The BEST homemade vanilla frosting recipe! 5 minutes and 6 ingredients is all it takes to make the best frosting at home! Ditch the store-bought varieties! Great for decorating cakes & cookies!
This is a recipe for the very best Homemade Vanilla Frosting Recipe that is perfect for decorating cakes and cookies! It’s insanely easy {we’re talking 5 minutes and 6 ingredients} and out-of-this-world delicious! It’s time to ditch the store-bought varieties and make your own frosting at home!
This traditional vanilla frosting is made with a mixture of butter and shortening! I have lots (and lots) of special occasion treats I will share with you…recipes that are good for the heart and soul. Recipes I’ve collected or created out of my desire to share great food with people I love…and this vanilla frosting recipe is one of them!
How to Make Homemade Vanilla Frosting
This vanilla frosting recipe is very straightforward, but here are a few tips to ensure that it turns our perfectly!
Room temperature!
Keep all your ingredients at room temperature. They mix much better if they are not cold. Frosting also pipes much easier at room temperature.
Follow the recipe.
I have made this countless times and always follow it to a T. Even if I think I’ll need less milk, 1/3 of a cup is always perfect!
Food coloring.
If you would like to dye the cake, add coloring after your frosting is well-mixed and has reached the desired consistency. If you are making lots of colors, pull out small bowls and dye them one at a time. I highly recommend using gel food coloring instead of the liquid variety, and always save some pure white just in case!
How to Store Homemade Frosting
Once the cake is decorated, (a rose cake using a Wilton 1M tip is my favorite), I suggest storing it in the refrigerator so that the frosting hardens quicker. However, we are a room-temperature cake-eating family, if you are too, take it out of the refrigerator at least 2 hours before serving. If there are any leftovers, store at room temperature covered in foil for up to four days. Or in the refrigerator for longer!
Can you Freeze Homemade Frosting?
This recipe makes a ton of frosting…but it freezes exceptionally well! Even if I know I only need half of the recipe I still make the whole batch so that I can have some on hand in the freezer! When you’re ready to use it remove from freezer and let it come to room temperature (do NOT microwave!!!). Then go about your frosting business as usual.
The Best Homemade Vanilla Frosting
The BEST homemade vanilla frosting recipe! 5 minutes and 6 ingredients is all it takes to make the best frosting at home! Ditch the store-bought varieties! Great for decorating cakes & cookies!
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1 cup shortening
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tsp vanilla*
- 2 pounds powdered sugar (about 7.5-8 cups, or 1 bag)
- 1/3 cup milk
Instructions
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Cream together butter and shortening until smooth.
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Add salt and vanilla and beat until well combined.
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Slowly add powdered sugar 1 or 2 cups at a time until your mixture is thick and a little lumpy (you can always add more later).
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Add milk and beat until light and fluffy (about 2-3 minutes).
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If necessary, add more powdered sugar until you reach your desired consistency.
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Use to frost your favorite cakes, cookies and cupcakes!**
Recipe Notes
*As you can see, my frosting isn’t pure white. This is because I used vanilla extract that is brown. If you want a whiter frosting, use clear vanilla.
**If you plan to decorate with this frosting please keep it at room temperature. Cold frosting does not pipe well (or at all)!
If you’d like to add color, simply mix it in after your frosting has reached your desired consistency!
I usually decorate cakes the night before and let them set up in the fridge. Then I remove from the fridge at least 2 hours before serving so they can come to room temperature.
***This makes a TON of frosting! If you don't use it all you can freeze it to use for later!
As you can see, I use this frosting recipe for every birthday in our family, including Jesus! 😉
A birthday cake for Jesus!
Super soft sugar cookies…
This is seriously the best vanilla frosting. Every person who tries it falls in love…even if they’re “not a frosting person” (shame on them). I love that it not only tastes great but it’s also excellent to decorate with. The mixture of shortening and butter makes it easy to pipe…plus it hardens beautifully! It’s really a recipe you need in your tool belt!
Super important question…do you chose chocolate or vanilla cake for your birthday celebration?
My daughter & hubby always choose vanilla, my son picked chocolate, and mommy chooses brownies. 😉
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Michelle
November 28, 2018 at 11:42 amJust made this buttercream icing and WOW! It is even more delicious than I was expecting! I made a 3 tier 9 inch cake and unfortunately I was only able to do rosettes around the sides (not the top) but it was my first attempt and turned out pretty great! I will definitely be using this icing recipe many more times! Thanks!
Marci Walter
January 5, 2018 at 6:17 amI’m curious about using this frosting on cookies. When I frost a big batch of Christmas cookies, and then try to store them, the frosting runs together and sticks to the other cookies, or wax paper I put between them. How did you find it worked with your cookies (or did you just eat them all up the first day or two)? 🙂
Enjoy Bethany’s birthday and Sandy’s visit this month.!
Laura
January 5, 2018 at 6:57 amHey Marci! 1) I can’t wait for Sandy to come! I miss her so much! 2) I frosted our sugar cookies this year and it worked really well! I just make sure to leave them out on the cooling rack in a single layer until the frosting hardens. Putting them outside in the cold or in the refrigerator helps speed this process up! But I recommend waiting to stack them until the frosting is hardened at room temperature! (So to clarify, if you want to speed up the process you an put them in the fridge but be sure they come to room temperature and the frosting is set before stacking)! I think the shortening really helps make this a great decorator frosting that sets up beautifully!
Kathy
November 15, 2016 at 9:26 amBeen looking for a good vanilla frosting,and yours sounds great,gonna try it on my grandsons birthday cake December 4th will send you a picture of his cake.thanks
Laura
November 16, 2016 at 3:11 pmThank you Kathy! It is seriously the best vanilla frosting I have ever had! I would LOVE to see a picture of your grandson’s birthday cake! I can’t wait for December 4th!
Tara | Treble in the Kitchen
May 12, 2016 at 12:13 pmNice to meet you Laura!! (I came from the Lean Green Bean!) I love baking for people too 🙂 Haven’t tried the 1M tip, but I totally need to!! The cupcakes are so pretty!
Laura
May 12, 2016 at 1:20 pmNice to meet you Tara! 🙂 I agree, I absolutely love baking for people! I love the 1M tip because it’s large so you can pipe a thicker amount of frosting and have it still look nice! 🙂 Thank you for stopping by! 🙂
Lela
May 11, 2016 at 7:17 pmThis icing looks great! My husband is a big vanilla icing fan and I think he will love it! Thanks for sharing at Inspiration Thursday!
Laura
May 11, 2016 at 9:22 pmMy hubby and daughter are the vanilla people in our household (ugh! LOL)! Thankfully my son chose chocolate cake! 😉
Claire
May 11, 2016 at 5:12 amThis looks great, love my cupcakes 🙂
Hope you can stop by my Tuesday treats blog hop?
Laura
May 11, 2016 at 1:05 pmCupcakes for life! 😉
claire
May 17, 2016 at 9:20 amThanks so much for linking up 🙂
Miz Helen
May 10, 2016 at 7:08 pmYour little guy is just precious! What a fun party with awesome goodies! Thanks so much for sharing them with us at Full Plate Thursday and come back soon!
Miz Helen
Laura
May 11, 2016 at 1:02 pmThank you! I love that little dude so so much! 🙂
Julia @ Drops of Jules
May 6, 2016 at 8:16 pmNot only does this recipe sound delicious, but your frosting skills are BOMB. I wish my frosting turned out that beautiful! I’m bookmarking this so I can refer to the tips AND the recipe!
Laura
May 6, 2016 at 8:34 pmThank so much! 🙂 Want to know something hilarious? My husband is actually WAY better at decorating cakes than I am! (hehe)! Over the years he’s let me take the reigns, because you know…practice! 😉 But I really enjoy doing it! 🙂 You’ll have to let me know if you give it a shot!
Charlotte
May 6, 2016 at 7:18 pmThe icing looks yummy but those cupcake flowers are on point!
Laura
May 6, 2016 at 8:31 pmLOL thanks Charlotte! 🙂 I felt like a total mommy-slacker in the cake dept. this year for little Gabe. So I’m glad someone out there appreciates the flower-power! 😉
Amanda @ Cupcake N Dreams
May 6, 2016 at 3:28 pmMmmm this looks so good! and pretty painless for frosting! Sometimes mine comes out so chunky when I make it myself.
Laura
May 6, 2016 at 5:25 pmThanks Amanda!! The key is to make sure your butter is @ room temperature and soft! Then really whip the butter and shortening together before you add the rest of the ingredients! 🙂 Even if you’re making frosting with only one (butter or shortening) still be sure to whip it (whip it good) before you add anything else! 🙂
Emily
May 6, 2016 at 2:30 pmYour son’s smile is contagious. It makes me want to laugh for joy! And this vanilla frosting looks like what I call ‘perfecto-mundo.’ I’m super bad at frostings, but I’m glad you shared this. Maybe I can make some cake. 🙂
Laura
May 6, 2016 at 5:26 pmThank you Emily! That little dude is just the sweetest! I’m so blessed to be his momma! 🙂 There’s always a reason to make cake! Always! 🙂 <3
Kathryn @ Family Food on the Table
May 6, 2016 at 2:07 pmAww, what a sweet birthday for the little guy! He looks so happy 🙂 My oldest is turning 5 soon and I think this frosting will be what I use on her cupcakes – sounds easy and crazy delicious! (And it’s the first birthday since she outgrew her milk allergy so she can have the real stuff now!)
Laura
May 6, 2016 at 5:29 pmThanks Kathryn! He was definitely in little boy paradise! 🙂 My daughter just turned 5 in January! Such a fun age! Wow! You must be so grateful she outgrew her milk allergy…it seems to be in everything and very difficult to avoid! I’ll bet you make some gorgeous cupcakes…can’t wait to see how your daughter’s celebration goes! 🙂
Rusty Ryan
May 6, 2016 at 1:53 pmAll I know is that the frosting and cake underneath tasted incredible. My fork and taste buds didn’t really care about texture, hardening or crusting…that’s for sure.
Laura
May 6, 2016 at 5:30 pmOh but they would if the texture was lumpy, the frosting was mushy, and there wasn’t the nice crisp exterior. You’d be singing a different tune. LOL! But thank you I’m glad you enjoyed the cake! 🙂
Liz @ Project Pastry Love
May 6, 2016 at 11:18 amI am currently looking for a good vanilla frosting, so this post came at the right tie for me. I never use shortening in my frosting. Does this make it keep it’s shape better when decorated? Thank you for the recipe! And Happy Birthday to your little guy. The cake looked fantastic!
Laura
May 6, 2016 at 1:17 pmHey Liz! Thank you! There are a few reasons I love the butter/shortening combo….1) Color. Just butter alone (plus the vanilla) leaves the frosting yellowish. Adding shortening gives it a whiter appearance! 2) Fluffiness. pure butter frosting is denser and heavier looking than frosting with shortening in it. 3). Taste. If you only care about looks I’d use pure shortening (fluffier + pure white!)…but I care WAY more about taste. By combining the two you get the rich taste of butter with the benefits of shortening! 4). Hardening/crusting. I find that this frosting hardens better than it’s pure butter counterpart! 🙂
Sarah
May 6, 2016 at 5:51 amSuper cute cake! Love the frosting. Looks like it makes a bit, better then store brought amounts. I’ll have to give this a try 🙂
Laura
May 6, 2016 at 1:05 pmHey Sarah! YES! This recipe makes an enormous amount of frosting! I usually have some left over to toss in the freezer for later! 🙂
Anita
May 6, 2016 at 5:33 amThis looks so yummy! Thanks for sharing at Foodie FriDIY.
Laura
May 6, 2016 at 1:04 pmThank you Anita! 🙂 I hope you have a great weekend!
Kelsey
May 5, 2016 at 3:23 pmThat Star Wars cake is awesome and your son is adorable, you can see the joy on his face. I am excited to try this recipe! I’ve recently gotten back into cupcakes and have been looking for some great ideas.
Laura
May 5, 2016 at 5:02 pmThanks Kelsey! I feel like I totally took the easy road with this cake in terms of decorating! But he didn’t mind! 😉 You’ll have to let me know if you try it and how it goes! 🙂 <3