6-Inch Vanilla Cake Recipe - Live Well Bake Often (2024)

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by Danielle Rye on August 10, 2022 21 comments »

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4.43 from 7 ratings

This 6-inch vanilla cake recipe is perfect for small gatherings, as a smash cake, or when you just don’t want a full-size layer cake in your kitchen. Mini cakes are super cute and incredibly easy to prepare!

Miniature foods taste better than their normal-sized counterparts, it’s a fact.

Case in point: this 6-inch vanilla cake. I have a classic vanilla cake recipe on my site that wows friends and family every time I make it, but there’s something about this mini version that makes my heart go pitter-patter in a way that regular layer cakes don’t.

This mini vanilla cake recipe would be perfect for small dinner parties or family gatherings, and it makes for a wonderful smash cake for first birthday parties too!

Recipe Ingredients

This 6-inch cake may be mini in size, but it still packs in maximum vanilla flavor. Here are the key ingredients you’ll need to make this small vanilla cake:

Cake flour:Contains less protein than all-purpose flour, which results in a lighter and fluffier cake. If you don’t keep cake flour on hand, you can make your own substitute using regular flour and cornstarch.
Buttermilk:Makes for a moist and tender cake. You can also make a buttermilk substitute using just milk and vinegar or lemon juice, if needed.
Vanilla extract:Use pure vanilla extract for the best flavor. I wasn’t shy with the vanilla extract, so I highly recommend buying a good quality brand.
Butter:I always use unsalted butter when baking because the amount of salt in salted butters varies widely between brands. Bring your butter to room temperature before starting the recipe.
Eggs:Your eggs should also be brought to room temperature before mixing them into the batter. If you forget to get your eggs out of the fridge, place them in a bowl of warm tap water for about 10 minutes.

How to Make a 6-Inch Cake

This recipe is similar to my vanilla cake recipe, but it’s been scaled down to fit three 6-inch cake pans. The process of making a mini cake is the same as making a regular layer cake — the layers are just smaller in diameter!

First, you’ll need to prepare the vanilla cake layers:

Whisk together the dry ingredients:In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Combine the wet ingredients:Whisk together the buttermilk, oil, and vanilla extract. I prefer doing this in a measuring cup, but you may use a bowl as well.
Cream together the butter and sugar:You’ll first want to mix the butter with an electric mixer until smooth. Then, add the sugar and continue mixing until the mixture is light and fluffy. This step can take a few minutes, so be patient!
Add the eggs to the butter mixture:I recommend adding the eggs one at a time to ensure they’re fully incorporated. You may need to stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl between each one.
Finish thecake batter:Mix in the half of the dry ingredients, then the buttermilk mixture, followed by the last half of the dry ingredients. Make sure to only mix in each addition until just combined. You want to avoid over mixing the cake batter, because it can lead to a denser cake.
Bake the cake layers:Divide the cake batter between three 6-inch round cake pans that have been lined with parchment paper and sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.You’ll know the cakes are done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Let the cake layers cool:Let them cool in the pans for about 15 minutes before inverting onto a wire cooling rack.

While the cake layers cool, prepare the vanilla frosting:

Beat the butter until smooth:A stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment makes quick work of this.
Add the powdered sugar:I prefer adding just half of the sugar to begin with. Once it’s been fully mixed into the butter, I add the remaining sugar.
Add the heavy cream, vanilla, and salt:Beat the frosting just until everything is combined. If needed, take a moment to stop and scrape down the sides of your bowl.

Once the cake layers have cooled, you can assemble your mini vanilla cake:

Level the tops of each cake layer:You can use either a knife or a cake leveler to do this.
Frost the first layer:Place the cake layer onto a cardboard cake round, cake stand, or large plate. Use an offset spatula to spread about 1/2 cup of frosting over the first layer.
Frost the second cake layer:Place the second layer atop the first, then repeat the frosting process.
Finish frosting the cake:Place the third layer on top of the second layer upside-down. Frost the entire cake with a thin layer of icing (this is your crumb coat). Chill the cake for about 20 minutes before decorating with the remaining frosting.

Recipe Variations to Try

After some recipe testing, I realized that my cupcake recipes are perfectly scaled down to create three-layer 6-inch cakes. The bake times should be pretty similar to the baking time for this small vanilla cake recipe as well!

If you want to make a different flavored 6-inch cake, here a few recipes you can try:

Red Velvet
Chocolate
Lemon Raspberry
Carrot Cake
Lemon Blueberry

Note:You can use my layered cake recipes to make a 6-inch cake too, just be sure to halve the ingredients list.

If you prefer a different flavor of frosting, here are a few other delicious options to try:

Chocolate Buttercream
Cream Cheese Frosting
Strawberry Frosting

How Many People Does a 6-Inch Cake Feed?

You’ll get six good-sized slices of cake from this recipe. Depending on your hunger levels, that will feed either six people or will give an even smaller group room for seconds!

Can the Cake Be Made in Advance?

Yes! The cake layers can be baked up to 24 hours before assembling the cake, and the frosting can be made up to three days in advance. Store the frosting in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to use.

Baking Tips

If you don’t have any 6-inch cake pans, you can bake the batter in one 9-inch round or square pan for about 30 minutes.
Because you’re using smaller cake pans, you’ll be baking the cake layers for less time than an 8- or 9-inch layer cake. Start testing your cake layers at the 22-minute mark to avoid over baking them.
I decorated my 6-inch vanilla cake with rainbow sprinkles, but you can also decorate it with mini chocolate chips, chocolate shavings, whole strawberries, slivered almonds — whatever you prefer!

More Small Batch Desserts:

Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes for Two
Chocolate Mug Cake
Small Batch Brownies
Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies
Small Batch Peanut Butter Cookies

Recipe Video

6-Inch Vanilla Cake

4.43 from 7 ratings

Prep Time: 1 hour hr

Cook Time: 25 minutes mins

Cooling Time: 2 hours hrs

Total Time: 3 hours hrs 25 minutes mins

This 6-inch vanilla cake recipe is perfect for small gatherings, as a smash cake, or when you just don't want a full-size layer cake in your kitchen. Mini cakes are super cute and incredibly easy to prepare!

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Ingredients

Servings: 6 slices

Vanilla Cake

▢ 1 ½ cups cake flour (175 grams)
▢ 1 teaspoon baking powder
▢ ¼ teaspoon baking soda
▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
▢ ½ cup buttermilk at room temperature (120 ml)
▢ 2 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil (30 ml)
▢ 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
▢ ½ cup unsalted butter softened (1 stick; 115 grams)
▢ 1 cup granulated sugar (200 grams)
▢ 2 large eggs at room temperature

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

▢ 1 cup unsalted butter softened (2 sticks; 230 grams)
▢ 3 cups powdered sugar (360 grams)
▢ 2 to 3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream or milk (30 to 45 ml)
▢ 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
▢ ⅛ teaspoon salt

Instructions

To make the vanilla cake: Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Spray three 6-inch round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray, line the bottom of each pan with parchment paper (this will prevent the cake layers from sticking to the pans), and set aside.
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
In a large bowl or measuring cup, stir the buttermilk, oil, and vanilla extract together until well combined. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large mixing bowl using a handheld mixer, beat the butter on low speed until smooth, then slowly mix in the granulated sugar.
Once all of the sugar is added, increase to medium speed and continue mixing for another 3 to 4 minutes or until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Mix in the eggs, one at a time, making sure to stop and scrape around the bottom and sides of the bowl after each egg.
Mix in half of the dry ingredients on low speed until just combined, then mix in the buttermilk mixture, then the remaining half of the dry ingredients. Make sure to mix in each addition until just combined and be careful not to over mix the batter. If needed, stop and scrape around the bottom and sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to ensure that everything is well combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans and spread around evenly.
Bake for 22 to 28 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pans for 15 to 20 minutes. Slide a knife around the outside of the cakes, then carefully remove the cakes from the pans, and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the vanilla buttercream frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or in a large mixing bowl using a handheld mixer, beat the butter until smooth.
Add half of the powdered sugar and mix on low speed at first, then increase to medium speed and continue mixing until well combined. Add the remaining half of the powdered sugar and mix until fully combined.
Add the heavy cream (or milk), vanilla extract, and salt and continue mixing on low speed until everything is well combined, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
To assemble the cake: Use a knife or a cake leveler to level the tops of each cake layer.
Place the first cake layer on a cardboard cake round, large plate, or cake stand.
Scoop ½ cup of frosting on top and use an offset spatula or the back of a spoon to spread it around into an even layer.
Add the second cake layer upside down on top of the first one and repeat the same process with another ½ cup of frosting.
Place the third cake layer upside down on top of the second layer. Apply a thin coat of icing to the outside of the cake to catch any crumbs. Refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes, if desired. Then use the rest of the frosting to decorate the top and sides of the cake.

Notes

Storage Instructions:Store cake in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 to 3 days or in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Freezing Instructions: Cake layers may be wrapped tightly and frozen for up to 3 months, thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Frosting can be stored in a large freezer bag and frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before frosting the cake.

Cuisine: American

Course: Dessert

Author: Danielle Rye

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published on Aug 10, 2022

21 commentsLeave a comment »

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21 comments on “6-Inch Vanilla Cake”

Deb —June 10, 2024 @ 5:10 pm Reply
What brand of cake flour do you prefer to use for baking cakes like these?
- Danielle Rye —June 11, 2024 @ 9:08 am Reply
  I typically use Swans Down cake flour or Pillsbury Softasilk cake flour.
Chandra —August 27, 2023 @ 3:25 am Reply
Chanced upon this recipe at YT and I can only say this is one of the best if not THE best that I had tried so far! Have been looking for a not overly sweet mini cake as I am not serving to a large amount of people. This one really take the cake (no pun intended). Final texture of the cake was a dream, soft and fluffy. Not dense and perfect for layering your favorite buttercream. The only observation I had was that my batter wasn’t as thick, slightly on the runnier side but it does not affect the final cake.
I had also experimented swapping out with milk as I do not have any buttermilk on hand and omitting of the baking soda from the absence of the buttermilk, it all worked out fine and still delicious! Very moist and my kitchen smells like a bakery. Thank you Danielle for sharing this. 🙂
Janis —January 10, 2023 @ 7:17 pm Reply
This 6 inch cake recipe was not good at all.
I have been baking for years, I was looking for a nice 6 inch cake recipe and I chose this one based on the reviews. I am experienced in baking and know the do’s
and don’t of mixing and baking. This recipe was a waste of fresh ingredients.
It was dense, heavy and the flavor like cornbread.I had to throw the cake away.
I was so disappointed. Sorry Danielle.
I have never had a cake turn out like this.
- Danielle —January 11, 2023 @ 11:47 am Reply
  Sorry to hear that the cake didn’t turn out well for you, Janis. I’ve never had that issue with this cake and several other readers have had success making it too. If you followed the recipe exactly and your flour, baking soda, and baking powder were also fresh, I’m honestly not sure what could have happened.
Victoria —November 20, 2022 @ 9:29 am Reply
Great recipe! I made this for my sons birthday. Cakes have always been difficult for me but this cake turned out beautifully! I never considered myself much of a baker until I found your site. Thank you Danielle!
- Danielle —November 21, 2022 @ 10:07 am Reply
  Thank you, Victoria! So glad the cake turned out great for you!
Michelle —September 15, 2022 @ 6:45 am Reply
Absolutely delicious! Question your vanilla cupcakes are my absolute go to, why not use sour cream in this recipe, the how many 4 inch tins would this recipe make? Or if I used your cupcake recipe (with sour cream) how many 4 inch tins would that make?
- Danielle —September 15, 2022 @ 10:58 am Reply
  Hi, Michelle! I find that the buttermilk makes the cake layers a little lighter, so that’s why I prefer this version. My vanilla cupcake recipe will make a similar amount of batter so you could use it instead. For that recipe, I would guess maybe 5 to 6 tins.
  - Michelle —September 20, 2022 @ 12:43 pm Reply
    Thank you so much
Gina —August 31, 2022 @ 12:58 am Reply
Hi, can this recipe be used with whole wheat flour?
- Danielle —September 1, 2022 @ 2:16 pm Reply
  You could probably use half whole wheat flour and half cake flour. Keep in mind that it will make the cake denser though.
Russell Mikel —August 21, 2022 @ 1:23 pm Reply
Hello, Danielle!
We really enjoyed the vanilla cake (made 2×7” rounds). Very nice! I trust your recipe-making wisdom, so have an issue that bothers me.
Some recipes (including yours) that add dry ingredient weights (for greater precision) also add liquid ingredient amounts in milliliters (ml) which I understand is also more precise. This leads to 2 questions:
1) How do you precisely measure mls? Just eyeballing a liquid measuring cup? Like adding weight while on a scale, is there any simple means for measuring volume as I add it? Which leads to #2…
2) Why not just use weight? Some recipes say that 1 ml = 1 g, which isn’t true for different liquids (1 ml of oil weights .92 g). When you say 30 ml oil, do you mean 30 ml, 30 g or 27.6 g? Should I assume all recipes mean the same thing?
J. Kenji López-Alt makes a good case that such cooking precision isn’t critical EXCEPT in baking, charcuterie and industrial cooking where scaling is necessary. How much does it matter, and should I just tell the engineer in me to chill out?
Thanks!
Russell Mikel
- Danielle —August 22, 2022 @ 12:38 pm Reply
  Hi, Russell! When I measure liquid ingredients, I use a liquid measuring cup and check it at eye level. I don’t typically weigh my liquids, so that’s why I only include cup and ml measurements. 1 ml doesn’t equal exactly 1 gram, but it is very close. When I measure 1 cup of water (240 ml) in a liquid measuring cup, I get about 230 grams. Unless a recipe states gram measurements for the liquids, I’d stick with using a liquid measuring cup. If you’re only off by a few grams, it won’t make a huge difference in the overall finished product.
Lind Love —August 19, 2022 @ 8:28 am Reply
Hi Danielle,
I have not tried this recipe as of yet. I was wondering do you have a recipe for Tall Cheesecakes?
- Danielle —August 19, 2022 @ 2:24 pm Reply
  Do you mean a larger cheesecake baked in a springform pan? If so, I have a recipe here. Or do you mean something else?
Linda kraner —August 11, 2022 @ 5:03 pm Reply
I am looking for a Gluten free WHITE cake for a wedding.. do you have one? Thank u linda kraner
- Danielle —August 12, 2022 @ 9:56 am Reply
  I don’t, but I do have a regular white cake recipe here. You may be able to use a gluten-free cake flour substitute, but I haven’t personally tried it.
Paula —August 10, 2022 @ 10:02 am Reply
I have made your vanilla cupcakes which I really like, so I’m eventually going to try this recipe because I often make 6″ diameter cakes. So this recipe makes 3 6″ layers? My usual recipes make 3 rather tall layers, like 1 1/2″ tall each. Can you tell me how tall these layers would be so I could estimate how tall my cake would be? Thank you.
- Danielle —August 11, 2022 @ 2:15 pm Reply
  Hi, Paula! They’re probably about 1-inch thick. If you’re wanting taller cake layers, you can double the recipe and use the extra batter to make cupcakes.
- Tessa —April 15, 2023 @ 10:56 pm Reply
  I just used this recipe to make a 6 inch cake, but only two layers. I used a baking rod in the middle of the pan, and they baked very nicely. Only required some slight leveling, and were 1.5inch thick after leveling.
  Came out beautiful, and delicious! (And I didn’t even use buttercream or cake flour. Just heavy cream and all purpose flour!) Thanks Danielle!