The BEST Buttercream Frosting Recipe

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You’ll love this Vanilla American Buttercream Recipe because not only is it easy to make, it’s also perfectly balanced in flavor, fluffy and smooth.

Making the perfect American Buttercream recipe is about getting two things right: the perfect sweetness level and knowing how different temperatures might affect your final result.

You know when the frosting is too sweet for a cake or cupcake? It ruins the whole dessert experience. One should be able to enjoy an entire dessert without needing to down a glass of water at the end because it was too sweet. You’ll find that this is truly the best buttercream frosting recipe because it balances the flavors well.

The second and equally important factor in making a good American Buttercream is knowing how to work with different temperatures. Because American Buttercream uses butter as its base, the slightest change in temperature of your environment can affect the outcome of your frosting.

Cut to me decorating my cousin’s wedding cake in a freezing church in Canada in December while the frosting was too cold to work with… but that’s a story for another day.

So here are my tips for best American Buttercream practices to make sure you get perfect frosting every. single. time.

Top Tips for the Best American Buttercream Frosting:

1. Cream it enough– Oftentimes many issues can be eliminated if you cream your frosting enough in your hand or stand mixer. Cream it for at least 2 minutes on medium/high speed to incorporate enough air. This makes it light and fluffy.

I’ll go on record and say that the absolute BEST tool to make the most delicious buttercream is a Kitchen Aid Mixer. It’s definitely an investment but a worthy one. The sturdiness of the paddle attachment especially knocks air into your frosting and cake batters in a way that a hand mixer, in my opinion, just can’t.

Do not be discouraged though, my goal is never to convince you to spend more money than you need. A hand mixer certainly can accomplish the brief and I still use mine often.

2. You only have a few ingredients, make sure they’re high quality– American Buttercream calls for just five simple ingredients. The higher quality they are, the better your resulting flavor will be.

I personally love Vermont Creamery Unsalted Butter and Rodelle Vanilla Extract or Vanilla Bean Paste. In order to make the best vanilla frosting, you’ll need the best vanilla and butter.

It’s sort of that simple.

3. Use room temperature butter– It’s very important that your butter is at room temperature. It shouldn’t be too cold or it will be hard to work with. However if you leave it out for too long (overnight) it can get too soft and result in a waxy texture.

4. Utilize the Fridge or Hot Towel Methods– Temperature is a key factor in making a buttercream frosting. If your frosting is too runny/soupy, pop the bowl into the fridge for 10 minutes, then take it out and remix it. If it is still too runny, repeat those steps. If your frosting is too stiff, run a kitchen towel under hot water and wrap it around the bowl while mixing. Both methods work to regulate the temperature of the buttercream to get it to perfection.

Steps for the Best American Buttercream Frosting:

1. Beat your room temperature butter on medium speed with a hand or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until smooth (about 30-45 seconds). This will start the creaming process before any sugar is added.

2. Add in powdered sugar cup by cup while mixing on low speed. Do this carefully, it can make a mess.

3. Increase the speed to medium once most of the powdered sugar is incorporated and add in vanilla extract, salt and heavy cream.

4. Once the added ingredients have been incorporated, continue mixing the buttercream on medium/high speed for 2-3 minutes until the frosting has lightened in color and is fluffy.

5. Turn your speed to low to release any air bubbles that accumulated in the beating process.

Common Questions about your Vanilla Buttercream:

Can the frosting be made ahead of time?
Yes! You can make the frosting in advance and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month or in the freezer for up to 3 months. The trick is to seal the frosting correctly and thoroughly before storing it. The less air that gets to it, the fresher it will remain.

How do I get my frosting super white?
Most of the time this issue can be fixed by beating the frosting for longer. The longer you beat it the more white it will become. If you beat it for a few minutes and it still isn’t white enough for you, try adding the tiniest drip of purple food coloring. Since purple is the opposite of yellow on the color wheel, the two colors will cancel each other out, leaving you with a more “white-balanced” buttercream!

This Vanilla Buttercream Frosting is delicious with my Classic Vanilla Cake Recipe!

If this post was helpful to you, be sure to leave a comment and let me know!

Can baking be therapeutic?

I often talk about baking being a therapeutic hobby but I’d like to share more about why I feel that way as well as how it can become a relaxing hobby for you!

When I bake, it’s my creative time. I may put on my favorite nostalgic movie or tv show in the background, or a Spotify playlist titled “French café” and leave my troubles behind.

Sometimes I pour myself a glass of wine and light a candle. Then, with the mood set, the mixing of batter, kneading of dough and smoothing of icing is my only care in the world.

When I say baking is therapeutic, sometimes people respond saying “not for me it isn’t!” I completely understand why someone might feel that way. There have been plenty of times where I spend hours on something only for it to fail or something breaks that shouldn’t or I forget to clean as I go and am left with a disastrous kitchen to clean. 

So I should in reality, have a caveat to my “baking as therapy” claims…

Baking is therapy when you curate the experience to be relaxing.

How do you curate that relaxing experience for yourself, you ask?   

How to make baking therapeutic…

1.  Prepare your mind–know that it’s okay if the cake doesn’t rise, or the butter wasn’t chilled enough. Shift your mindset from seeing your failures as mistakes to seeing them as opportunities for learning.

 

1. Prepare your space–I cannot and will not bake on top of a messy kitchen. If I were to do this I would be starting from a place of stress! Take an extra 10 minutes to clean any dishes in the sink and wipe down the counters, this small effort will pay you back greatly in brain space and clarity.

 

1. Clean as you go! I’ll tell you the one way to make baking stressful and tiresome, is to not clean as you go! After I use each ingredient that I no longer need, I put it away. 

After each major step in the process, I wipe down the counters and put dishes that are no longer needed in the sink. If there is chill time or baking time I don’t sit, I do the cleaning then. Make this shift and you’ll really notice the difference! 

By the way, this last tip really helped me when I was on The Great American Baking Show–and the crew that cleaned up behind us made a point to tell me that my workspace was always so clean they didn’t have much to do! 

I would reply by saying “it’s how I stay sane in this tent!”

 

Additional suggestions:

*Maybe try printing off the recipe instead of looking at it on your phone, tablet or laptop and use this time to unplug from technology for a few hours

**Invite friends or family over to share your creation with you. Time spent with loved ones over food is a universally special experience

And that’s how I discovered baking for my mental health. If you try any of these suggestions, let me know how it went for you! I’m really invested in spreading this message to others in hopes that baking will enhance your lives more than it already does!

Happy Baking!