Classic Vanilla Buttercream Frosting Recipe
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Vanilla Buttercream Frosting is one of my quick, classic go-to frosting recipes that I turn to time and again.
My family absolutely adores it, it is so very simple to make, and you just can’t beat that classic vanilla buttercream for all sorts of celebratory and everyday type of desserts. It is perfect for my white cake recipe for birthdays, weddings, and other celebrations and works as a delicious, yet stark visual contrast on chocolate cake, too. It is great sandwiched between a couple of butter cookies or spread on top of a cookie cake, as well. You just can’t beat the versatility of good ole vanilla buttercream frosting. It just works.
I am consistently receiving emails asking about my vanilla buttercream frosting, so I thought I’d repost the recipe by itself instead of it being included along with my chocolate cupcake recipe where it is scaled down for just 12 cupcakes.
I also thought I’d answer a few of your questions as well.
How do you get your vanilla buttercream frosting so white?
There are a few tricks to getting my vanilla buttercream frosting as white as I do. First, after each cup of confectioner’s sugar that I add, I turn my stand mixer on the highest speed that it will go. This not only makes the frosting extremely fluffy, it also lightens the coloring of the frosting as air is incorporated.
My second trick is to use clear vanilla extract whenever I want my vanilla buttercream as white as possible. Mind you, vanilla buttercream frosting still has butter in it, so it is virtually impossible to get it pure white. It will still have a bit of a tint of the yellow, albeit it will be faint. Most folks probably will say it is pure white. We’ll just know it isn’t exactly pure white, just as close as a vanilla buttercream can get without substituting shortening for the butter.
How do you get your vanilla buttercream frosting so fluffy?
I skipped ahead when I answered the question above and explained how after each cup of confectioner’s sugar that I add to the buttercream, I turn my stand mixer on the highest setting that it will go. This incorporates air into the buttercream and makes it lighter and fluffier.
I also use the paddle attachment of my stand mixer as I have just found it to make a smoother, fluffier buttercream frosting than when I use the whip attachment. Also, it is easier to get all of that delicious buttercream frosting off of your paddle attachment than it is the whip attachment. And I’m all about easy. Heh.
How do I make my vanilla buttercream firmer for a prettier decoration?
The firmness of your buttercream frosting greatly depends on the amount of sugar to liquid ratio in your frosting. If you want a firmer frosting, add more confectioner’s sugar. If you want a softer frosting, add more milk or cream.
Please know that I in no way am professing to be a professional baker, frosting maker, or anything else for that matter. These are my observations after years and years of making buttercream frosting and finding little nuances that make it easier, prettier, tastier, and more everything -er.
Here’s my Vanilla Buttercream Frosting recipe along with a few instructions and notes.
Classic Vanilla Buttercream Frosting Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup (226 g) butter, softened
- 3 – 4 cups (340-454 g) confectioner’s sugar, sifted
- 2 teaspoons (9 g) vanilla extract
- pinch (0.4 g) kosher salt
- 2-3 tablespoons (28-42 g) milk, heavy cream, or half-and-half
Instructions
- Place softened butter into the bowl of a stand mixer that has been fitted with the paddle attachment. Turn the mixer on a medium setting and cream the butter until it is smooth and has lightened in color, about 3 minutes.
- Add confectioner’s sugar, 1/2 a cup at a time. After each cup has been incorporated, turn the mixer onto the highest speed setting and for about 10 seconds to lighten the frosting.
- Add vanilla and a pinch of salt and combine until well-incorporated.
- Add milk, heavy cream or half-and-half until the frosting has reached the preferred consistency. For a firmer frosting, add more confectioner’s sugar, a 1/4 cup at a time. For a softer frosting, add more milk or cream, a tablespoon at a time.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Happy frosting making! Do you have any tips you’d like to share on how you make the perfect vanilla buttercream frosting? Please share them in the comment!
If you are looking for other buttercream frosting flavors, you might like these:
Perfect Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Strawberry Buttercream Frosting
Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting
White Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Love ya,
Robyn xo
My daughter is having a “cupcake wars party” If I make the frosting the night before and put it in piping tubes for the girls to use in decorating, should I make it the day of or can I do it the night before (which is what I would prefer to do)?
Great icing!
This looks and sounds absolutely Devine! And heavenly… Thanks so much for sharing it with us and I look forward to an amazing & beautiful cake!
I tried your white cake and it was so perfect! big hit 🙂 can I use this buttercream recipe to do a frozen buttercream transfer? I keep reading that you need a buttercream that is half butter, half shortening to do the transfer. I’m just wondering if this one being all butter would work or it wouldn’t freeze?
Hi. I love this recipe and your cake recipe. I’m making both for my daughter’s first birthday party next weekend. However, there is a lot of preparation I all have to do. If I make this two days ahead of time, would it still be easily spread of I keep it in the fridge the whole time. I’m making a two layer 9 in round cake with a 6 in round layer on top for the smash cake and about 50 cupcakes. I’m planning to make three batches of the cake batter and three batches of the icing, making each batch of icing a different color. But I’m worried the time in the fridge might alter the consistency with the gel food coloring in our alert the vibrance of the color. Any thoughts?
I didn’t have a paddle attachment for my mixer, so I was deciding to use a whisk attachment or do it by hand. I decided to do it by hand with a paddle, while i made the Chocolate Buttercream Frosting with the whisk attachment. The Chocolate Buttercream turned out so much better! I added extra powdered sugar to make the Vanilla Buttercream thicker, but should i do anything else to make my frosting fluffy, yet thick? Should I go over it with a whisk attachment on the mixer? I need to know by tomorrow.
I haven’t made this recipe,but I find that if I whisk a little whipping cream into stiff peaks and fold it in, it makes for a fluffier frosting.
This buttercream is amazing! My daughter wanted cotton candy icing, so I bought some really good cotton candy flavouring. I substituted the vanilla for 3/4 of a teaspoon of flavouring. It turned out incredible! It’s so fluffy and white, which is perfect as we are using gel colouring to colour the icing, so this won’t change the colours at all. This will be q staple buttercream in my recipe book now.
That’d be “a staple” not “q staple”. Lol.
what if it’s too runny what do i do
can i use cornflour
Just add more sugar. Cornflour would probably alter the taste.
Hi, since the butter cream recipe no longer comes with the chocolate cupcake recipe what would the measurements be for 12 cupcakes?
I have a 600 watt Kitchenaid mixer. I’m wondering if the mixer you used is the same wattage? I just worry about my highest setting differing than what you used, as I don’t want frosting flung all over the kitchen. Just wanted to be sure before I use this recipe.
Hi Jesi,
I’ve used different wattages of mixers to make my buttercream. I would recommend gradually increasing the speed until you feel comfortable that it is mixing at a high enough speed without flinging contents all over the place 🙂