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.
Hi Whitney,
Thanks a lot for the recipe and the tips! I’m planning ok making a 9 inch wide and 4 inch high round cake, is one recipe of buttercream enough to make a crumb coat and frost the cake?
Love from Germany,
Zoe
Hi Zoe! One batch of this buttercream will be enough for crumb coating and frosting a cake of that size. If you want to use it as a filling as well, I would double the recipe. Enjoy!
Can a frosted cake with this buttercream sit at room temperature or does it need to be refrigerated?
Hi Kathy! A frosted cake can sit at room temp for 3-4 days – the sugar in this recipe preserves the little amount of dairy in it, making it totally fine to leave out. I usually store mine in the refrigerator to preserve the details and remove it from the fridge about an hour or two before serving to bring it to room temp (cake always tastes better at room temp), but you can totally just leave it out of the fridge if you want to!
Hello. Can I use this buttercream for crumb coating.?
You certainly can, Diana!
What is the filling you use on your video for smooth buttercream? Could I use a ziplock bag as a piping bag to put frosting on cake?
Hi Kathy! This basic vanilla buttercream recipe is the one I’m using in the video for smooth buttercream. And yes – a ziplock would work fine in a pinch, but I do recommend getting actual piping bags at some point if you find yourself decorating cakes regularly.
Hi,
Will this vanilla buttercream recipie be enough to coat and crumb coat a 6inch cake?
Thank you x
Hi Sara! I would double the recipe if you plan on filling the cake with this buttercream as well as crumb coat and frost it. If you’re just crumb coating and frosting, one batch will be just fine.
Hi Whitney! Thanks so much for the recipe. I was wondering if I can substitute Swerve Confectioners for the powdered sugar and still have the same consistency. Thank you!
Hi Carolyn! I have never tried substituting the powdered sugar in this recipe, so I am not sure how it will turn out but you are certainly welcome to experiment!
Hi Whitney! I have a problem…the powdered sugar does not dissolve with the butter. The buttercream is grainy. How can I prevent this? Thanks a lot!
Hi Catalina! Usually when the buttercream is grainy it’s either because the powdered sugar needed to be sifted. If you did sift the powdered sugar, then check to see that the milk was room temperature (if it’s too cold, it won’t properly dissolve the sugar) and give it a little more time to mix at the end of the recipe so that the sugar has a chance to dissolve. Keep the mixer on low speed and mix for a minute or two and that graininess should be gone! Hope that helps!
Thank you so much!
Hey Whitney
How much would I need to crumbcoat and add extra decorations such as flowers etc to a 2 layer 8 inch cake?
Hi Fizza! I would double the recipe to have enough for crumb coating and adding floral decorations to a cake of that size.
For the crumb coat and frosting for 3 6’layers cake how much of this needed?
Hi Chathurya! For crumb coating and frosting a cake, this recipe will be enough as-is. I recommend doubling it if you’re planning on using it as a filling as well.
Hi, I made your cake for my birthday and it tasted amazing so I’m gonna make it again this time I just want to add whipped double cream and chocolate between the layers instead of buttercream so how much will I need to just frost the outside and pipe on top? Like shall I just make this much? Half it? Just let me know xx
I’m so happy to hear that, Sanah! To make enough of this frosting for frosting the outside of the cake and piping on top, I would just make this recipe as-is.
Thank you Whitney
Do you have a video/blog on storing buttercream?
Hi Corina! I don’t have a video or blog on that, but here’s what I do: I place the buttercream into an airtight tupperware container and store it in the refrigerator for up to two weeks, then when I’m ready to use it I put it out on the counter for a few hours to bring it to room temp. Then, I put it back into my stand mixer and mix on low until it’s smooth. Hope that helps!
Which do you think made the buttercream better the milk or the heavy whipping cream?
The buttercream tastes the same whether you use milk or heavy whipping cream, but the heavy whipping cream makes the frosting a little bit thicker. Hope that helps!
This is my fav buttercream recipe but was wondering do you think you could you add melted white chocolate to this?
Hi Becki! So happy you love this buttercream recipe. I already have a white chocolate buttercream recipe on my blog here: https://sugarandsparrow.com/white-chocolate-buttercream-recipe/ that is what I recommend if you want to make a white chocolate flavored buttercream. Enjoy!
Hi As daft as it sounds I wondered if this would change the way the buttercream comes out if only mixing by hand. Or would you suggest to use an electric mixer? Thank you
Hi Kim! I definitely recommend mixing with an electric mixer just because it would be near impossible to whip the butter without an electric mixer of some sort (hand mixer or stand mixer).
Thank you so much, i’ve learned a looot with your blog
Lots of love from Brazil!
Yay, Amanda!! That makes me so happy!!