American Buttercream Recipe

A light, fluffy American buttercream recipe flavored generously with vanilla extract that is ready in 5 minutes! 4 ingredients are all you need for the easiest buttercream to top cupcakes, frost moist vanilla cake, or brownies!

Every baker needs a delicious American buttercream recipe in their toolkit. This is that foolproof, easy recipe that you can make in just 5 minutes in a pinch. Frost a last minute batch of chocolate cupcakes or a Funfetti cake like a baking champion! It gets a nice thin crust but remains soft and fluffy underneath.

I love the less sweet buttercreams like Italian meringue buttercream, Swiss meringue buttercream and ermine frosting, but there is a place for the iconic American buttercream. This recipe is flavored with vanilla extract and vanilla beans (if you want), but you can easily adapt this recipe to any flavor like this easy lemon buttercream!

Professional Tips for Making Vanilla American Buttercream

• Add the powdered sugar slowly. It is tempting to dump it all in, but for lump-free buttercream add it ½ cup at a time and allow it to incorporate fully before adding the rest. I find using this method, you don’t even have to sift it!
• Use cold heavy cream to make the lightest buttercream. Heavy cream whips best and is most stable when it is cold.
• Switch to the whisk attachment and whip it up! If you want a perfectly smooth coating on a cake, skip this step, but I love to beat it with the whisk to make it light and fluffy! This make a pillow-soft topping for cupcake and bars in particular.

Ingredients & Substitutions

• Unsalted Butter: Butter makes this buttercream stable and set firm in the refrigerator or freezer. I cuts the sweetness of the sugar. You can use salted butter or a mixture of both, but be careful because some brands are VERY salty! I find it best to use unsalted and add a pinch of salt if you so desire.  
• Powdered Sugar: Powdered sugar, also called confectioner’s sugar or 10x, is essential to American buttercream. Unless yours is particularly lumpy, I don’t find sifting necessary.
• Vanilla Extract: Choose a vanilla extract that you enjoy, it is the dominant flavor in this recipe. I love Nielson Massey’s vanilla extract.
• Heavy Cream: I find that heavy cream will make a rich vanilla buttercream, but you can use milk instead. You can also use juice like I did in my lemon buttercream recipe.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Variations & Changing the Flavor of American Buttercream

• Use juice or puree in place of the cream: Use lemon juice, orange juice or a puree to add flavor and cut the sweetness. You can purchase puree or make it yourself in a blender or food processor. Just be sure to strain it if there are seeds like with strawberry, raspberry or blackberry.
• Chocolate American Buttercream: You can make it chocolate by simply adding cocoa powder or you can add cocoa powder, melted chocolate, and kosher salt like I did in my chocolate buttercream frosting recipe.
• Add flavor by adding an extract or alcohol. Use coffee extract in addition to the vanilla extract or try peppermint extract like I did in these peppermint chocolate brownies. Add alcohol to taste at the end in addition to the heavy cream. I like Bourbon, Grand Marnier, or Frangelico.
• Flavor the buttercream with a jam or dehydrated fruit powder. You can also add easy strawberry jam or mixed berry jam to add a fruit flavoring or add powdered dehydrated strawberries.  
• Add food coloring. For vibrant colors use a gel food coloring. American buttercream holds colors very well and is perfect piping detailed flowers in deep colors.

How to use this American Buttercream Recipe

• Frost layer cakes or sheet cakes: I used this easy vanilla buttercream recipe on this classic white cake, Funfetti cake and my moist vanilla cake, but it would also be delicious on a classic yellow cake or a one bowl chocolate cake! You could also use it in place of the lemon Swiss meringue buttercream on my American flag cake!   
• A frosting for cupcakes: Use a large piping tip to decorate chocolate cupcakes, vanilla cupcakes, lemon cupcakes and more! It could be an easy alternative to cream cheese frosting on red velvet cupcakes or carrot cake cupcakes.  
• An easy frosting for bars, brownies or blondies! I used a peppermint variation on these peppermint chocolate brownies, but vanilla would be delightful on these old fashioned butterscotch brownies, one bowl brownies, fudgy brownies (taste like box mix), or try the lemon variation on these lemon blondies! I’ve even been known to layer some on my funfetti cookies. Your kitchen, your rules.

How to Make the Best American Buttercream

Use these instructions to make this easy buttercream recipe! Further details and measurements can be found in the recipe card below.

Step 1: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat the butter until smooth and lightened slightly on medium-high speed.

Step 2: Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the powdered sugar ½ cup at a time, allowing it to mix in completely before adding the next batch.

Step 3: Once all the sugar has been incorporated add the vanilla and vanilla bean seeds (optional) and mix on medium speed until light and smooth.

Step 4: Switch to the whisk attachment and add cream while mixing on medium-low speed. Then increase the speed to high and whisk until light and fluffy and white.

Frequently Asked Questions