You don't have to spend all day in the kitchen to make a delicious batch of cupcakes. Just mix up a few simple ingredients and bake the batter in cupcake tins. From start to finish, your delicious cupcakes should take about one to two hours to make. After they've cooled, you can frost them with your favorite homemade frosting. Try vanilla, chocolate or strawberry cupcakes next time you have a craving for a sugary snack. You can also take them to school or work and eat it as a snack. Be sure to take some extra for your friends and tell them you hand-made them!

  • Prep time: 20 minutes
  • Cooks: 15-19 minutes
  • Makes: 15 cupcakes

Ingredients

  • 2 3/4 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Optional: 1/2 cup chocolate chips, 2 teaspoons sprinkles, or other mix-ins
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 cup of unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 2/3 cup strawberry jelly (not jam)
  • 1/4 cup whole milk, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Vanilla Cupcakes

  1. Having everything ready before you start mixing will keep you from forgetting an important ingredient.
  2. [1]
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  3. If you don't have liners, just grease each cup with vegetable oil or butter to keep the cupcakes from sticking.
  4. Watermark wikiHow to Make Quick Easy Cupcakes
    Use a sifter or a whisk to thoroughly incorporate the dry ingredients. [2]
  5. Watermark wikiHow to Make Quick Easy Cupcakes
    Stir just until the ingredients are combined.
  6. Watermark wikiHow to Make Quick Easy Cupcakes
    Mix everything together to form a smooth batter.
  7. If you want to add chocolate chips, sprinkles, or another mix-in, stir it in now.
  8. Watermark wikiHow to Make Quick Easy Cupcakes
    Fill each up about 2/3 full. [3] Leaving extra room at the top of each cup will prevent the cupcakes from rising too high in the cups and spilling over.
  9. Place them in the oven to bake for 15 to 18 minutes. [4] The cupcakes are done with a toothpick inserted into the center of a cake comes out clean. [5]
  10. Place them on a cooling rack or the counter to let them cool completely. [6]
  11. Pair your vanilla cupcakes with any type of frosting you like best. [7] Here are a few easy recipes to try:
    • Vanilla frosting
    • Chocolate frosting
    • Buttercream frosting
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Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Chocolate Cupcakes

  1. [8]
  2. If you don't have liners, grease the cups using vegetable oil or butter to keep the cupcakes from sticking. [9]
  3. Watermark wikiHow to Make Quick Easy Cupcakes
    In this easy recipe, it doesn't matter in what order you pour them in. Choose a big bowl that will fit all the ingredients.
  4. Watermark wikiHow to Make Quick Easy Cupcakes
    Keep stirring until you no longer see dry bits of flour.
  5. Watermark wikiHow to Make Quick Easy Cupcakes
    Fill each one 2/3 way full. [10] Leaving extra space will give the cupcakes room to rise without spilling over the rims.
  6. Test to see whether the cupcakes are done by inserting a toothpick into the center of a cupcake. If it comes out clean, they're ready. If it's still wet, bake the cupcakes for another five minutes. [11]
  7. Place them on a wire rack or on the counter to cool completely. If you frost them too quickly, the icing will melt off. [12]
  8. Watermark wikiHow to Make Quick Easy Cupcakes
    Any flavor pairs great with these simple chocolate cupcakes. Choose your favorite frosting or make more than one, then spread it onto your cooled cupcakes. These recipes pair well with chocolate cupcakes:
    • Cream cheese frosting
    • Peanut butter frosting
    • Chocolate chip frosting
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Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Strawberry Cupcakes

  1. [13]
  2. If you don't have liners, grease the cups using vegetable oil or butter to keep the cupcakes from sticking.
  3. Into a large bowl, add the strawberry jam, milk, vanilla, butter, eggs and sugar. Beat the mixture well to fully incorporate the ingredients.
  4. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.
  5. Use a spatula to gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined. Be sure not to overmix, since mixing too much can cause these cupcakes to turn out dense.
  6. Fill each one 2/3 way full. [14] Leaving extra space will give the cupcakes room to rise without spilling over the rims.
  7. Test to see whether the cupcakes are done by inserting a toothpick into the center of a cupcake. If it comes out clean, they're ready. If it's still wet, bake the cupcakes for another five minutes. [15]
  8. Place them on a wire rack or on the counter to cool completely. If you frost them too quickly, the icing will melt off.
  9. The sweet taste of the strawberries pairs well with cream cheese, a simple buttercream or a complementary strawberry frosting. [16] Try one of these recipes:
    • Cream cheese frosting
    • Buttercream
    • Strawberry frosting
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Community Q&A

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Add New Question
  • Question
    Can the vanilla extract be removed?
    Community Answer
    You can leave it out. It just gives your cupcakes a vanilla flavor, which you may not actually want.
  • Question
    Do I need baking powder?
    Qamar
    Top Answerer
    Yes, you do. Baking powder helps the cupcakes rise and become moist and fluffy.
  • Question
    Can I bake fruit into the cupcakes?
    Community Answer
    Yes. Many people will do halved strawberries, but you may also put in blueberries, raspberries, or other fruits. Just keep in mind that fruit has high water content and will increase the moisture in your batter. You should closely follow a recipe the first few times you choose to do this, to avoid making soggy cupcakes.
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      Tips

      • Be creative when decorating your cupcakes! [17] Add icing, chocolate, sliced fruit, marshmallows, or sprinkles.
      • Be careful when cracking the eggs to not get any shells into the mix - or crack it into another bowl to remove shells and to see if it's expired or not. [18]
      • When you take them out of the oven test them by poking one. If it bounces back up then it is done; if not then put it back in the oven for a bit longer.
      Show More Tips
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      Warnings

      • Always be careful when dealing with hot temperatures. Take the proper precautions to ensure you don't burn yourself.
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      Things You'll Need

      • Mixing bowls
      • Measuring spoons and cups
      • Cupcake tin
      • Cupcake liners


      About this article

      Article Summary X

      To make 12 plain cupcakes at home, measure out your ingredients before starting, and preheat your oven to 375 °F. Then, place 12 cupcake liners into a cupcake pan or grease each cup of the pan with butter. You can prepare the batter by mixing the flour, salt, and baking powder in one bowl; and the sugar, butter, eggs, milk and vanilla in another. Mix everything together to form a smooth batter, divide it evenly into the cupcake tins, cook them for 15-18 minutes and let them cool on a rack before frosting. For alternate cupcake recipes, including how to make chocolate or strawberry cupcakes, keep reading!

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