Easy Buttercream Icing (Not-Too-Sweet)

If you are looking for a stable and pipeable buttercream frosting that’s not overly sweet, this is the recipe for you! I’ll show you how to get your butter softened quickly so that you can make this recipe in less than 15 minutes! Use it to frost cakes and cupcakes!

Easy Buttercream Icing (Not-Too-Sweet)

If you are looking for a stable and pipable buttercream frosting that’s NOT overly sweet, this is the recipe for you! I’ll show you how to get your butter softened quickly so that you can make this recipe in less than 15 minutes! Use it to frost cakes and cupcakes!

This frosting makes about 3 cups of frosting, enough to frost 12 cupcakes or two 8-inch cakes.

Prep Time5

Total Time15

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Buttercream Frosting, Buttercream Icing

Servings: servings (for 12 cupcakes)

Author: Izzy

Equipment

Ingredients

3 cups powdered sugar
1½ cups unsalted butter* room temperature, soft enough for a spatula to cut through easily
½ cup heavy cream** room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

Sift the powdered sugar and set aside.
Add room-temperature butter to a big bowl. Beat with a hand mixer or stand mixture on the lowest speed for 1 minute.
Add powdered sugar gradually to the bowl. Start with a low speed to incorporate the sugar into the butter. This will prevent sugar dust from flying around and reduce the risk of lumps.
Scape down the bowl to make sure everything gets mixed in nicely. Don’t worry if the color of your mixture looks yellow at this point. It will become whiter as you mix.
Add the room temperature heavy cream. Turn up the speed to a medium high and mix for about 10 minutes. This will give it a fluffy texture and get rid of the grainy texture from the sugar.
Add vanilla extract. Reduce the speed to low and mix for 1 minute. This is to get rid of the large air bubbles. You can add gel food coloring at this point.

Notes

*You can use salted butter for this recipe and it will taste slightly salty.
To soften butter quickly: Cut the butter into ¼-inch slices and place them on a flat plate in one single layer. Microwave them at 50% power at 5-second intervals. Check after every 5 seconds until they are nice and soft. It usually takes less than 30 seconds in total. To check whether the butter is ready: if a spatula can cut through the butter easily, your butter is ready
**Your cream should have about 35% fat content. As we use less powdered sugar in this recipe, we'll need high-fat cream to stabilize the frosting.
If you want to add food coloring. I recommend adding gel food coloring after the frosting is ready. Gently mix in the coloring until combined. Avoid liquid coloring as the extra moisture can change the consistency of your frosting.
If your frosting becomes too soft (or too thin), simply refrigerate it briefly to firm it up before use. If it’s too firm (or too thick), give it a quick whip to soften it up!

Nutrition