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    Home » Recipes » Frosting

    Vanilla Frosting Recipe

    Updated: Feb 12, 2020 • Published: Mar 21, 2018 by Sam Merritt • 561 Comments

    This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read my disclosure policy.
    Jump to Recipe Jump to Video

    A simple, 5 ingredient recipe for Vanilla Frosting.  Use it to top off your favorite cake or cupcake recipe.  This recipe generously tops 12 cupcakes, modestly covers 24, or will cover an 8″ or 9″ layer cake or 9×13 sheet cake.

    Vanilla Frosting Recipe

    Happy Spring!  Does it look like Spring where you are, yet? Because yesterday/the first day of “Spring” was also the beginning of the first big snowstorm we’ve had all year.

    My car is buried beneath half a foot of snow, Zach is taking a snow day because none of the roads are plowed, and eventually one of us is going to have to break down and actually go outside to shovel out our driveway, so despite what the calendar might say it doesn’t exactly feel Spring-y around here!

    Fortunately, snow days make for perfect baking days, and today I plan on baking myself a batch of from-scratch chocolate cupcakes and topping them off with today’s recipe for vanilla frosting.

    Vanilla frosting on a chocolate cupcake

    And sprinkles too, of course.

    Today’s recipe is simple to make and is a staple icing recipe that every home baker or cake decorator should have on hand.  It’s easily pipeable and does a great job of holding its shape, is easy to customize with different extracts (though I always reach for the vanilla), and does well under fondant.

    It’s also incredibly hard to mess up, if your frosting becomes too thin you simply add more sugar, and if it’s too stiff an extra splash of heavy cream or even milk will work.   Let’s go over a few frequently asked questions that I get about making vanilla buttercream.

    The 5 ingredients needed to make vanilla buttercream

    How long can I store vanilla frosting?

    You can make vanilla frosting in advance and store it for up to two weeks in the refrigerator.  It will firm u when cold, so let it soften at room temperature a bit before piping or spreading on to your cake.

    Can I leave vanilla buttercream frosting at room temperature?

    Yes! There is heavy cream in this recipe, but it is stabilized by the generous amount of sugar that we are using.  You can frost your cake or cupcakes with this frosting and it will be good for 2-3 days at room temperature (it will keep longer in the refrigerator, for about 1-2 weeks).

    What goes well with vanilla frosting?

    I’ve tried it and loved it on my funfetti cake (check out those colorful decorations — all of them made with this same recipe!), chocolate cake, chocolate cupcakes, and vanilla cake, just to name a few!

    Vanilla frosting piped onto a cupcake with colorful swirls

    I have a new-ish cupcake (pictured above) that I’m excited to share with you on Friday, and I’ll  also be showing you how to add the neat colorful swirls to your frosting (it’s easy, you just need a small paintbrush).

    Enjoy!

    If vanilla buttercream isn’t quite your thing, be sure to check out my less sweet chocolate frosting or cream cheese frosting, instead!

    How to Make Vanilla Frosting

    Vanilla frosting on cupcake

    Vanilla Frosting

    A classic vanilla buttercream frosting recipe
    4.95 from 315 votes
    Print Pin Rate
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    Course: Frosting
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Servings: 12 generously iced cupcakes
    Calories: 266kcal
    Author: Sam Merritt

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
    • ¼ teaspoon salt
    • 3 cups (375 g) powdered sugar
    • 3 Tablespoons heavy cream
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

    Instructions

    • Beat butter with an electric mixer until creamy. Sprinkle salt over butter and stir again to combine.
      1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature, ¼ teaspoon salt
    • Gradually, about ½ cup at a time, add powdered sugar, waiting until each cup is completely mixed before adding more.
      3 cups (375 g) powdered sugar
    • With mixer on medium-low speed, add the heavy cream, one tablespoon at a time. Once ingredients are well incorporated, gradually increase speed to high and beat for about 30 seconds.
      3 Tablespoons heavy cream
    • Add vanilla extract and stir well.
      1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • Pipe or spread frosting over cooled cupcakes. Top with sprinkles, if desired. This frosting will be fine at room temperature for 2 days or refrigerated in an airtight container for about a week.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1/12th | Calories: 266kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 46mg | Sodium: 53mg | Potassium: 8mg | Sugar: 29g | Vitamin A: 528IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 7mg | Iron: 1mg

    Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.

    Tried this recipe? Show me on Instagram!Mention @SugarSpun_Sam or tag #sugarspunrun!

     

    More Frosting Recipes

    • Overhead view of a bowl of lemon glaze being whisked.
      An Easy Lemon Glaze Recipe
    • Overhead view of cupcakes frosted with lemon cream cheese frosting among lemon halves.
      Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
    • Cinnamon Roll Icing
    • Overhead view of cupcakes frosted with brown sugar swiss meringue buttercream.
      Brown Sugar Swiss Meringue Buttercream

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Bee

      June 06, 2019 at 11:30 am

      I’m not a baker at all but I really want to make my son first smash cake. It’s a smash cake so it shouldn’t be perfect right lol. Just wondering if this recipe would cover a smash cake?

      Reply
      • Sam

        June 06, 2019 at 1:35 pm

        This recipe makes enough frosting to cover a 2 layer 8 or 9 inch cake, assuming the cake is smaller than that it will be enough. 🙂

        Reply
    2. Kaedin Garza

      June 01, 2019 at 5:46 pm

      What can you substitute for butter in this situation

      Reply
      • Sam

        June 01, 2019 at 11:08 pm

        I know some people use Crisco, but I don’t really have a great suggestion for a substitute that will give you the same taste/texture/mouthfeel.

        Reply
    3. Rebecca

      May 23, 2019 at 11:54 am

      Hi!😊 Will it cover a half sheet cake or would I have to double the recipe

      Reply
      • Sam

        May 26, 2019 at 10:10 pm

        Hi Rebecca! What size pan are you using exactly? A half sheet cake is routinely used to describe a few different sized cakes. This will cover a 9 x 13 or a 2 layer 8 or 9 inch cake. 🙂

        Reply
    4. Austin Mahone

      May 21, 2019 at 11:32 am

      How many layers of cake will this recipe cover

      Reply
      • Sam

        May 21, 2019 at 2:54 pm

        Hi Austin! It will cover a 2 layer 8 or 9 inch cake. 🙂

        Reply
    5. Zenaida Campbell

      May 16, 2019 at 6:51 pm

      Can you add corn starch to the frosting to make it a firmer consistency?

      Reply
      • Sam

        May 16, 2019 at 9:55 pm

        I think that would be fine, but add the corn starch sparingly. I usually just add more sugar to make the frosting firmer, but if you don’t want to make it sweeter, too, then cornstarch is the way to go.

        Reply
    6. Dylan

      April 27, 2019 at 1:46 pm

      The first time I made this recipe i had a problem, it looked like pancake mix, have any tips on how to not make the same mistake again?

      Reply
      • Sam

        April 27, 2019 at 2:58 pm

        Hi Dylan! I am quite baffled as to how this has happened. My best guess is there was too much milk added. You can always play with the thickness by adding more powdered sugar or make it thinner by adding more milk, but it sounds like you may have needed a lot more sugar or a lot less milk here. Hope this helps! 🙂

        Reply
    7. Mody

      April 26, 2019 at 5:54 am

      Hi 👋🏻
      What’s a *heavy cream*?

      Reply
      • Sam

        April 26, 2019 at 10:54 am

        Hi, it might be called “whipping cream” or even “double cream” would work in this recipe. I hope that helps!

        Reply
    8. Kat

      April 24, 2019 at 2:01 am

      Im in Australia so when you say powdered sugar what could i use? Caater sugar or icing sugar?

      Reply
      • Sam

        April 24, 2019 at 9:29 am

        Hi Kat! Icing sugar is powdered sugar. Hope you love the frosting! 🙂

        Reply
    9. Anya

      April 20, 2019 at 10:55 am

      5 stars
      This frosting was so good! I did have to substitute the heavy cream for almond milk though due to allergies but it still turned out great! 😀

      Reply
      • Sam

        April 20, 2019 at 12:45 pm

        I am so glad you enjoyed the frosting, Anya! 🙂

        Reply
    10. Maria

      April 18, 2019 at 3:18 pm

      Recipe sounds great. Wondering if I can add cocoa powder to make a chocolate frosting?
      And how much cocoa powder?

      Reply
      • Sam

        April 18, 2019 at 7:47 pm

        Hi Maria! You can, but you may need to reduce the powdered sugar a little bit, but you could also try using my Chocolate frosting recipe instead. 🙂

        Reply
      • Maria

        April 18, 2019 at 9:05 pm

        Thank you, I will try the Chocolate.

        Reply
    11. Sheila

      April 05, 2019 at 11:22 pm

      Absolutely wonderful recipe. Delish!

      Reply
      • Sam

        April 06, 2019 at 6:23 pm

        Thank you so much, Sheila! I am glad you enjoyed the frosting! 🙂

        Reply
    12. Chuba

      April 03, 2019 at 10:39 am

      Hi Sam, can I make this without the heavy cream?

      Reply
      • Sam

        April 03, 2019 at 11:31 am

        Hi! Yes, you could substitute milk (start with just 1 Tbsp and add more as needed, as milk is thinner than cream) or you can leave it out completely, just keep in mind the frosting will be stiffer if you leave it out completely. Enjoy! 🙂

        Reply
    13. Lty

      March 13, 2019 at 8:34 pm

      What is best to colour buttercream icing:gel or liquid colouring?

      Reply
      • Sam

        March 13, 2019 at 8:44 pm

        In my opinion, definitely gel. It’s more vibrant and a little goes a long way, moreso than with liquid.

        Reply
    14. Vimshana Rajbansi

      March 12, 2019 at 5:07 pm

      Hello again!

      Can I add color to this frosting?

      Reply
      • Sam

        March 12, 2019 at 7:44 pm

        Hi Vimshana! You certainly can! 🙂

        Reply
    15. Brenda Clarke

      March 10, 2019 at 4:51 pm

      5 stars
      Easy to make and wonderful

      Reply
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    The author (Sam) in blue shirt holding donut Hi, I'm Sam! I'm dedicated to bringing you sweet, simple, and from-scratch dessert recipes. My life may or may not be controlled by my sweet tooth. Send help (or chocolate). Read more about me.

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