Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
I enjoy baking especially when there are guests coming over or for a special occasion – many times there’s no one coming and I still find a reason or create an event to bake, lol 😂! When it comes to cakes and cupcakes, they need something to wrap them up nicely.
It can be frosting, icing, or a nice glaze. These are probably as crucial as the cake/cupcake itself – the odd time, I might use some on cookies! The thickest of the three is frosting. It can be made with cream cheese, butter 🧈, sweetened condensed milk, whipped cream, etc.
Today, I’ll share the most popular one… Vanilla Buttercream Frosting also known as American Buttercream Frosting! In 15 minutes ⏳, you can have this scrumptious topping done! With just a few ingredients, this simple recipe will give a nice finish to all sorts of cakes and cupcakes.
There are 11 different types of “frosting”:
1- Buttercream Frosting which is made with butter 🧈. I use it most of the time.
2- Cream Cheese Frosting with a nice tangy and sweet note is perfect when making my Carrot Cake, Hummingbird Cake or Red Velvet Cake.
3- Italian Meringue Buttercream is a staple in the baking industry and is ideal when it’s warm outside.
4- Swiss Meringue Buttercream is perfect for elegant cakes with a silky, smooth and light texture.
5- Whipped Cream Frosting is the key for a delicious Black Forest Cake or a classic Strawberry Shortcake.
6- French Buttercream is harder to make. It’s very rich but light in texture. I use it when filling Macarons or for my Fruit Tarts.
7- German Buttercream is not as sweet as American Buttercream but very fluffy and stable.
8- Ermine Buttercream is the eggless version of Swiss Meringue Buttercream and slightly sweet similar to whipped cream. I use it to fill up my Jos Louis cakes or Twinkies.
9- Seven-Minute Frosting is very airy and sweet similar to marshmallow spread.
10- Russian Buttercream is made with sweetened condensed milk giving that milky caramel flavor to it.
11- Fudge Frosting is rich and dense perfect for any chocoholic 🍫 out there!
Now let’s go back to our Vanilla Buttercream Frosting and how to make it successfully…
The butter has to be soft but not melted. Can you use “salted” butter instead? Sure, but when it comes to baking, I prefer to be in the control seat and add some on my own that’s why I use fleur de sel.
What is it? – you may ask. Although both are from seawater, fleur de sel is not sea salt 🧂. Fleur de sel has a soft grain structure and collected in shallow pools by hand when rising to the surface. Sea salt is made by evaporating seawater and collected into mounds by either extraction or dug out.
Fleur de Sel means “flower of salt” in French and is very expensive in comparison with ordinary sea salt. It’s used only to flavor food and perfect as a garnish or as a finishing salt. Sprinkle some on candies like Chocolate Bark or Crème Brûlée, Puddings, etc. Top some on Pretzels 🥨, fish, meat, and eggs, or when ever you need a boost in flavor!
What makes a great Vanilla Buttercream Frosting is whipping the butter until airy, fluffy, and pale in color, about 4 to 5 minutes ⏰ on high speed. I use my paddle attachment although many use the whisk instead – I don’t see any difference in the final product. Don’t over whip it as the fat from the butter might separate.
After it’s done, the sifted confectioners’ sugar is added to the whipped butter by batches. I push my luck by adding up to ½ cup at a time… 3 to 4 tablespoons is probably a better call. It’s important to do this step otherwise if the sugar is added all at once, it will clump up making your frosting heavy and also grainy in texture.
To thin it out and lighten the consistency, heavy cream is added but milk and half-and-half are both great substitutes. Then comes the pure vanilla extract. Depending on your recipe, you might opt for different extracts such as lemon, maple 🍁, orange, or others. Food coloring can also be added to the mixture.
With its light and fluffy consistency, this foolproof Vanilla Buttercream Frosting has to be added to your folder! It complements all sorts of cupcakes or cakes and gives a nice finish to your baked goods 🧁🎂. This is a tasty base recipe and from here, you can change the flavor and the color to adapt to what you’re baking…
Bon Appétit!🍽
Check out these other scrumptious baking recipes…😍
– Bread Pudding with Bourbon Sauce
– Chocolate Lava Cake with Caramel
– Key Lime Pie
– Tiramisu
– Chocolate Mint Nanaimo Bars
– Biscoff Icebox Cake
– Oliebollen
and for even more baking recipes 🥧🍩🍰, click on this link… Recipe Category • Dessert
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Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
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Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 small pinch fleur de sel (about 1/8 tsp.)
- 4 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
- 1/4 cup heavy cream, room temperature or as needed
- 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Directions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, add butter and fleur de sel. Using the paddle attachment, whip butter on high speed for about 4 minutes.
- Adding ¼ cup confectioners’ sugar at a time, process on medium-low speed until completely blended before adding some more.
- Add heavy cream starting with a couple tablespoons (add more if needed) and pure vanilla extract; process on medium-high speed until nicely blended.
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The best butter cream
Hello Susan😀! Oh my, you’re so sweet 🥰, thank you. I’m happy you enjoyed the recipe. Have a lovely day🌞