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.
247 Comments
Hi
Thanks for this recipe . Can I add meringue powder to stabilize this as I’m from a humid country so the buttercream melts really fast and I need this for piping
Hi Mariyam! 🙂 Yes you could totally do that – I haven’t tried it myself but usually meringue powder works well with most buttercreams as a stabilizer 🙂
Hi! I live in a hot state as well and was wondering if you remember how much meringue powder did you use?
Hi MK,
Roughly how many of your vanilla cupcakes can i frost (simple swirl style) with 1x quantity of this frosting? I am looking to frost 24-30 cupcakes.
Thank you!
Hi Shruti! 1x this recipe will probably be enough to frost about 36 cupcakes or so 🙂
Hope that helps!
Hi, can I add melted chocolate to this icing? If so, how much?
Hi Regina 🙂 Yes you could totally do that! The exact amount will depend on how rich you want the frosting to be, but I would think around the 200g mark would be a good place to start :). You may need to pop the frosting into the fridge to firm up a little after the chocoalte has been added in.
Hope that helps!
Loved this recipe this frosting very nice and not too sweet. Just wondering, can I ask, can you use threaded coconut in the frosting?
So so happy to hear you loved the frosting! 😀 I haven’t tried adding in threaded coconut myself but I don’t see why not! I would add it in at the end 🙂
Hope that helps and thank you so much for you feedback!
As someone who wanted a good buttercream that isn’t gaggingly sweet I have to comment here, THIS IS TRULY THE BEST buttercream frosting!! Light, fluffy and just the right amount of sweetness, highly recommended to anyone who can’t stomach average buttercream. Thank you so much MK, keep up with the great work! 🤗♥️
Awesome!! So happy to hear you loved the recipe Disum and really appreciate the feedback 😀
Hi I can’t believe I didn’t try this recipe sooner. Its amazing and tastes so good!! Can you make this buttercream in advance and keep it in the fridge? Around 5 days?
Hi Shaheera! So happy to hear you loved the frosting 😀 Yes you can totally make it in advance and it will last in the fridge for a week or so 🙂
Just be sure to let it come to room temp and re-whip it so it becomes silky smooth again 🙂
This is truly the only recipe I am using. I am a “semi” professional baker..taste is my priority. This is perfect.
Awesome!! So so happy to hear you loved the frosting Lorraine 😀
Hello MK. Loving this recipe, though price for butter in my country is a bit pricey, can i substitute with margarine?
Hi Maya! 🙂 So happy to hear you’re enjoying the recipe 😀
Hmmm I haven’t tried with margarine myself so I’m not too sure how it would affect the taste and texture sorry! If you decide to try it out would love to hear how it goes 🙂
Hi
I’m attempting my sons christening ! Yikes I’m No baker but determined. I did a trial run today and the buttercream
Didn’t go well , I couldn’t get it smooth felt so grainy and stiff. I’m going to
Try your recipe, fingers crossed . Can you please send me the recipe to buttercream a 3 tier 8’inch
Thank yooou so much xx
Hi Samantha! 🙂 My top tips for a smooth frosting would be to let it whip for atleast 10 mins to get it nice and fluffy, and if you find its still a bit firm then you may need to warm it up a little to get the right consistency. Just be careful when heating it up though because buttercream melts super fast! For a 3 layer 8 inch cake you would want to make 1.5x this recipe just to make sure you don’t run out 🙂
Hope you enjoy the frosting and all the best with the cake!
Hellooo! Just made this frosting to cover my daughter’s 6th birthday cake and it turned out amazing!!!! Is if e ought to cover a 3 layers 6 inch cake or shall i go for more??? Thank uuu
Hi Rabab! So happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe :D. For a 3 layer 6 inch cake, if you’re doing a crumb coat and full coat with piping then you may want to make a little more just to make sure you don’t run out 🙂