After much trying, failing, recipe adapting, and cupcake eating, I have baked the perfect yellow cupcake. Moist, fluffy, and tastes like a box mix would if box mixes didn’t taste so artificial. Not to mention it’s easy to make and doesn’t use any special ingredients that I don’t keep on hand.

12 Super Simple Yellow Cupcakes
adapted from Kaboose’s Vanilla Cake

1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup water
6 tablespoons melted butter
(if you use unsalted butter add ¼ tsp salt)
1 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350°F. Paper 12 muffin cups.

In a large mixing bowl, beat sugar and eggs with a whisk until slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Add the rest of the ingredients and beat just until the batter is smooth and creamy. Pour batter into the papered muffin cups. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes or until tops are golden and a toothpick poked in the center comes out clean. Let cool completely on a wire rack before frosting.

Super Simple Frosting

2 tablespoons butter
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon water
1 drop liquid food coloring
1 teaspoon vanilla

Melt butter in small saucepan. Stir in powdered sugar, water, and food coloring and cook, stirring constantly, over very low heat for 3 minutes or until smooth. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Let cool to desired consistency, stirring often.