Description
A smooth and easy-to-work-with buttercream perfect for decorating sugar cookies.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup (16 Tbsp; 226g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 4 cups (480g) confectioners’ sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) heavy cream, half-and-half, or whole milk, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- Optional: gel food coloring for tinting
Instructions
- Have your cookies baked and cooled completely.
- With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes.
- Add the confectioners’ sugar, heavy cream, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to medium-high speed and beat for 2 full minutes.
- Taste. To thicken the buttercream, beat in more confectioners’ sugar. To thin out the buttercream, beat in more heavy cream.
- If you’d like to tint the frosting, divide it into separate bowls for each color. Use a toothpick to add gel food coloring and stir to combine.
- Use a knife or icing spatula to frost the cookies, or fit a piping/pastry bag with a piping tip to pipe designs.
- Cover and store decorated cookies at room temperature for 1 day, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
This buttercream is forgiving; adjust thickness with cream or sugar as needed. Store any leftover buttercream in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Mixing
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 150
- Sugar: 18g
- Sodium: 90mg
- Fat: 7g
- Saturated Fat: 4g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 18g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 0g
- Cholesterol: 30mg