Vanilla tray bake with vanilla buttercream is soft & fluffy, feeds plenty and is sure to delight everybody. This easy & quick sponge tray bake can be decorated to suit any occasion, making it the perfect crowd-pleasing celebration cake.
If you need a smaller cake try my easy vanilla sponge cake.
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Every baker needs a classic vanilla tray bake recipe that they can rely on to turn out a crowd-pleasing cake to feed a small army. This soft and fluffy sponge tray bake, topped with vanilla buttercream, is my go-to version.
This cake couldn't be simpler to make, so it's perfect for baking with children. And, of course, this easy & quick sponge tray bake can be dressed up to suit many different occasions, so uses for it are practically endless.
If you like the look of this vanilla tray bake don't miss my other child-friendly bakes including my school cake, Cadbury chocolate cupcakes, fairy cakes and butterfly cakes.
Why you'll love this cake recipe
- Quick & easy: this sponge tray bake takes around 15 minutes to get into the oven. Furthermore, there are no fancy skills needed when it comes to putting on the buttercream.
- Feeds a crowd: you'll cut a minimum of 16 portions from this cake. For little appetites (such as younger children) you'll get away with cutting smaller pieces, so it could stretch to 25-30 pieces, making it ideal for class parties.
- Appearance: you can make this cake as elegant, subtle, bold or over-the-top as you please. However you serve it, this vanilla traybake cake oozes charm and appeal.
- Texture: this sponge is soft, light & fluffy. Paired with the smooth & creamy buttercream and a little crunch from the decorations, it's a lovely combination of textures.
- Taste: the rich and creamy notes of vanilla in this bake are gorgeous and universally popular.
Ingredients notes
Ingredients for this easy & quick sponge tray bake are basic. They are all likely to be on hand in a well-stocked pantry and fridge.
Vanilla extract: as the name implies you cannot make a vanilla sponge tray bake without vanilla. I've used vanilla extract because it is easy to find and affordable. You could use vanilla bean paste instead (especially in the buttercream). Please do not use vanilla essence as this is an entirely different, and inferior, product.
Fat: I prefer to make sponge cakes like this one with baking margarine (such as Stork) to produce a light and fluffy sponge. It is perfectly fine to use butter if you prefer a richer flavour to your cake and are happy for it to be slightly less fluffy. However, for the buttercream, real butter is essential. Baking margarine will not suffice for this part.
Decorations: these are entirely at your discretion. Further down, I have included a complete section listing ways to decorate this vanilla sponge tray bake cake.
Equipment notes
You'll need a sponge tray bake cake tin measuring approximately 30cm in length and 20cm wide with a depth of around 5cm. Like this one.
Electric beaters (or a stand mixer) make short work of creaming the butter and sugar together.
Step-by-step instructions
Full instructions and measurements are given in the printable recipe card at the end of this post.
- Use electric beaters to cream the butter and sugar together for about 3 minutes until they are pale and fluffy.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well before adding the next one.
- Beat in the vanilla extract.
- Mix together the flour and baking powder.
- Sieve half of the flour into the mixing bowl and mix it in.
- Mix the milk in.
- Sieve the remaining flour into the bowl and mix it in until just combined.
- Spoon the cake batter into a prepared baking tin and bake for 30-35 minutes until the cake has risen, looks golden and no cake batter remains when a cocktail stick is poked into the centre of the cake.
- Leave the cake in the tin to cool completely, then carefully unmould it and remove the baking parchment.
- To make the buttercream use electric beaters to cream the butter, vanilla extract and half of the icing sugar (sieved) together until smooth and fluffy.
- Sieve the remaining icing sugar into the bowl and beat again.
- Beat in the double cream (or milk).
- Optional: remove air bubbles by pressing the icing against the side of the bowl using a large metal spoon.
- Spread the buttercream over the top of the cake and top it with sprinkles, or other decorations, of your choice.
- Cut the cake into squares, slices or triangular segments just before serving.
Expert tips
- Digital kitchen scales and gram measurements are the best options when baking. It's the most accurate method of measuring out ingredients (so much more accurate than cups), ensuring better baking results for you.
- Room-temperature ingredients make creaming the butter and sugar easier and they help the cake rise evenly.
- Mix the flour into the batter just until no streaks of flour remain and then stop. Overmixed batter will result in a tough sponge.
- The bake time is a guide only since all oven temperatures vary slightly. Your cake may take slightly less or slightly more time to cook than suggested in the recipe card. Test it by poking a skewer into the centre of the cake. If it comes out with raw batter on it then the cake needs a little longer in the oven. If it comes out clean, then the cake is sufficiently baked.
- Wait until the cake is completely cold before spreading the buttercream on the top, otherwise, the buttercream will melt.
- Always use the correct tin size. Trying to fit too much batter into a smaller tin will lead to it overflowing during the baking.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, you can freeze this tray bake cake. You can freeze it with or without the buttercream on the top and you can freeze it whole or cut it into slices. It is, however, better not to add decorations before freezing this cake if possible as the colours from some can bleed when the cake defrosts. Of course, if you're freezing leftovers, there's not much you can do about this though.
Yes, you can. Use half of the ingredients listed and bake the cake in a tin approximately 15cm-20cm square. Cook for around 20 minutes and test for doneness.
The best way to ensure an even rise to any sponge cake is to use baking strips (also known as cake strips or baking bands). You can pick these up online, but you can also make your own in a matter of minutes using kitchen foil and kitchen paper (especially useful for large tray bake tins). Find the instructions for making your own within my blog post for rum fruit cake.
Decoration inspiration
There are so many ways that this vanilla sponge tray bake can be decorated. Here are a few of my favourite ways.
- Birthday tray bake cake: just pick your favourite colourful hundreds & thousands or sugar strands and create a bright and bold celebration tray cake.
- Ultimate birthday tray bake: splurge by adding bright chocolates or sweets such as Smarties, M&Ms, Jelly Tots or Haribos as well as sprinkles. It's a sure-fire hit at kids' parties.
- Grown-up vanilla tray bake: Alternatively, opt for elegant shades of sprinkles for a more grown-up vibe to your cake.
- Colour the buttercream: anything goes from pastel shades to bright and bold.
- Freeze-dried fruit: crush some freeze-dried fruit, such as strawberries or raspberries over the top. This makes a lively, and more unusual, addition to the top of this crowd-pleasing tray bake cake.
- Pick a theme: select sprinkles to match any number of themes such as Valentine's Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Bonfire Night, or baby showers. There are so many occasions (excuses) to make this cake.
- Easter vanilla tray bake cake: either top with themed sprinkles or select confectionary such as Mini Eggs or Maltesers Bunnies.
- Christmas vanilla sponge traybake: you guessed it, red and green sprinkles, gingerbread men sprinkles, crushed candy canes or mini gingerbread men biscuits are the order of the day here.
Variations
- Add colour - a dab of food colouring in the cake batter or buttercream can turn this vanilla tray bake into something quite eye-catching. Pink or yellow look lovely.
- Make a lemon tray bake: add the finely grated zest of a lemon into the cake batter and top with lemon buttercream.
- Swap the buttercream: replace the typical buttercream topping with cream cheese frosting or chocolate buttercream instead.
- Fresh cream and fresh fruit: this is a winning combination, especially in summer. You can even add some vanilla bean paste or extract into the cream as you whip it. Strawberries, raspberries and blueberries are all lovely with this easy & quick sponge tray bake.
- Chocolate & vanilla sponge tray bake: use your choice of vanilla buttercream, chocolate buttercream or chocolate ganache then top with your favourite chocolate treats, such as Maltesers, crumbled Flake, chocolate buttons, Milky Way Stars or even chopped-up Kinder Bueno bars.
More easy baking recipes
If you make this vanilla tray bake recipe then I would love to hear how you get along with it. I'd really appreciate a moment of your time for you to rate the recipe and leave a comment. I hope this cake becomes one of your go-to recipes.
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Vanilla Tray Bake
Equipment
- 1 x rectangular tray bake tin measuring approximately 30cm long, 20cm wide and 5cm deep
Ingredients
For the cake
- 250 g Baking margarine or butter, room temperature
- 250 g Caster sugar
- 4 Eggs Large, free-range, room temperature
- 4 teaspoons Vanilla extract
- 4 tablespoons Milk room temperature
- 250 g Plain flour all-purpose
- 3 teaspoons Baking powder
For the buttercream and decoration
- 180 g Butter room temperature
- 360 g Icing sugar
- 4 teaspoons Vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 2 tablespoons Double cream or milk
- Decorations of choice such as sprinkles, flaked chocolate etc
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180℃/ 350℉
- Grease a 30cm x 20cm x 5cm baking tin and line the base and sides with baking paper. If using a cake band soak it in water and wrap it around the side of the tin.
- Use electric beaters to cream the butter and sugar together for about 3 minutes until they are pale and fluffy.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well before adding the next one. Don't worry if the mixture splits, the cake will still cook nicely.
- Beat in the vanilla extract.
- Mix together the flour and baking powder.
- Sieve half of the flour into the bowl and briefly mix it in.
- Mix the milk in.
- Sieve the remaining flour into the bowl and mix it in until just combined. Be careful not to overmix the batter as the cake will end up tough.
- Spoon the cake batter into the prepared baking tin and bake for 30 minutes until the cake has risen, looks golden and no cake batter remains when a cocktail stick is poked into the centre of the cake. If raw batter is evident on the skewer, bake the cake for a few more minutes and retest.
- Leave the cake in the tin to cool completely, then carefully unmould it and remove the baking parchment.
- To make the buttercream use electric beaters to cream together the butter, vanilla extract and half of the icing sugar (sieved) until smooth and fluffy.
- Sieve the remaining icing sugar into the bowl and beat again.
- Beat in the double cream (or milk).
- Optional: remove air bubbles by pressing the icing against the side of the bowl using a large metal spoon.
- Spread the buttercream over the top of the cake and top it with sprinkles or other decorations of your choice.
- Cut the cake into squares, slices or triangular segments just before serving.
Notes
- Digital kitchen scales and gram measurements are the best options when baking. It's the most accurate method of measuring out ingredients (so much more accurate than cups), ensuring better baking results for you.
- Room-temperature ingredients make creaming the butter and sugar easier and they help the cake batter rise evenly.
- Mix the flour into the batter until no streaks of flour remain and no more. Overmixed batter will result in a tough sponge.
- The bake time is a guide only since all ovens vary. Your cake may take slightly less or slightly more time to cook than suggested in the recipe card. Test it by poking a skewer into the centre of the cake. If it comes out with raw batter on it then the cake needs a little longer in the oven. If it comes out clean, then the cake is sufficiently baked.
- Wait until the cake is completely cold before spreading the buttercream on the top, otherwise, the buttercream will melt.
- Always use the correct tin size. Trying to fit too much batter into a smaller tin will lead to it overflowing during the baking.
- To make a smaller version use half of the ingredients listed and bake the cake in a tin approximately 15cm-20cm square. Cook for around 20 minutes and test for doneness.
Jane Coupland says
Quick, easy, feeds a crowd and suitable for many occasions - what's not to like!