Enhanced Cake Mix Cupcakes with American Style Buttercream
These enhanced cake mix cupcakes bake up soft, buttery, and evenly shaped, with a flavor that tastes more homemade than the box alone. A few simple additions give them better structure and a classic cupcake texture. They're perfect for frosting, sharing, or just baking on a whim.
Servings 24 to 32
Cost 5
Ingredients
- 1 box yellow or white cake mix (13.25 oz or 15.25 oz)
- ½ cup cake flour (60 grams)
- ½ cup granulated sugar (100 grams)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ cup vegetable oil (48 grams)
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (140 grams)
- 1 cup whole milk (240 grams)
American Style Vanilla Buttercream Frosting for Cupcakes
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened (228 grams)
- 3 ¾ cups powdered sugar (1 pound)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons whole milk, plus more as needed
- ¼ teaspoon salt (can omit if using salted butter)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Line 24 standard muffin cups with paper liners.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the ingredients. You can do this without making a mess by putting the mixing bowl on a scale and adding all of the ingredients by weight.
- Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes, scraping the bowl once, until smooth and slightly thick. Fill cupcake liners just over ½ full. For cupcakes with domes, let the batter stand for 10 minutes.
- Bake on the center rack for about 20 minutes, or until tops spring back lightly and a toothpick comes out clean.
- Cool in pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely before frosting.
American Style Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
- In a stand mixer with the paddle, beat butter until creamy. With mixer on low speed, gradually add the powdered sugar, stopping to scrape the side of the bowl. Add milk, vanilla and salt (if using). Beat until smooth, adding more milk if needed. Scrape sides of bowl again and increase the speed beating until light and fluffy.
Notes
For marbled cupcakes, in a small bowl mix together ¼ cup cocoa powder, 2 tablespoons warm water or coffee, 2 tablespoons brown sugar and 2 tablespoons sour cream. Add ¾ cup of the vanilla batter (180 grams weight) and stir until smooth. Drop spoonfuls of chocolate batter over the vanilla batter.