Small-Batch Vanilla Frosting
By America's Test KitchenPublished on January 5, 2024
Yield
Makes 2 cups (enough for 12 cupcakes)
Ingredients
12 tablespoons (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces and softened1 tablespoon plus 1½ teaspoons heavy cream 1¼ teaspoons vanilla extract ⅛ teaspoon salt 6 ounces (1½ cups) confectioners' sugar
Before You Begin
Even if you omit the added salt, salted butter will ruin this recipe. The heavy cream is a simple refinement that gives this fast frosting a silky quality—don’t omit it.
Instructions
- Using stand mixer fitted with whisk, whip butter, cream, vanilla, and salt together on medium- high speed until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce mixer speed to medium-low, slowly add sugar, and whip until incorporated and smooth, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Increase speed to medium-high and whip frosting until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in rainbow sprinkles.
Yield
Makes 2 cups (enough for 12 cupcakes)Ingredients
Ingredients
Ingredients
Why This Recipe Works
Many frosting recipes—including ours—make four cups or more of frosting. We wanted a recipe that was engineered to make less. We use unsalted butter, and add a precisely measured amount of salt ourselves, because different brands of salted butter contain varying amounts of salt. Many recipes for vanilla frosting call for milk; we prefer heavy cream, which makes a silkier frosting.
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