If you’re looking for a silky smooth buttercream frosting recipe that is not too sweet or grainy, then this recipe is it!
I find traditional American style buttercreams way too sweet, so I came up with my own version that has far less icing sugar (in relation to the amount of butter) compared to more traditional recipes. Best part is, it’s still stable enough to use for layered cakes and is great for piping too!
What’s Different With This Buttercream
Usual American style buttercreams that are made with butter and icing sugar (also known as powdered or confectioners sugar), have double the amount of icing sugar compared to butter. This makes a great stable buttercream, however it also makes it very sweet!
This version uses an almost 1:1 ratio of icing sugar to butter, so it’s far less sweet. It also uses a full half cup of cream to help dissolve the icing sugar in the buttercream to make the final product less grainy. Cream is also used in replacement of milk (which is more common in American buttercreams), as it has a higher fat content and provides extra stability to the buttercream when whipped.
This makes this less-sweet buttercream great for using with layered cakes and for piping. The picture below is an example of this frosting used in combination with my white cake recipe.
How Can I Store This Buttercream
Although this recipe is made using ingredients that aren’t usually kept at room temperature (i.e. cream), the high sugar content from the icing sugar and fat from the butter, prevent the frosting from going off immediately. This means you can keep the frosting at room temperature for a day or two, but after that it’s best to refrigerate.
Does This Buttercream Crust?
As great as this recipe is, the only down side is that it does not crust. This means that it may not be suitable for certain cake decorating techniques that require a crusting buttercream.
How to Make Buttercream Frosting
This recipe comes together really easily using only four ingredients!
In the bowl of a stand mixer (see note 1 on recipe card below), add in the butter, icing sugar (also known as powdered or confectioners sugar), vanilla and cream.
Using the paddle attachment, mix on the lowest speed until the ingredients are combined (about a minute), and then turn up the speed to a medium high and mix for a full 10 minutes. Scrape the bowl down half way through.
After 10 minutes, turn the mixer down to the lowest speed for a further minute or so to remove any large air bubbles.
The frosting should be silky smooth and it’s now ready to use! If you find that your buttercream is a bit firm and has a lot of holes, then it means that either the butter or cream was too cold. To fix this, gently heat the buttercream in the microwave for 5 second bursts (don’t heat it for too long otherwise the buttercream will melt), mixing in between each burst until the frosting is softer in consistency and you can easily mix it, and then rewhip it for a few minutes.
Silky Smooth Buttercream Frosting
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (340 g) unsalted butter - room temperature
- 3 cups (375 g) icing sugar - also known as powdered/confectioners sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla essence/extract
- ½ cup (120 g) heavy cream - room temperature. Any cream used to make whipped cream will work.
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (see note 1), add in the butter, icing sugar, vanilla and cream.
- Using the paddle attachment, mix on the lowest speed until the ingredients are combined (about a minute), and then turn up the speed to a medium high and mix for a full 10 minutes. Scrape the bowl down half way through.
- After 10 minutes, turn the mixer down to the lowest speed for a further minute or so to remove any large air bubbles.
- The frosting should be silky smooth and it's now ready to use! If you find that your buttercream is a bit firm and has a lot of holes, then it means that either the butter or cream was too cold. To fix this, gently heat the buttercream in the microwave for 5 second bursts (don't heat it for too long otherwise the buttercream will melt), mixing in between each burst until the frosting is softer in consistency and you can easily mix it, and then rewhip it for a few minutes.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
256 Comments
As there is fresh cream does this buttercream required to be refrigerated or can it be left out once cake is frosted.
Hi Dana! 🙂 You can leave it out at room temp for a day or two as the sugar and fat will help preserve it but after that I recommend placing it in the refrigerator 🙂
hi MK,
i tried this buttercream today and omg i prefer it as im not a fan of sweet buttercream either. How long can this be kept at room temperature though?
Awesome! So happy to hear you enjoyed it Mani 😀 and it can be kept at room temperature for a day or two and then after that needs to be refrigerated 🙂
I love jt
Thanks Noor! 🙂
How does this recipe freeze?
Hi Julie! Good question! I haven’t tried freezing it myself so I’m not too sure sorry. Would love to hear how you go if you decide to freeze some as a trial 🙂
Hi, can this be kept at room temperature without having to be kept in the fridge due to having cream in the recipe?
Hi Deborah! 🙂 Yes this frosting can be kept at room temperature for a day or two as the sugar and fat help preserve it, but after that I would recommend refrigerating the frosting 🙂
Have you ever made a chocolate version of this?
Hi there! No I haven’t actually! I’ll have to try a chocolate version soon 🙂
Mommy Yummy 😋, I will definitely try it. Keep up the good work 👏 🙌
Hello mk. This recipe seems cool, thank you for the modification, I will give it a trail . Thank you
Thanks Dituweh! Hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂
Hi Mk! How would you rate this as opposed to the Gritfree buttercream you already have on the site? In terms of sweetness, stability and the texture (grit from the sugar)
Thank you!
Hi there! 🙂 So I personally prefer this one better, it’s more stable, has about the same level of sweetness but it does have a very subtle amount of grit to it so it’s not completely grit-free, but still way less than a traditional buttercream! Hope that helps 🙂
Salaam Maryam,
You mention it’s stable enough for a layer cake, have you experienced it squeezing outward at all like cream cheese frosting does? Considering using this for a wedding cake as a I’m not a fan of SMBC and I love ABC but the crowd generally prefers less sweet frosting! TIA ❤️
Wassalaam Sami! 🙂 So I haven’t tried this frosting with anything more than a 2 layer cake, but it’s definitely far more stable than a cream cheese frosting! I think up to about 3 layers per tier it should work fine, but you may want to a little trial beforehand just to be sure 🙂