Butter Cake
This Post May Contain Affiliate Links. Please Read Our Disclosure Policy.
This delicious butter cake is quick to mix up and made in a square pan for ease. Made with sour cream and butter for a wonderfully moist simple cake that is the for last minute guests.
As much as I love a good layer cake, like my vanilla layer cake, I really don’t like having to make the cake layers, frosting, and stacking them. And sometimes I don’t want a giant cake on my hands, like my sour cream pound cake, but I still want a buttery cake to sink my teeth into. Enter this everyday butter cake.
It’s easy enough for every day, but delicious enough for special occasions! This is a one layer cake made in a 9×9 baking pan, that I sprinkle on granulated sugar before baking for a crunchy top.
I first tried making with melted butter the cake came out very dense. The batter need softened butter to help create that fluffy texture when creamed with the sugar. With softened butter this cake came out light and fluffy and moist with a tender crumb.
Serve this warm butter cake as is, or try with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and fresh fruit!
Table of contents
Why This Recipe Works
- Made in a 9×9 pan so no fussy cake layers to deal with
- Moist and fluffy cake that’s quick to mix up
- Simple ingredients you may already have on hand.
- No frosting or decorating required
- Freezes beautifully to enjoy later!
Ingredients Needed
- All purpose flour – Make sure you measure your flour correctly by spooning into the measuring cup and leveling it off.
- Salt
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Vanilla extract
- Unsalted butter – You want to make sure your butter is softened to room temperature. If using salted butter, omit the added salt.
- Granulated sugar – You will use sugar in the batter and sprinkle some on top right before baking.
- Large Eggs – Make sure your eggs are at room temperature. Read my full tutorial on how to get eggs to room temperature fast.
- Vanilla extract
- Sour cream – I recommend full-fat for best texture.
How To Make This Butter Cake
Prep oven. Position a rack in the center of your oven and preheat to 350°F/177°C. Grease and line a 9×9 baking pan with parchment paper.
Combine dry ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
Cream butter and sugar. In a stand mixer bowl fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together butter and 1 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar (225 g) on medium high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
The rest of the sugar will be reserved to sprinkle on top before baking.
Add eggs and vanilla. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Add in vanilla and beat to combine. Scrape down the bowl as needed.
Alternate dry mixture and sour cream. Stir in the flour mixture and sour cream alternately to butter-sugar-egg mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture until uniformly incorporated- do not overmix.
Assemble cake. Spread cake batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the top of the cake batter with remaining 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar (38 g) for a thick crunchy coating.
Bake. Bake in a preheated 350°F oven for approximately 30 minutes, until top is golden brown and when the cake is done when a toothpick or skewer inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Cool in the pan on a wire rack before cutting and serving.
Recipe Tips
- Make sure you are measuring your flour correctly – So you don’t end up with too much in your cup which could yield a dry cake. Measuring with a scale is best but if measuring using cups, then be sure to spoon the flour into your cup and then level it off. Do not scoop directly from the bag or pack it down into the cup, which could yield 25% more flour than intended.
- Use room temperature ingredients – Like the sour cream and eggs. If you add cold eggs to the creamed butter mixture it will cause your butter to seize up and create a broken or curdled-looking batter.
- Alternate adding the sour cream and dry ingredients for the most tender cake – We want to alternate our dry ingredients with the sour cream so we create a smooth batter that isn’t overmixed. If we add all the sour cream at once it could cause our batter to separate. If we add all the dry ingredients at once, there is a chance then that we over-mix our batter making a tough cake in the end. So begin and end with the dry ingredients to create a smooth batter that will yield a tender cake that everyone can’t resist!
Recipe Variations
- Top with buttercream frosting – I love the sugar crunchy top but you could always skip and then frost with my vanilla buttercream frosting instead. Or try my chocolate frosting!
- Add almond extract – If you love almond flavor, you can add 1/2 teaspoon almond extract to the batter along with the vanilla.
- Dust with powdered sugar – For more sweetness and simple presentation try dusting the cake with powdered sugar before serving. You can always make your own homemade powdered sugar.
Serving Suggestions
You can really enjoy this simple butter cake warm out of the oven as is. But you can always make it a bit more decadent.
I love serving with homemade whipped cream and fresh strawberries. But you could serve with a chocolate hot fudge sauce and a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Storage Instructions
You can store this cake covered at room temperature for 2 days or in your fridge for up to 4 days.
You can freeze this cake for up to 3 months in your fridge. Wrap cake slices in plastic wrap and store in a plastic bag. Then thaw overnight in the fridge and bring to room temperature before serving.
Recipe FAQs
Yes you can try baking in a 8×8 square pan, you may need to bake for a few minutes. Or a round 9-inch pan will also work. I haven’t tried but you could also try doubling this recipe and bake in a 9×13 baking dish.
I haven’t tried but yes I think a plain full-fat Greek yogurt would be a great substitution for the sour cream.
This may be because you used too much flour. Be sure to check out my how to measure flour tutorial or weigh your flour. And make sure to cream your sugar with softened butter so the batter becomes properly aerated.
I like to touch the top of the cake and make sure it springs back when touched. And I test with a toothpick in the center of the cake. The toothpick should have moist crumbs only with no wet batter on it.
More Recipes To Try
If you’re craving more cake then be sure to try my Chantilly cake recipe! Made with mascarpone frosting and fresh berries. It’s better than Whole Foods! Or make my easy sock it to me cake, a bundt cake made with pecans, brown sugar and cinnamon.
Or if you’re looking for an easy but impressive cake, try my lemon pound cake made with a fresh lemon glaze or my easy strawberry pound cake for the summer!

Butter Cake
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups (150 g) all purpose flour spooned and leveled
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup (1 sticks,113 g) unsalted butter softened
- 1 ¼ cup + 1 Tablespoon (263 g) granulated sugar (divided)
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ cup (113 g) sour cream room temperature
Instructions
- Prep oven. Position a rack in the center of your oven and preheat to 350°F/177°C. Grease and line a 9×9 baking pan with parchment paper.
- Combine dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. 1 ¼ cups (150 g) all purpose flour ¼ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon baking powder ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- Cream butter and sugar. In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer cream together butter and 1 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar (225 g) on medium high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. ½ cup (1 sticks,113 g) unsalted butter
- Add eggs and vanilla. beat in the eggs one at a time. Add in vanilla and beat to combine. Scrape down the bowl as needed. 2 large eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Alternate dry mixture and sour cream. Stir in the flour mixture and sour cream alternately to butter-sugar-egg mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture until uniformly incorporated- do not overmix. ½ cup (113 g) sour cream
- Assemble cake. Spread cake batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the top of the cake with remaining 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar (38 g) for a thick crunchy coating.
- Bake. Bake in a preheated 350°F oven for approximately 30 minutes, until top is golden brown and when the cake is done when a toothpick or skewer inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Cool in the pan on a wire rack before cutting and serving.
Notes
- Storage: You can store this cake covered at room temperature for 2 days or in your fridge for up to 4 days.
- Freezing: You can freeze this cake for up to 3 months in your fridge. Wrap cake slices in plastic wrap and store in a plastic bag. Then thaw overnight in the fridge and bring to room temperature before serving.
- Sour cream – I recommend full-fat for best texture. You can also try using full-fat plain Greek yogurt as a substitute.