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Home > Cupcakes > The Best Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

The Best Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

By Ashlyn Edwards — August 24, 2018, Updated February 4, 2020 202 Comments

CupcakesDessertPopular Recipes

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A close up of a vanilla cupcake with sprinkles on top

This is The Best Vanilla Buttercream Frosting! It’s rich and creamy, and is super easy to whip up. It pipes beautifully, and is the perfect way to finish off all of your cakes and cupcakes!

A close up of a vanilla cupcake with sprinkles on top

We celebrated our daughter’s fifth birthday last week and even as I type this, I find myself still sitting here in a state of denial!

It seems like just yesterday I was sharing a tutorial on how to make her 1st birthday smash cake. But in reality, it was actually FOUR years ago!!!

When people say “the days are long but the years are short,” that is the absolute truth. I sure wish time would slow down with these babies of mine.

A close up of vanilla frosting on a whisk attachment

Our princess’s request for her birthday cake was a “pink cake with a ballerina on top.”

I was able to provide the pink frosting just fine, but after realizing my construction efforts are pretty subpar, I turned to Etsy for a ballerina cake topper. Which was GORGEOUS by the way! If you’re interested, this is the one I ordered.

a close up of vanilla frosting

As for the frosting, I made this one (and dyed it pink). This is my go-to frosting recipe, and in my opinion, is The BEST Vanilla Buttercream Frosting ever!

I’ve been making it for AGES so I’m surprised I haven’t shared it before!

A close up of a vanilla cupcake with sprinkles on top

I have another recipe for buttercream here on my site that I use a lot as well, but this one right here is my favorite because it doesn’t require shortening, and it’s SO SO delicious!

I add plenty of vanilla to give it really good flavor and it pipes onto cakes and cupcakes so well, and holds its shape beautifully! I think y’all are really going to love it!

If you share this Vanilla Buttercream Frosting or any other recipe from my site on Instagram, tag #belleofthekitchen so I can see what you’ve made! And follow me @thebelleofthekitchen, too!

A close up of a vanilla cupcake with sprinkles on top

The Best Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

This is The Best Vanilla Buttercream Frosting! It's rich and creamy, and is super easy to whip up. It pipes beautifully, and is the perfect way to finish off all of your cakes and cupcakes!
4.93 from 164 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Servings: 12
Calories: 331kcal
Author: Ashlyn Edwards | Belle of the Kitchen

Ingredients

  • 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks),, softened
  • 4.5 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
  • 4-5 Tablespoons heavy cream or whole milk

Instructions

  • Beat the softened butter over medium speed with an electric mixer until soft and creamy. Continue to beat over medium speed as you gradually add the powdered sugar. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed to fully incorporate all of the sugar.
  • Once butter and sugar have come together, add the vanilla. Beat in the heavy cream or milk 1 Tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached. This frosting is perfect for piping, or for simply spreading onto cakes and cupcakes!

Video

Notes

*This amount makes enough for piping onto a two-layer eight inch cake. I've also used it to pipe onto roughly 12 cupcakes. If you're not using a piping bag, it could frost more than that!

Nutrition

Calories: 331kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 47mg | Sodium: 4mg | Potassium: 8mg | Sugar: 44g | Vitamin A: 545IU | Calcium: 8mg
Did you make this recipe? Let me know!Mention @TheBelleoftheKitchen or tag #BelleoftheKitchen

A close up of a vanilla cupcake with sprinkles on top

If you like this recipe for The Best Vanilla Buttercream Frosting, then you might also like:

Skinny Chocolate CakeA piece of chocolate cake

 

Buttermilk Chocolate Cupcakes with Whipped Ganache FrostingA close up of decorated cupcakes on a table

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Comments

  1. Kati says

    January 17, 2021 at 5:09 pm

    This is, by far, the best frosting ever!! I use it for every occasion. And we always have leftovers, so I freeze it in small cups and my husband eats it like ice cream! 🤣 is there a way to make this chocolate? Like add cocoa powder? Or something?

    Reply
    • Ashlyn Edwards says

      January 18, 2021 at 9:49 am

      Glad to hear that, Kati! I’m working on a chocolate version!

      Reply
  2. Christina says

    January 11, 2021 at 2:36 pm

    Can I not use a mixer I don’t have one ?

    Reply
  3. Dani says

    January 10, 2021 at 3:05 pm

    5 stars
    So easy to make, and my son thought it way tastier than the stuff you buy in a can. Thank you for the recipe!

    Reply
  4. Simon Biles says

    January 7, 2021 at 9:43 am

    5 stars
    Awesome works well for cakes too!

    Reply
  5. Miranda Santillan says

    December 30, 2020 at 1:50 pm

    Hi I was wondering if this recipe could be used to decorate cakes? I’m making my brother his birthday cake, and I want it to turn out amazing.

    Reply
    • Ashlyn Edwards says

      January 4, 2021 at 8:54 am

      Yes! It’s perfect for decorating and pipes well!

      Reply
  6. Michelle says

    December 26, 2020 at 10:10 am

    5 stars
    My 8 year old son loves to bake & we’ve used this recipe several times for making icing. It is the best!! We just made this icing a couple days before Christmas & used it to decorate cut out sugar cookies. It was fantastic on the cookies as well. I’ve printed this one to save to my recipe book. I will never buy icing from the store again!!

    Reply
  7. Hilda says

    December 23, 2020 at 6:39 pm

    5 stars
    Very good frosting

    Reply
  8. B says

    December 21, 2020 at 1:07 pm

    Can I use a food processor for beating?

    Reply
  9. Nicolle says

    December 20, 2020 at 5:57 pm

    Looks deelish!! How long will this keep for (wondering if I can make it 2 days in advance of using?)

    Reply
  10. donna hopkins says

    December 15, 2020 at 3:30 pm

    5 stars
    excellent taste and easy to make. I used this to decorate my favorite Christmas sugar cookies. It was a big hit. Thank you!

    Reply
  11. Tiffany says

    December 8, 2020 at 9:02 am

    5 stars
    This is the best frosting! I use it for sugar cookies. My adult son said it’s the best I’ve ever made. Always a hit with the girls in my Wednesday night church clasd for our Christmas, Valentine’s and Easter parties.

    Reply
  12. Yolanda Gold says

    November 10, 2020 at 6:17 pm

    5 stars
    This is by far the best buttercream I have tasted. It is not too buttery and not too sweet. It is just perfect! Thank you for sharing!

    Reply
  13. RMJ says

    October 30, 2020 at 10:39 pm

    5 stars
    Wow, so good and so easy to make. Could sit and eat it with a spoon!

    Reply
    • Kellie says

      November 19, 2020 at 4:23 pm

      Agreed… and I definitely did 🙂

      Reply
  14. Amanda says

    October 18, 2020 at 2:58 pm

    5 stars
    Amazing!!!! Will use this going forward! Thanks!!

    Reply
  15. Cate says

    September 27, 2020 at 6:48 pm

    5 stars
    This is it! My search is over. This will be the only frosting I will ever use. I just used half the sugar. I really like the consistency. Thank you!

    Reply
  16. Shelby Graham says

    September 19, 2020 at 4:35 pm

    5 stars
    This recipe is excellent. Upon going through the reviews I decided to taste the frosting closely as I gradually added the sugar and did indeed end up feeling like it was perfectly sweet at only 3 cups of sugar. Other than that minor modification it was excellent.

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      January 7, 2021 at 6:11 pm

      5 stars
      Loved it! What is the shelflife of this frosting? I’m using it for a cookie cake and I am assuming three days is typical or week in the fridge. But definitely had questions because of the milk.

      Reply
  17. Earl says

    August 27, 2020 at 1:08 pm

    5 stars
    Perfection!

    Reply
  18. Marcia says

    August 20, 2020 at 2:17 pm

    5 stars
    This is good, and easy. I had to add a pinch of salt to smooth the powdered sugar “edge.” Next time I may try salted butter.

    Reply
    • Barbie says

      September 29, 2020 at 9:23 pm

      I use butter all the time…it taste super yummy just like a butter cream and the texture is perfect.
      I used salted butter which gave it just enough.

      Reply
  19. Ari says

    August 8, 2020 at 9:47 pm

    5 stars
    Nice and Sweet. My siblings and I love this buttercream. I always make it with my macarons.

    Reply
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Welcome!

Ashlyn from Belle of the Kitchen smiling for the cameraWell hello! I'm Ashlyn, and I'm so glad you're here! I hope you're hungry, cause I've got lots of family-friendly eats and treats just waiting for you! I'm a wife, mama, taco lover, and am blessed to be living in the great state of Texas. I love the south, cold brew coffee, Georgia football, cooking, and EATING!

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