swoon.
Want to laugh? My most compelling evidence of obsession: this is me at the Sprinkles Cupcakes’ ATM. That’s right I said cupcake ATM!
Sprinkles Copycat Vanilla Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes:
- ¾ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 ¼ cups sour cream room temperature
- 2 ½ cups cake flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
For the Frosting:
- 1 cup butter softened
- 3 ½ cups confectioner sugar sifted
- 1 teaspoon cream
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla bean paste
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Instructions
For the cupcakes:
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Line 2 muffin tins with 24 cupcake liners.
- Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a medium bowl and set aside.
- Cream butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating to combine after each addition.
- Add vanilla, sour cream and almond extract, beating until just combined.
- Reduced the mixer speed to low and stir in the flour in several additions. Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir the last bit of flour in with a spatula until just combined. Do not over mix.
- Scoop batter into cupcake liners and bake in preheated oven for 14-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few clinging crumbs.
- Allow to cool completely before icing.
For the Frosting:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter, sugar and salt on medium-high speed until combined, then add cream, vanilla extract and vanilla paste and continue to beat until light and fluffy.
- You can either smooth the frosting on the cooled cupcakes with a small offset spatula à la Sprinkles, or you can just pipe it on. Personally I find piping easier!
Notes
Nutrition
Before You Go!
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We’ve only been to the Sprinkles in Chicago, but my daughter loved their red velvet. I have a feeling their vanilla would go over well, too! Adding these to my summer baking!
I’ve only been to two: one in Scotsdale, AZ and the new on in Atlanta. We’ve tried 60% of their flavors including the red velvet! Vanilla and the triple cinnamon remain our favorites! I hope you do try it out! Maybe you can even coax your chocoholic son to try one! 🙂
Hi
How were you able to make that dome with the frosting.
Hi Jackie! I used a small offset spatula. I placed a large dollop in the center of the cupcake and then used the spatula to flatten it out on top while pushing the frosting to the edges. I added more as I went along if the frosting wouldn’t reach the edges. Then I scraped all the excess frosting off my spatula before starting on the sides. I held the cupcake by the base in my left hand (on the counter or other flat surface) and then placed the offset spatula on a slight angle on the edge of the frosting. I slowly rotated the cupcake with my left and and held the spatula steady with my right until I had gone all the way around. The key is a light touch because otherwise too much frosting will come off and you will be left with a bare cake! I then scraped off any excess frosting from my spatula onto the rim of my frosting bowl and went back to adjust any imperfections. It took a while for me to come up with a system and then to get them as perfect as you see in the pictures! Using more frosting on each cupcake would make it easier but my husband doesn’t like a lot! Fortunately this type of frosting technique is very forgiving, so you can add more or take off excess as you go! Good luck!
I have got to make cupcakes soon!! This looks so good 🙂
I hope you do! So yummy!
These look fluffy and perfect!!! And I love Cupcake Wars. We watch every episode. 🙂
Thank you! So glad to know that we’re not alone in our obsession!
I haven’t had a vanilla cupcake in ages! Need to fix that ASAP. The texture of your cupcakes looks amazing.
They are soooooo good! It takes a damn good vanilla cupcake for me to pass over the chocolate!
I love Cupcake Wars, Randy is hilarious, I love the ATM, and I LOOOOVE THESE CUPCAKES! I’m esp. pleased that you amped up the vanilla-good call 😉
Is it sad that I just figured out that they aren’t making any more new Cupcake Wars? Noooo!
They just put a Sprinkles Cupcake ATM in NYC…you got out just in time! Or you would have been paid a visit by the Wedding Fairy and we know what she’s like! 😉
That cupcake ATM looks AWESOME, I wish there was one of those near me. 🙂 But homemade cupcakes are always better, of course.
All I can say is at least I don’t live next door to the ATM…
These truly do look like the best vanilla cupcakes! I’m just about drooling looking at that bite of cake on the fork. I’m pinning them to make soon! And I love the cupcake ATM. Too funny! 🙂
I thought I didn’t like vanilla cake until I tried Sprinkles cupcakes and these are even better! Thanks for the pin! I hope you do try them soon! The cupcake ATM is TROUBLE!
I did love the frosting. It was to die for. My cupcakes were very eggy tasting. I think maybe 3 were to many although they were still tasty.