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Snack

Vanilla Buttercream

Fluffy American buttercream: butter beaten with powdered sugar, cream and vanilla. Enough to fill and frost a two-layer cake or 24 cupcakes.

⏱ 12 min (12 min prep) 🍽 Serves 16 · about 3 tablespoons (makes about 3½ cups) make aheadquickfreezer friendly vegetariangluten free

In our collection Birthday parties: menu and shopping list β†’

πŸ“… Add to my plan

ContainsMilk. Check the labels on what you buy; brands differ.

Ingredients

Make 16 servings
  • 1 cup Butter, unsalted, softened (2 sticks)
  • 4 cup Powdered sugar, sifted
  • 3 tbsp Heavy cream, or milk
  • 2 tsp Vanilla extract
  • 1 pinch Table salt (to taste)

Make it yourself

Make the butter yourself β†’ Out of powdered sugar? Make it β†’

In the planner, Make it on the shopping list swaps the store item for these ingredients and puts the work on your prep day.

Nutrition

Nutrition coming: the USDA numbers for these ingredients are being added.

Steps

You’ll need: stand or hand mixer, large bowl, sifter or fine strainer, spatula.

  1. Beat the butter on medium-high for 3 minutes, until pale and creamy.
  2. On low speed, add the powdered sugar a cup at a time. Add the cream, vanilla and salt.
  3. Beat on medium-high 2 to 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add a spoonful more cream if it’s too stiff, or more sugar if too soft.
  4. To tint it, stir in food coloring a drop at a time; gel colors give stronger color with less liquid.
Make aheadKeeps 1 week in the refrigerator. Let it soften on the counter and beat it again before using.
❄️ FreezerFreeze up to 3 months; thaw in the refrigerator and re-beat.
πŸ§’ With kidsKids can add the sugar on low speed (with a towel over the bowl to stop the cloud) and choose the colors.
Chocolate swapSee the chocolate buttercream.
Dairy-free swapUse vegetable shortening or a plant-based butter stick and plant milk; check labels for milk.

Goes well with

πŸŽ‚ Vanilla Birthday Layer Cake🧁 Vanilla Cupcakes

Good to know

Cooking Fats Compared Salted vs. unsalted butter Heavy cream vs. half-and-half Table salt vs. kosher salt vs. sea salt

An original Teddy Rook Book recipe, written for our Birthday parties collection; safety steps follow USDA. Nutrition is estimated from USDA FoodData Central and changes with brands and portions.