I’ve tested a ton of buttercream recipes in my day, but my go-to is a super simple American buttercream recipe that I’ve tweaked to my liking. I’ve used this recipe for frosting countless cakes and cupcakes and I’m a big believer that a good vanilla buttercream is something every baker should have in their recipe box. There’s nothing fancy about the way this recipe is made, but it will certainly taste like you whipped up something special!
My Favorite Buttercream Frosting for Cake Decorating
This vanilla buttercream recipe is technically an American buttercream, which basically means it has a butter base and is stabilized and sweetened with powdered sugar. Most American buttercream recipes use a ton of powdered sugar to give structure to the frosting, but I have tailored this recipe to use less powdered sugar and be less sweet than your average American buttercream. As a result, the vanilla flavor really shines through and it’s the perfect consistency for cake decorating, topping cupcakes, and even creating intricate designs. It also firms up in the refrigerator, making it ideal to use as a base under fondant!
Vanilla Buttercream Key Ingredients & Substitutions
There are just a handful of ingredients you’ll need for this recipe and it’s simple to whip up for people of all skill levels. I’ll explain what role each ingredient plays in the buttercream and any substitutes you can use:
- Unsalted Butter. This is the base of the buttercream and gives the frosting a rich buttery flavor and velvety smooth texture. If you only have salted butter on hand, you can use that instead and omit the salt at the end of the recipe. And if you want a vegan version of this buttercream, you can follow this recipe which uses vegan butter sticks.
- Powdered Sugar. This adds stability to the frosting while sweetening. I like to use less powdered sugar than the average American buttercream so that the frosting doesn’t end up cloyingly sweet, but if you’d like it even less sweet you can reduce the powdered sugar amount by up to ½ Cup. Just keep in mind that the consistency of the buttercream will be thinner.
- Pure Vanilla Extract. This flavors the buttercream, and making sure you use a good quality vanilla extract or paste is one of the secrets to success. You can use any kind of vanilla extract or paste, but my favorite brands are Trader Joe’s Bourbon Vanilla and Costco Pure Vanilla Extract (the price is unbeatable). You can also substitute this ingredient for other extract flavors, just be careful how much you use because some extracts are more potent than others! If you’re looking for more flavor options, I have all of my frosting recipes here.
- Whole Milk or Heavy Whipping Cream. This thins out the buttercream while binding all the ingredients together. I like to use a liquid with lots of fat for this part because it makes the final frosting more velvety smooth, so whole milk or heavy whipping cream are my go-to’s. If you’d rather use a dairy-free option you can substitute this with any milk alternative, but keep in mind that the flavor of the liquid will affect the overall frosting flavor.
- Salt. A pinch of salt helps balance the sweetness beautifully.
Vanilla Buttercream Tips for Success
This buttercream is simple for anyone to make, but there are a few things to keep in mind when making, storing, and working with it.
- Room Temperature Ingredients. Be sure to use room temperature ingredients. This is important for ingredients to combine and create a smooth consistency. Over the years I’ve found that cutting corners like adding cold milk will create a curdled look in the final frosting because the temperature hinders the ingredients from coming together smoothly. Not the best look! So, take your ingredients like butter and milk out of the refrigerator for about an hour prior to making the frosting.
- Use the Paddle Attachment on Your Stand Mixer. Also known as the flat beater attachment, the paddle attachment is designed to incorporate just the right amount of air into the buttercream. This makes it easier to make smooth buttercream without a ton of air bubbles.
- Whip the Butter for a Long Time. To achieve the smoothest buttercream that’s also nearly white in color, you’ll want to whip the butter for a long time – about 7 minutes. In this amount of time, the butter should go from yellow to almost white and be extra smooth.
- Then Mix Everything Else on Low Speed. After you whip the butter, it’s important to keep the mixer on low speed any time you’re mixing in the additional ingredients. Even though it will take longer to mix the ingredients, keeping the mixer on low speed helps prevent air bubbles from forming in the buttercream.
- Let the Ingredients Fully Combine. After I mix in the final ingredient (salt) I like to run the mixer on low speed for another minute or two to allow everything to combine fully. This gives the powdered sugar time to dissolve as well, so the buttercream will taste smooth and not grainy.
Here’s a quick video I whipped up to show you my method for making this buttercream recipe and all my tips for success:
I’ve got more recipe videos like this one + some fun cake decorating tutorials on my YouTube channel if you want to see some more! I’m always rolling out new videos, so click the subscribe button while you’re there to ensure you never miss a new one.
Vanilla Buttercream
Ingredients
- 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 1/2 cups (420g) powdered sugar, sifted
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 Tbsp whole milk or heavy whipping cream, room temperature
- 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste
Instructions
- With a hand mixer or paddle attachment on your stand mixer, cream the butter on medium-high until it’s creamy and light (almost white) in color. About 7 minutes.
- With the mixer on low, add the sifted powdered sugar one cup at a time, scraping down after each addition and making sure each cup is fully incorporated before adding the next one.
- Add vanilla, milk, and salt and mix on low for another minute until fully incorporated.
Notes
- Frost 12-15 cupcakes with a piping bag
- Fill and crumb coat a three-layer 6-inch cake or two-layer 8-inch cake. To have enough for frosting and decorating as well, double the recipe.
Tips for the best buttercream consistency
There are three types of consistency for buttercream that you need to know, and each one plays a different role in cake decorating.
Medium Consistency
This is the most versatile of all consistencies. It works perfectly as a filling between layers, crumb coating, frosting a cake (especially if you want a smooth buttercream finish), and even decorating cupcakes with simple piping tips. This buttercream recipe is medium consistency as-is, so it’s super easy to spread smoothly onto cakes. To test and make sure you’ve got a medium consistency going, you should be able to dip your rubber spatula into the buttercream and it will come out with soft peaks and spread easily when you move your finger over it.
Thin Consistency
This is the perfect consistency for painting with buttercream or writing a message on your cake. To achieve it, just add 1-2 additional teaspoons of room temperature milk to thin out the buttercream.
Stiff Consistency
If you’re piping buttercream flowers, especially ones with petals that need to stand upright, you’ll need a stiff consistency. Add an extra 1/2 cup of powdered sugar per batch of the above recipe to achieve this. When you dip your rubber spatula into the frosting, it should come out with stiff peaks, but when you pipe with it, make sure it’s not so thick that you have to put a ton of extra pressure on the bag or clog the piping tip. If you’re running into these problems, fear not! You can tone it down by adding room temperature whole milk, 1 tsp at a time, until it’s just right.
I am making 30 cupcakes and a 6″ heart cake for cutting, I will be filling, coating and piping a border. How many batches should I make? Also, does this hold up in the heat. It will be an outdoor wedding and it is really warm. Thank you
Hi Sheri! I would use this heat stable buttercream recipe: https://sugarandsparrow.com/buttercream-recipe-for-hot-weather/ and probably make 3-4x the amount to have enough for frosting 30 cupcakes, and building and decorating a heart cake. Hope that helps!
I am going to use this recipe this weekend to ice, fill and crumb a 4 layer cake!
Hi Emma! I’m so excited for you to make this! I would double the recipe to fill, crumb coat, and frost a 4-layer cake just to be sure you have enough. Enjoy!
How much of everything to cover a 2 layer 8 inch cake?
Hi Michael! If you’re not filling the cake, one batch of this frosting will be perfect. If you’re filling the cake too, I would double the recipe. Enjoy!
hi question after we make the buttercream and is the refrigerator and I take out to room temp u said we need to put it back in the stand mixer and mixer again for how long and what speed. Thank you
Hi Maritza! After bringing the buttercream back to room temperature, mix it on low speed for a minute or two to bring it back to smooth frosting consistency. It can sometimes thicken after being in the refrigerator, and if it seems too thick, you can add a little room temperature milk 1-2 teaspoons at a time to make it easier to spread. Hope that helps!
thanks yes help me a lot I already make it and I really liked I usually don’t like buttercream because is super sweet but I really love this one.❤️
How much buttercream would I need to crumb, fill and cover 2 12×17 sheet cakes
Hi Gisela! You’d need about 10-11 Cups of buttercream for a cake that size, which includes filling two 12×17 layers, crumb coating, frosting, and piping a simple decorative border. I’d make 4 batches of this buttercream recipe to have enough. Hope that helps!
I love this buttercream recipe! I forgot to save it once and had to search all over the Internet to find it again! I have a quick question. I have 2 sheet cakes I will be frosting (9×13 pans) and I’m not sure if the base recipe would be enough to cover both. What would you recommend? Thanks!
Hi Lauren! One batch of this recipe is enough to cover the top surface of one 9×13 sheet cake. If you’re also frosting the sides or adding piped borders I would make 1.5x batches of this recipe per cake, so 3x this recipe total for two 9×13 cakes. Hope that helps!
Hello, could I use salted butter for this recipe?
Hi KB! You can use salted butter, just omit the salt at the end.
can i use stawberry jam instead of puree
Hi Ashley! To flavor this buttercream with strawberry I do recommend reduced puree or freeze-dried strawberries over strawberry jam. You can use jam, but it will make this buttercream sweeter, whereas the other options won’t add any sweetness. If using jam, I’d add 1-2 Tbsp. Hope that helps!
Can this be made a day in advance and stored?
Hi Angelina! Yes. The make ahead instructions are in the notes section of the recipe card 🙂
I think I’ve made this buttercream recipe last year and it was good. I’ll be making it in 2 days for a birthday cake. Its a 3 layer 8 inch cake.
I will be crumb coating, and filling it. As well as icing it on the outside and decorating. The 2 colour l will be using are pink and green (one half of cake is a colour and the other half the other colour and the 2 layers alternate colours). The crumb coat underneath so just around edges and top will be white.
I have decided to double recipe for white, double recipe for pink and double for green. I should have more than enough?
Hi Anita! Doubling this recipe will be the perfect amount for filling, frosting, and decorating a cake of that size with that design plan. If you don’t plan on filling the cake, you could get away with 1.5x the recipe. Hope that helps!
Hi! I tried out this recipe and it’s really great, not too sweet and buttery soft. Will definitely make again.
The only issue I had is with the amount; I followed the recipe for 3 cups, weighing out the butter and sugar by weight (226 and 420 grams respectively), but somehow ended up with about 2 cups. I’ll be making a second batch tonight so I can frost the two-layer 8 inch cake I’m making. Should have made a double batch in the first place!
Can you freeze the buttercream frosting and use later.
Hi Jenny! Yes, you can freeze this buttercream frosting for up to three months in an airtight container.
Thanks for this recipe. I made 4 batches for a 3 tier wedding cake. I used it for a crumb coat for the cake as well as the filling
I put lemon curd and raspberry jam on alternate layers on top of the buttercream. I then used white chocolate ganache on top of the crumb coat. I’ve never crumb coated or baked a wedding cake before but thanks to this recipe it turned out well. It was much easier to work with a soft buttercream because it was so cold here today. I added more cream like you said and it made it softer. Thank you for the recipe.
Love this recipe! Is my go to!
However have been caught out in the past when the g’s beside the measurements don’t update when increasing the recipe amount.
Can I frost my cake the night before and leave it on the counter? Or does it need to be refrigerated? In either case, would you recommend covered or uncovered?
Hi Noor! You can certainly store this cake on the counter after frosting. It would be ideal covered. Hope that helps!
Hi… quick question do I sift the powder sugar before I weigh it or after
Hi Kristi! Sift it after weighing 🙂
Hi!
I’ve tried every buttercream recipe and mine turn out grainy all the time. & when I add the coloring – it looks streaky and not smooth or consistent. I do live in Hawaii, it’s hot and humid in my house. Could this contribute? I’ve wasted butter and so many ingredients on bad frosting mixed. The taste is always good but the consistency is never smooth or look like how the pictures look. Any tips or reasons why this happening to me?
Hi there! Have you tried this recipe yet? If your buttercream is grainy that indicates your powdered sugar isn’t properly dissolved. And what kind of food coloring are you using (gel based? What brand?)? If you’re using this recipe I recommend sifting the powdered sugar and adding it in a little at a time on low speed. Keep mixing for 1-2 minutes at low speed after adding the last ingredient to allow time for the powdered sugar to dissolve.