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    Home ~ Recipes ~ Small Batch Desserts

    One Layer Small Vanilla Cake Recipe

    LAST UPDATED: Oct 19, 2020 · PUBLISHED: Oct 19, 2020 · BY: Sydney · 1 Comment

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    mini vanilla cakeon plate

    A small vanilla cake recipe perfectly sized to share. Topped with a few buttercream flowers and sprinkled with fresh berries this cake makes a nice presentation. A small one-layer cake is just enough for the smaller household.

    this Recipe

    I love making these small single-layer cakes, they are great for us with a sweet tooth but don't want to have a massive cake tempting us all week long.

    Table of Contents
    • Ingredients and Notes
    • Recipe Instructions
    • Serving Suggestions
    • How to store leftover cake
    • Recipe Tips
    • Tips for using store-bought frosting?
    • Cake Baking FAQ's
    • 📖 Recipe
    • Making Buttercream Drop Flowers
    • Comments

    Ingredients and Notes

    6 tablespoons butter, softened
    ⅓ cup granulated sugar
    1 egg
    2 teaspoons vanilla paste
    ¾ cup all-purpose flour
    ¼ teaspoon baking soda
    ⅛ teaspoon salt
    ⅓ cup milk
    fresh blueberries or other berries of choice
    ! Frosting
    5 tablespoons butter, softened
    1 ½ cups powdered sugar
    1 teaspoons vanilla extract
    1 tablespoon cream cheese, room temperature

    • Butter - Use room temperature butter, but it should still be firm and indent easily if you press on the surface with your finger. I use salted butter, the added salt will lessen the sweetness of the buttercream so that's another reason I use it. I do keep a couple of sticks of unsalted butter for those rare cases when it might be especially important to use unsalted butter.
    • Flour - As a general rule, I use King Arthur's all-purpose flour for most cakes.
    • Sugar - Two types of sugar are used, granulated sugar is used to cream the butter. The confectioners or powder sugar is for the buttercream frosting. Both types are easily available in the local grocery store.
    • Sour Cream - I'm a Knudsen girl but Daisy is in a cuter package. 🙂
    • Cream Cheese- Use cream cheese in a block, don't use whipped.
    • Vanilla Paste & Extract - For the cake, I use paste because it's a nice deep vanilla flavor, and the little flecks of vanilla bean are a nice touch. For the frosting, I use Extract because I want a smooth creamy white appearance.

    Recipe Instructions

    Frosting - Sometimes I make the frosting the night before, it really easy and stores well. Use a hand mixer on medium-low and place the softened butter and cream cheese in a bowl and mix until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Next, mix in the powdered sugar and vanilla.

    If you make the frosting ahead of time, remove any air bubbles before frosting the cake.

    To make the cake first preheat the oven to 350° degrees and prepare the cake pan then set it aside.

    Next cream the butter and sugar and add the vanilla and egg and mix together.

    creamed butter
    cream the butter

    Add the dry ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to mix.

    Add half the dry mix to the creamed butter and mix until just blended, add the buttermilk and then mix in the remaining dry mix.

    Pour the batter into the prepared 6-inch cake pan.

    Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a cake tester or toothpick into the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean or with just a couple of moist crumbs, it's done!

    Serving Suggestions

    Cut the cake into 4 slices and serve with berries decorating the plate.

    How to store leftover cake

    Store the frosted cake covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. An unfrosted cake can be wrapped tight and frozen for up to one month for the best quality.

    Recipe Tips

    Don’t over mix the batter. Mix on low speed just enough to blend.  Over mixing will cause a dense cake.

    Spray your pans  with cooking oil & line the bottoms with parchment. To help ensure cakes come out cleanly.

    Use baking times as a guideline only. Every oven is different. Some run hot, some run cold, and only you know how your oven bakes.  For best results use an oven thermometer and adjust the temperature as needed. 

    Cool cakes completely before frosting. Don’t rush here, if the cake is warm your frosting will warm and start to thin making it difficult to properly frost the cake.

    If you like my mini vanilla cake recipe, try my small carrot cake recipe, it's one of my favorites!

    If you enjoyed this small vanilla cake recipe then you might enjoy a delicious small carrot cake.

    Tips for using store-bought frosting?

    Sometimes I just don’t want to take the time to make my own frosting so I'll use store-bought and make a few simple adjustments. Adding cream cheese and mixing it in with the store-bought frosting lessens the sugary flavor. I also add just a tad of vanilla extract to up the vanilla flavor. 

    When using store-bought my go-to is Duncan Hines, however, the Betty Crocker brand is also good.  I don’t recommend using any of these straight out of the can, they all need a little work.  You spent the time to bake a cake from scratch so you want the best flavor possible.

    Cake Baking FAQ's

    How to keep the cake from sticking to the pan?

    Coat the pan with a baking spray like Bak-Klene, or line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper. The old fashioned way is to grease the pan with butter and sprinkle a light coating of flour. These all work!

    Whats the easiest way to tell if my cake is done?

    You can use the classic toothpick in the center method, if it comes out clean it's done. Another way to tell is if the sides of the cake start to release from the edge of the pan. Or, if the top of the cake look set you can gently push down on the center and if it springs back then it's done.

    Did you make this recipe? I would love it if you left a comment or review! Be sure to sign up for the email list, and follow "A Weekend Cook" on Pinterest and my Facebook page.

    📖 Recipe

    mini vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream frosting

    Small Vanilla Cake

    A moist 6-inch vanilla cake with a satiny buttercream frosting.
    4.41 from 5 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 15 minutes
    Cook Time: 30 minutes
    Total Time: 45 minutes
    Servings: 4 slices
    Calories: 653kcal
    Author:Sydney Dawes

    Ingredients

    • 6 tablespoons butter softened
    • ⅓ cup granulated sugar
    • 1 egg
    • 2 teaspoons vanilla paste
    • ¾ cup all-purpose flour
    • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
    • ⅛ teaspoon salt
    • ⅓ cup milk
    • fresh blueberries or other berries of choice

    Frosting

    • 5 tablespoons butter softened
    • 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
    • 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
    • 1 tablespoon cream cheese room temperature

    Instructions

    • Preheat oven to 350° degrees.
    • Line the bottom of a round 6 x 2 cake pan with parchment paper and spray cooking spray like Bak-Kleene and set aside.
    • Add the room temperature butter and sugar to a medium bowl. Cream together using a hand mixer on medium speed, about 2 minutes.
    • Add the vanilla and egg and mix another 15-20 seconds until mixed into the batter.
    • [In a small bowl combine the flour and baking soda and whisk to mix.
    • Add half the dry mix to the creamed butter and mix until blended.
    • Add the buttermilk slowly and mix until blended.
    • Add the remaining flour and mix until well blended.
    • Pour the batter into the prepared 6-inch cake pan.
    • Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a cake tester or toothpick into the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean or with just a couple of moist crumbs, it's done.!

    Frosting

    • Use a hand mixer on medium and In a medium bowl beat the butter and cream cheese using until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
    • Beat in the powder sugar, vanilla, and sour cream. If too thick add a touch of heavy cream. If you make the frosting ahead of time, to remove any air bubbles before frosting the cake.

    Notes

    You can substitute Greek yogurt for sour cream.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1g | Calories: 653kcal | Carbohydrates: 81g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 35g | Saturated Fat: 21g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 135mg | Sodium: 477mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 61g

    Making Buttercream Drop Flowers

    Visit My Small Kitchen Store Page for purchasing recommendations on cookware and utensils for your small kitchen cooking needs.

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      Recipe Rating




    1. cassie

      October 31, 2020 at 2:25 am

      5 stars
      moist and nice crumb

      Reply

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    Cooking scrumptious small batch recipes for one and sometimes for two are created in my small 1960’s kitchen. I learned to cook Shepherds Pie in England and Classic Marinara while living in Italy. Born in Southern California and raised in the Midwest, my cooking represents the best of both regions with an added touch of Southern hospitality.

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