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.
243 Comments
Pls help can I use 18 percent for this
Hi Kiran!
For this recipe you want to use a cream that is atleast 35% fat 🙂
amazing recipe so smooth and not too sweet. Thanks so much MK🥰
Awesome! So glad you loved it Faridat 😀
Dear Maryam,
A first time buttercream user and maker here 🙂
Thank you for a lovely recipe!
I used the 1/2 portion to make a final coat of my first ever cake using buttercream frosting. (Have always resisted it due to the huge amount of sugar it takes!)
I used it on top of Swiss-meringue buttercream coat and it worked great!
Thank you again for your consistency serving us bakers of the world.
Hi Ina! 🙂
Aww you’re so welcome, so glad you loved the recipe! Sounds like you did an amazing job with your first ever cake using buttercream – go you!!
Thank you for the wonderful feedback Ina, really appreciate it 🙂
Hi Maryam,
I like your recipes and I want to try buttercream cake.
Can you share the brand name for heavy cream? There are so many creams available in the supermarket.
Hi Tayyaba! So glad you’re enjoying the recipes 😀
The brand I use here in NZ is either Anchor or Pams 🙂
Any cream used to make whipped cream should work well. Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂
Hello MK, thank you for this recipe. I haven’t tried it yet, but i will very soon. Would it be possible to add the icing sugar to the cream and then add it to the butter? And also does it hold fondant decorations? Thank you for your time
Hi Alexandra! 🙂
I haven’t tried that myself, but I think it should be fine as all the ingredients are put into the same bowl from the beginning 🙂
It is quite a stable buttercream, though it is a bit soft at room temp like a Swiss meringue buttercream, so may not be ideal for heavy fondant decorations. I think small/light decorations should be fine 🙂
Hope you enjoy the recipe!
How long can a cake stay out of refrigerator with this frosting and how to store leftovers
Hi Nelda! 1-2 days will be fine (if the weather is very hot then maybe just 1 day), after which it’ll need to be placed into the fridge 🙂
Hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hi. I don’t have a stand mixer with paddle attachment. Can I still make this with a hand mixer with whisk attachment?
Hi Kanchana! 🙂 Yes you can totally do that – I have done it many times before with a hand mixer, it’s just a bit more of an arm workout 🙂
Hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hi MK. Love love your YouTube videos and this is the best buttercream I have tried super thanks kathy
Hi Kathy! Thank you so much 😀 and so glad to hear you loved the buttercream 🙂
Hello, MK! First I want to say just how much I love watching your videos. I have learned so much from as a home baker. I also really love your buttercream frosty. I too find it typically too sweet. But yours I just absolutely love and I’m so happy to have found you. I do have one question. Have you covered cakes with fondant using this buttercream underneath?
Hi Belinda! So so happy to hear you’re loving the videos and that they’ve helped with your baking 😀
So glad you’re loving this frosting recipe too 🙂
I haven’t tried using this particular buttercream under fondant myself, so I am not too sure how it would hold up sorry! I think it may be okay as it’s a relatively stable buttercream, you’d just want to make sure it’s chilled well before placing the fondant on.
Would love to hear how it goes if you decide to try it out 🙂
Hi Maryam, how long will this butttercream last because of the cream in it, also will it freeze ok? I’ve just made it and it came out beautifully so easy to make and tastes delicious😋👍👍
Hi Yvonne! 🙂 So glad to hear you loved the recipe!
It will stay good at room temp for a day or two, after which it’s best to place in the fridge for up to a week. Due to the sugar in the frosting, it prevents the cream from going off (similar to a ganache) so can be left at room temp for an extended period of time 🙂
In terms of freezing the frosting, I haven’t tried this myself, but I think it should be okay. Just re-whip it once it’s at room temp again to get it nice and fluffy/smooth. Hope that helps 🙂
Thanks Maryam that’s a great help, could you make this into a chocolate buttercream?
You’re so welcome Yvonne! 🙂 Yes you could turn this into a chocolate buttercream by adding in cocoa at the end (you can start off with 1/4 cup then add more based on your desired taste), or folding in some melted dark chocolate 🙂
Hi Maryam!
Is it possible to reduce the amount of icing sugar without affecting the stability for piping? If so, how much butter and cream do you recommend using? Thanks!
Hi Monika! 🙂 As this recipe already uses an almost 1:1 ratio of butter to icing sugar, I wouldn’t recommend reducing the icing sugar too much otherwise the frosting might taste too buttery and will be on the softer side. The max I would reduce the icing sugar too is 340g so it has a 1:1 ratio of butter to icing sugar 🙂 the rest of the ingredients can stay the same.
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hi, can you freeze this buttercream, or how long will it keep in the fridge?
Hi Yvonne! 🙂 I haven’t tried freezing this buttercream myself, but I think it should be fine! Generally it will last up to a week in the fridge, and up to 3 months in the freezer 🙂