The Best Buttermilk Cake Recipe 

This buttermilk cake recipe has the perfect flavor and fluffy texture. It’s a classic buttermilk cake that you will make repeatedly. It’s perfectly paired with a chocolate buttercream frosting or made into a bundt cake with a dusting of powdered sugar. This is a foolproof recipe that works every time!

If you’re looking for a classic cake recipe with the most delicious buttermilk flavor, this is it! The recipe uses oil, butter, buttermilk, and eggs to create a super moist and tender texture.

The baking soda and baking powder give it a beautiful height and make it incredibly fluffy. It’s a versatile cake that is perfect for birthdays, dinner parties, or simple gatherings.

We made this cake for a simple dinner party and everyone loved it. It’s an easy recipe and we’re confident you will love it as much as we do! 

Also, try our lavender cake and coconut loaf recipe too!

What is Buttermilk?

Buttermilk is a fermented dairy drink. Traditionally, it’s the liquid left behind after churning butter. Now you can make your own buttermilk using milk and lemon juice. It brings a pleasant tang to baked goods while adding a little fat.

Like sour cream, this acidic ingredient also helps tenderize gluten, giving the cake a softer, fluffier texture.

How to Make Buttermilk Cake

We’ll cover everything you need to know to make this recipe, answer questions and share our expert tips.

If you prefer to jump to the recipe, scroll to the bottom of the post where you’ll find the recipe card.

This is an easy cake to make! It uses basic ingredients that you can purchase at your local grocery store. Here is a list of the classic ingredients to make this perfect buttermilk cake:

Shopping List and Ingredient Notes

Full recipe and step-by-step instructions are in the recipe card below.

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Cake Flour – Cake flour has a lower protein content than all-purpose flour and a finer, lighter texture. If you don’t have cake flour, no worries! You can make your own cake flour.

Baking Powder + Baking Soda – Both are dry leavening agents used to increase the volume and lighten the cake’s texture.

Unsalted Butter – Use good quality, pure butter when baking. Butter creates a light and tender texture, gives the cake a buttery flavor, and also helps it rise. Make sure the butter is at room temperature and soft.

Granulated Sugar – White sugar sweetens the cake. If you want to use a different sweetener, check out these sugar substitutions.

Large Eggs – Eggs add structure and moisture to the cake. Use large, organic eggs when baking this recipe.

Vegetable Oil – We use a little oil in the recipe as it helps create the moistest cakes. Oil captures the gases that are released from the interaction of the baking powder and baking soda, and slows down gluten formation to keep certain baked goods tender and fluffy in texture!

Buttermilk – Use 2% reduced-fat cultured buttermilk. You can find this at your local grocery store. You might also see cultured, low-fat organic buttermilk which is even better. Buttermilk will add a tangy flavor to the cake.

Vanilla Extract – Use a good quality, pure vanilla extract. You can also use vanilla bean paste which will give it more of a vanilla flavor and make it a vanilla buttermilk cake. The best vanilla to use is Nielsen-Massey Vanilla Extract. 

Directions

Preheat and Prepare – Heat oven to 350 degrees and prepare the cake pans. You can use a 10 x 2 pan or two 8 x 2 round cake pans. Add parchment paper to the bottom, butter, and add a little flour for easy removal.

Sift – Using a sieve or a sifter, sift together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl. If you don’t have a way to sift, simply add the ingredients into a mixing bowl and gently whisk them together using a fork. This will incorporate air and lighten the ingredients.

Combine – In a liquid measuring cup combine the buttermilk, vanilla extract, and oil.

Beat – In a mixing bowl with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar n medium-high speed until light and fluffy. This will take about 3 minutes. Gradually beat one egg at a time.

Alternate Dry Ingredients and Wet Ingredients – Turn the mixer to low speed and add the flour mixture in 3 parts, alternating with the buttermilk in 2 parts. Beat until smooth and scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl.

Bake – Depending on the pan, this cake will bake for 25 – 35 minutes. The 10 x 2 will take about 25 minutes and the two rounds will take 30-35 minutes to bake.

Tips for Making Buttermilk Cake

Here are our best tips for making this cake:

• For best results, make sure the ingredients are all at room temperature.

• Baking time will vary. Check the cake by inserting a toothpick into the center. When it comes out clean, the cake is done.

• Make sure the cake cools before consuming as this allows the flavors to mix

• Know the difference between cultured buttermilk (grocery-store variety) and traditional buttermilk.

Let’s Discuss Cake Pans

Buttermilk cake is very versatile and can be made in different pans. Here are some suggestions on what pans you can use to make this cake:

Sheet Cake Pan – Sheet cakes are cakes baked in a rectangular cake pan that ranges in size from 9x13x2 to 10×7. Any of these sizes will work.

Bundt Pans – Also known as tube pans. This is a round pan with a hole in the middle. Some of them have designs and others are smooth. If you use this pan, make sure to butter and flour it as you can’t use parchment paper to help release the cake.

Loaf Pan – A loaf pan is a small rectangular pan, we use it to make our coconut cake and our pumpkin bread. If you use a loaf pan for this recipe you will most likely need to make two cakes. When you bake a cake in a loaf pan it’s often called pound cake. So this would be a buttermilk pound cake recipe.

Round Cake Pans – If you make to make a layer cake, then use 2 8×2 round cake pans.

The Best Quick Chocolate Icing

This frosting is creamy, rich in flavor, and goes perfectly with this cake. It’s a quick frosting to make too.

Ingredients

• Unsweetened Chocolate Bar
• Unsalted Butter
• Hot Coffee
• Vanilla Extract
• Confectioners Sugar

Directions

• Chop the chocolate and cube the butter.

• In a double boiler or heatproof bowl over a small saucepan, warm the chocolate and butter until it’s melted.

• Add in the coffee and vanilla extract.

• Pour the melted chocolate into a bowl with the powdered sugar.

• Using a spatula fold the mixture until it’s smooth.

How to Store Buttermilk Cake

Storing buttermilk is pretty simple. You can store it in the fridge or freeze it.

To Store:

To store your sweet treat in the fridge, wrap it tightly. This will preserve moisture and ensure a tender cake.

If you plan to store the cake for a long time, your best bet is to freeze it.

To Freeze:

Wrap the cake in plastic as soon as it cools. Storing the cake in the freezer will help keep the moisture content in, and it’s how professional bakers store their goods as well.

The cake will thaw pretty quickly, so that’s good news for anyone that wants to consume it out of the freezer. The frozen cake also makes a great base for icing.

Lemon Buttermilk Cake

If you want to make this a lemon buttermilk cake recipe, simply replace the vanilla extract with lemon extract.

Also, add in 1 tablespoon of lemon zest and make sure to top the cake with a lemon buttercream frosting, similar to the one we use on our lemon elderflower cake.

The lemon aroma pairs amazingly with the buttermilk’s acidic nature, so feel free to alter this cake into a delicious lemon buttermilk cake.

Buttermilk Cake Toppings

This cake goes with so many different flavors and there are several ways you can top it! Here are some of our favorite suggestions:

Frosting – Top this cake with any frosting you desire. We prefer chocolate buttercream, but you can also add cream cheese frosting, vanilla frosting, or whipped Swiss buttercream.

Sprinkles and Edible Flowers – We love using sprinkles for a birthday cake and edible flowers for a simple gathering. Dried edible flowers work just as well as fresh ones.

Fresh Fruit – If you prefer a light cake, top it with whipped cream and fresh fruit and berries.

The possibilities are endless for this cake, so feel free to get creative!

When to Serve Buttermilk Cake 

This is the perfect dessert year-round and for any celebration. Here are some ideas for when to serve this easy buttermilk cake recipe:

• Brunch
• Birthday Party
• Carnival Party
• Garden Party 
• Fall Harvest Party
• Baby Shower or Bridal Shower
• Christmas Party or Easter Brunch

What to Serve with Buttermilk Cake 

Serve this buttery cake with:

• Vanilla ice cream, buttermilk ice cream, or chocolate ice cream.
• Fresh berries or fresh fruit platter.
• A glass of homemade lemonade.
• Cucumber lemon water.

More Cake Recipes You’ll Love

If you love this cake, here are more of our homemade cake recipes to try:

• Our favorite Chocolate Sheet Cake
• The Best Homemade Funfetti Cake
• The Best Chocolate Orange Cake
• Our Favorite Crumb Cake
• Easy Pistachio Cake Recipe
• Old Fashioned Apple Cake

Let me know what you think about this cake by leaving a comment and review below! We’d love to know your thoughts.

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