So, I trying to get into selling my baked goods. But looks are as important to me as taste because we eat with our eyes first.

WELL, I make the ugliest vanilla cupcakes!

I've tried several vanilla cupcake recipes and each time I have similar problems:

1-Too soft. I haven't eaten a boxed cake mix in a while (used the WASC recipe to make my sister's wedding cake and cupcakes), but the recipes I use all seem too soft and tend to fall apart when unwrapped. 

2- Overflow. I follow instructions and fill to recipe specifications. Overflow. I follow recipe mixing and reduce from 2/3 to 1/2 (I use a 1TBSP cookie scoop - 2 scoops per cup) and they still bake up onto the edges for the cavity and have that muffin overhang. but it's not cute like a muffin because it's flat and crispy. 

I don't have these problems with chocolate cupcakes. Here's the recipe I used: it uses the Two Stage Mixing method 

75 g cake flour (3/4 C)

 94 g AP  flour(3/4 C)

175 g sugar (dunno, doesn't break even lol)

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking powder

7 Tbsp butter 

1 Tbsp oil

2 eggs

3 oz sour cream (abour 1/3 cup)

1  oz buttermilk (about1 Tbsp)

1 tsp vanilla (or to taste)

Used Reverse Creaming/Two Stage Method (Dry +Butter, add Eggs-mix, add Liquid-mix)

Filled 1/2 full (recipe called for 2/3 - but that was too much before). That was two scoops or two tablespoons.

Heated oven to 400. Added cupcakes and reduced temp to 350.

was supposed to take 14 minutes, It took 20 minutes

I'm thinking of reducing the baking powder to half the required amount. But then I thought of just getting rid of the baking soda. But I know that a 1.5 cup of flour usually requires a teaspoon of leavening and the baking soda counteracts the sour cream and buttermilk and provides lift.....which is why I thought of leaving the baking soda off and using just baking powder. 

I also thought to combine the above remedies with eliminating cake flour and using White Lily.... or using only bleached AP flour. But somehow I think that reducing the leavening would make the most sense. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

I can't recall my recipe by heart (am not at home) but am pretty sure it's NOT baked at 400F. Think that's why yours rais to much/fast. All my cupcakes I bake at 320F for 25 to 30 mins. I use 200g of ap flour, 1 tsp baking powder, a bit less (vanilla) sugar, half a stick of butter and WAY more liquid (actually I use milk instead of buttermilk) - 3/4 cup. And i think this is where your problem regarding dry/crumbling comes froom. And I add in old fashioned way, sugar and butter, then eggs, then dry and wet alternating. 2tbsps per cupcake (about 2/3 full. Hope that helps. 

Thank you! I will try lowering my temp and leavening. Your recipe has significAntly less than mine. I'll also eliminate the cake flour and use regular milk with the sour cream instead of buttermilk. My buttermilk is homemade and quite thick. Thanks for your help!

Totally forgot to look up the recipe once I was home. But wasn't far of...

So you mix 125g butter with 150 sugar, add 2 eggs, then alternate 200g flour and 1 teaspoon baking powder with 125ml milk. I use real vanilla but guess extract (1tsp) is fine too. Bake for 30 mins at 160C (320F). 

Makes 12 cupcakes