Taste a slice of your favorite cake without even using your oven! But how?!
Your Instant Pot can help you enjoy fluffy baked goods even in summer when you don’t feel like staying in a hot and stuffy kitchen.
Just like the Instant Pot cheesecake, this cake has a really tender crumb and just the right amount of sweetness.
The best part – this simple yet delicious Instant Pot Vanilla Cake recipe has a short list of ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry and fridge! So you can easily whip this cake together whenever the craving strikes.
Instant Pot sponge cake in only 30 minutes using super simple ingredients!
Table of Contents
Can I Make the Batter Using Only One Bowl?
Yes! I recommend following the instructions and using two bowls for the best results. However, if you want to save yourself from too many dishes, you can start with step #2—mixing the butter and sugar together, then adding vanilla and egg. Then add baking powder and mix to combine and then finally, incorporate the flour.
Can I Use Brown Sugar?
Yes, you can substitute the sugar with an equal amount of light or dark brown sugar. Using brown sugar will give a bit of a nutty, caramelized flavor and also make the cake a little darker in color.
The difference between sugar and brown sugar is simply the presence of molasses. Dark brown sugar contains more molasses than light brown sugar, so the difference will be even more noticeable with dark brown sugar.
Can I Use Self-Rising Flour?
Yes. Self-rising flour is just regular all-purpose flour with leavening agents already mixed in. It contains about 1.5 teaspoons baking powder for every cup of flour, plus a little salt. The small difference in proportion shouldn’t make a huge difference.
If you are using self-rising flour, you should omit the baking powder in this recipe.
Does it Matter What Size Cake Pan I Use?
Not really. Most instant pot models can accommodate pans no larger than 7 inches in diameter, and the majority of cake pans are at least 5.5-6 inches in diameter. The small difference in diameter shouldn’t make a difference for the cooking time here.
How Should I Serve it?
I actually love this cake just as is! It’s so simple, and yet so satisfying. Sometimes I’ll serve it alongside fresh fruit and whipped cream for a light summer dessert.
For a little something extra though, this cake can be topped with chocolate glaze or this delicious Instant Pot Lemon Curd. Perfect for special occasions!
More Instant Pot Dessert Recipes, Please!
If you liked this Instant Pot Vanilla Cake recipe, check out these dessert recipes, all made using your pressure cooker!
Instant Pot Pineapple Upside Down Cake
Instant Pot Vanilla Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup butter
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ cup milk or buttermilk
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup water for the Instant Pot
Instructions
- In a bowl, mix flour and baking powder.
- In another bowl, mix butter and sugar, then add the whisked egg and vanilla extract.
- Slowly add the flour mix to the second bowl while stirring constantly.
- Add milk the the mix and keep stirring.
- Grease a pan (that fit your Instant Pot) with some butter, and pour your mixture inside.
- Pour 1 cup of water into the Instant Pot and place the trivet.
- Cover the pan with foil and place it on the trivet.
- Close the lid and cook at high pressure for 30 minutes.
- When to cook time is complete, wait for a natural pressure release (or for at least 20 minutes).
- Open the lid, let the cake cool a little, and remove it from the pan.
- Serve and enjoy 🙂
Can anyone tell me the conversion for UK measurements would be please? Just bought my Instant Pot Duo but it didn’t come with a basic recipes booklet! I’ve been digging all over the internet and can’t find anything applicable! We don’t have boxes of cake mixes here!
Are there any changes for high altitude? I live at 5000 ft.
Great question! From what I understand, you should typically increase the cook time by about 15% at that elevation. So for this recipe, add 5 minutes. The recipe stays the same other than that.
Made this tonight for dessert. It turned out perfect! My husband and I both loved it! My husband put some of his raspberry jam on his and he said it tasted great. I ate mine without anything added and liked it. The vanilla flavor is great! It was baked all the way through.
So glad you liked the recipe! Thank you for your comment 🙂
Corrie, your recipes are great. However, they'd be easier to follow if you had someone proofread the recipes. They are full of typos and can sometimes be confusing.
Corrie can I use the bake setting on the instapot with the airfryer lid.
I made a vegan version of this and it turned out really, really good! Used a 7” springform pan in the instant pot and followed recipe to the letter except I used unsweetened almond milk and one flax “egg” and the cake turned out really good. I’ll probably experiment with egg replacers but I’ll definitely make again, it was just the right amount of sweet and the perfect size for my husband and I.
That is great to know, I hope this will be helpful for others too. Thanks for your comment!
“White for a natural steam release?” Should that read “wait?”
Fixed. Thanks 🙂
Can I use a spring form pan
Yes, absolutely!
Soooo yummy! Come out perfect. Not too sweet, added my own strawberry compote and whip cream as toppings
That sounds delicious!! Perfect recipe for spring 🙂
I did not add the water to the batter. I put it in my instant pot but my cake is no where near cooked. My batter was definitely thick like cookie batter. Is it supposed to be?
Yes, the batter is fairly thick. Did you use a deep cake pan? Some smaller diameter pans that are deeper may require a longer cooking time.