Whipped Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
This is the lightest and fluffiest vanilla buttercream frosting. It’s perfect for frosting just about anything— cakes, cupcakes, cookies and more!
Are you a frosting person? I’m totally a frosting person. What’s under the frosting is important too, of course, but I definitely can appreciate a big pile of billowy frosting.
And for me that’s exactly what frosting should be like— light, creamy and cloud-like.
I’ve developed this vanilla buttercream frosting recipe over several years and too many cakes, cupcakes and cookies to count, and I feel pretty confident calling it the very best. Because it is!
Table of Contents
- Ingredients you'll need
- What's the secret?
- How to use this whipped vanilla frosting
- Whipped Vanilla Buttercream Frosting recipe
Ingredients you’ll need
- Butter— you can use salted or unsalted, but if you use salted butter omit the salt in the recipe
- Powdered or confectioner’s sugar
- Heavy whipping cream
- Vanilla extract
- Almond extract
- Salt
What’s the secret?
There are two ingredients that really help make this frosting what it is— heavy whipping cream and just a touch of almond extract.
Using heavy whipping cream instead of milk, and then whipping it on high speed for several minutes really gives this frosting its light and fluffy texture. Turn your mixer on low for just a few moments until the ingredients come together, then turn it up to high and walk away for about 3 minutes. Come back, scrape down the bowl and whip it for another 1-2 minutes. It turns out perfectly whipped every time.
Almond extract is my other secret. I add a small amount, only 1/4 teaspoon. It’s not enough that the almond flavor comes through, but it gives the frosting a little something extra, and helps it taste kinda fancy.
How to use this whipped vanilla frosting
One recipe yields enough frosting for:
- Filling and frosting a double-layer 8 or 9-inch layer cake. If you have 3 or more cake layers, or want to do a lot of piping decoration, you may want to double this recipe or use another filling option for the cake.
- Frosting 24 regular cupcakes with a moderate amount of frosting per cupcake, or 12-15 cupcakes with a generous amount of frosting (as shown in this post).
- Frosting 24-36 sugar cookies.
Feel free to add food coloring as desired. You can also use other flavorings and other extracts.
This frosting is great for piping and decorating cakes and cupcakes. If the frosting starts getting too soft as you work with it, chill it in the fridge for about 15 minutes to firm it up.
If you’d like to make this frosting in advance, it can be stored in the fridge for at least 1 week and in the freezer for at least 1 month. Let it come back to room temperature, then beat for 1-2 minutes until fluffy again.
baking tip:How to frost like a pro
I am not an expert when it comes to decorating with icing, I know my limitations. But I also know how to fake it and make it look like I know what I’m doing! Here are some tips to easily elevate your frosting:
- Sift powdered sugar before making the frosting, ensuring it’s smooth and lump-free.
- Use gel food coloring instead of liquid, which results in more vivid colors without adding moisture. Look for gel food coloring in a craft or baking supply store, or buy online.
- Use a piping bag with plain and star tips, which go a long way to make my decorations looks professional.
Whipped Vanilla Buttercream Frosting recipe
Whipped Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
- 4 cups powdered sugar (1 lb, 455 grams), sifted after measuring
- 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks, 226 grams), at room temperature
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract , optional, but highly recommended!
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand-held mixer, mix all of the ingredients on low speed until it starts to come together.
- Increase speed to high and beat for 4-5 minutes until frosting is fluffy, pausing once or twice to scrape the bowl down.
- (Optional Step) The frosting will be very airy with lots of bubbles. To achieve a smooth frosting, beat it with a wooden spoon by hand for 2-3 minutes. This will push all of those air bubbles out.
- Use frosting as desired to cover cakes, cupcakes, cookies, etc. This is enough frosting for a double layer 8 or 9-inch cake, 2 dozen cupcakes, or 2 dozen 4-inch cookies.
- Store frosting at room temperature for 1-2 days, in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or in the freezer for up to several months.
This post was originally published April 2016.
Can I cover over it with fondant?
I don’t have any experience working with fondant, sorry! But I do believe people frost cakes with a buttercream frosting similar to this before covering it with fondant? Perhaps another reader will be able to help you out.
Can this frosting be piped onto cupcakes or the texture too light? Thanks!
Yes, absolutely!
Hey I was wondering if this is extra sweet? I love buttercream but not the sweetness. So if I whip the cream into it will it cut the sweet back ? And I don’t really like boiled milk frosting so I figured I’ll ask about this. Thank you
Hi Alina, yes this is pretty sweet. It’s lighter in texture, but still a classic sweet buttercream recipe. Maybe you should try something like Italian meringue buttercream?
Is anyone else’s buttercream very air bubbly. Whenever I frost cakes, it’s never smooth and I always have air bubbles and holes in my frosting. Love this recipe but hate the air bubbles! Anyone know what I’m doing wrong!!!
Hi Kristin! This particular frosting is light and airy on purpose, and I’m sorry it’s not what you’re looking for. You can always try to find another recipe online (maybe one that doesn’t have “Whipped” in the title?). You could also use this recipe, but not beat it at such high speed for so long. Beat it for only 1-2 minutes, and note that you may need to adjust the liquid amount to get the consistency you want. Hope this helps!
hi I have another question! why do you put all of the ingredients in together? is there a specific reason?
You mean as opposed to mixing some first and adding others later? I’ve found no need to do it that way, so it’s just easy to dump it all in at once.
can I use 1% milk instead of cream because I don’t have any cream on hand. thanks! looks delicious
Hi Maya! You can use 1% milk but just know that the frosting won’t be quite as creamy and rich. Start with 3 tablespoons and add more as needed.
wow thanks for writing back so quickly! thanks! I love your page! best one I’ve seen so far!!
If I use this recipe on cutout cookies, will the frosting set up or get hard so I can package the cookies on top of one another?
Hi Pauline! The frosting will form a crust after the cookies have set up for a while, however it won’t harden completely and they probably won’t stack very well. If you want a hard frosting, do a search online for royal icing. Hope this helps!
Does this have the same taste as to regular buttercream frosting?
It most likely does but the almond extract does change the flavor a tad but that why you should only add 1/4 teaspoon
My daughter is allergic to almonds, is there something else you would recommend to use in its place?
You can just leave out the almond extract. Add more vanilla extract, if desired.
I am also allergic to almonds…all tree nuts sadly. I have found that I am not allergic to the artificial almond flavoring. I’m going to try some of the McCormick flavoring to see if that one is ok for me. I’m not saying all artificial flavorings she might not be allergic too though, use caution and if you are ever curious. Sometimes I just take tiny bites a little at a time and let those set in before I take another bite. Usually if I’m allergic to it my mouth swells before I even swallow that bite. It’s taken me 35 years to figure out what I can have and what I need to stay away from (mostly). Good luck! Maybe you could find an almond flavoring that works. I’m going to go buy some just to try this recipe! I tried it with just the vanilla and it’s lacking a little something.
Hi,
I’m planning to make my daughter’s birthday cake. But I’m afraid I won’t have time to both make and spread the frosting the day of since it will be an early brunch. So, do you think I can prepare this one day before and spread it on the next day? Or even better, can I both make and spread it the day before? Or will it be too hard/not tasty/etc?
Yes, you can prep the frosting in advance. It will keep on the counter overnight, in the fridge for 1-2 weeks and frozen for several months. Just give it a good whip before frosting the cake to get it all nice and fluffy again. You can also frost the cake the day before if you like and store it in the fridge overnight to keep it firm. Just pull it out 30-60 minutes before serving. Hope this helps!
I love your name. My daughter is also named Annaliese. Just spelled different!
Awe, thank you 🙂
I have always loved almond extract in my frosting. I do this very same recipe. I have also always found that using almond extract seems to make the frosting whip up fluffier than vanilla extract. I always add just a touch to every frosting recipe for just this reason. I wonder why this is?
It’s a tie between cookie dough and frosting, which one is my favorite food group. Floofy bakery frosting, but not cheap, greasy grocery store bakery frosting, is absolute perfection. Like, Reams and Smith’s do NOT have good frosting, but Harmons and Whole Foods do. Sweet Tooth Fairy has excellent frosting. Oh, and Costco’s is really good. It must be about a 1:1 frosting to cookie ratio to be any use to me. In conclusion, yours looks spectacular. Absolutely mouthwatering. Saving this recipe. Thanks!
Oh, how I miss Harmons, Whole Foods and Sweet Tooth Fairy! And I agree, a 1:1 ratio is an absolute must. Thanks Erin!
Talk about some fluffy frosting! Can’t wait to try it!!
I am looking forward to making this frosting; it looks perfect!
Great almond extract tip — I love almond flavor so much I’d be tempted to add a little more 🙂
Thanks Sue! Add as much as you want! 🙂
This turned out perfect. Now it is my go to!
This is a very good frosting!! Made it yesterday for Super Bowl cupcakes. I have one question, does the frosted cupcake need to be refrigerated because of the heavy cream? How about if used on cake does it need refrigeration?
Nope! There’s not very much cream and all that sugar acts as a preservative. 🙂
This is amazing! I have made a similar one but always guessed. I can’t wait to see how our Easter bunch likes it :)!
Frosting is great! Anyone who is looking for a very tasty buttercream with a creamy texture, you have come to the right place. Press print and saved! Mary Ann from NH