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
Hi, I made this vanilla buttercream frosting today for your chocolate cupcakes and the cupcakes turned out great and so delicious. But the frosting was kind of a disaster, it turned out grainy and wasn’t at all pretty, white, or smooth. I halved the recipe. Is there something I may have done wrong?
I would appreciate an answer, as I usually never fail with a recipe and also I would love to do these cupcakes again with this frosting.
Kind regards
S
This recipe didn’t call for any “grainy” ingredients, so my only guesses would be:
1. You used white sugar instead of confectioner’s (powdered) sugar; or
2. You did use the correct type of sugar, but did not sift it adequately.
Hopefully your butter wasn’t the grainy part >_>
It’s important to beat the softened butter first (and all at once) until it’s creamy and light. Until I learned this my buttercream icing often ended up grainy.
For the sugar, the recipe calls for this:
3 – 4 cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted
does that mean 3-4 cups of sifted confectioner’s sugar or 3-4 cups of confectioner’s sugar that is then sifted? I am not sure if I need to sift the sugar and then measure or measure the sugar, then sift it.
Thanks.
measure the sugar, then sift it.
Hi is it salted or unsalted butter? Thank you!
It is salted butter in this recipe. I hope you enjoy it! Thanks!
I just made the cake but want to freeze until next week – should i frost it before freezing or next week when I serve it?
I would wait to frost the cake until after it’s defrosted or close to time to serve it. Thanks!
Can you half this recipe and be able to cover a 9 x 13 cake? My family does not like a real thick layer of icing on our cakes. I made this recipe like it states, but it ended up being very thick on my 9 x 13 cake. Also, because you put cream or milk in it and it is not cooked, do you have to store it in the fridge?
Hi Debbie,
You can half the recipe if you’d like less on that cake. Yes, does need to be refrigerated.
Thank you for sharing this recipe. It is absolutely perfect
Thanks so much,Renee! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! xo
I live in Poland and the confectioners sugar here is wonky, to coarse or something. So nothing ever tastes right, except for this. The method really made up for the local ingredients, My kid just declared this the best frosting ever. Thank you!
Just put regular sugar in a food processor with a cutting blade, process it for a while, with some pulses, and you might get something quite close to confectiner’s sugar.
Maybe this frosting works better than others because the milk helps dissolve the sugar. Other frostings with no milk will leave coarse sugar just coarse, and this will make the frosting unpleasant…
Why do some butter cream recipes use unsalted butter?
Different brands of butter contain different levels of salt. You cant control the level of salt in the butter either so it’s best to use unsalted, and then add salt if desired, to taste. Nothing worst than having a salty icing because the confectioners sugar that you will use will definitely bring out the salt taste
The most creamiest and delicious frosting i have ever made. thank you for sharing this recipe
How long can you keep the frosting before it goes bad?