The BEST Buttercream Sugar Cookie Frosting Recipe

The only buttercream frosting recipe you will ever need to top your soft Sugar Cookies with! Two special ingredients make this frosting the most vanilla-y recipe you ever did taste. Originally posted March 17, 2017.

Soft and Fluffy Buttercream Cookie Frosting

Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone! What are you doing to celebrate Ireland getting all the snakes out of the land? Is that a myth? What is St. Patrick’s Day about again??

All I know is that I’m glad I’m not in school anymore, because I’m pretty sure I would be pinched within an inch of my life. I have ZERO green in my wardrobe right now. That’s because my wardrobe consists of 5 shirts. (Even after asking my friends on Facebook where to buy shirts and getting tons of suggestions, I still ended up buying all 5 shirts at Target, where I always buy my shirts. Because I’m classy and like to pick up my fashion digs and toilet paper all in one run.)

3 of my 5 shirts are the same shirt in different colors. (So if you see a blonde girl picking up toilet paper at Target wearing a black, red, or blue plaid button up, it’s me.) This is my uniform lately because I’m still working on getting that beach body back after having my 3rd kid (har har), and because I like to wear button up shirts because I’m still nursing.

The other day I get this text from my best friend Sarah:

“Ok so today we went to Muir Woods and Max [her 5 year old] saw a picture of someone standing next to a redwood tree. He said, ‘Why are Karen and Eric in that picture?’ I had no idea what he was talking about until I saw the person was wearing a red and black plaid shirt.”

These photos were taken on 2 different occasions at Sarah’s house. I can see why Max is confused.

Side note: When Sarah texted me, I sent her a picture of myself. Because I was wearing that exact same red plaid shirt. With my hair up in a bun. What is it with me?? Somebody call the fashion police.

I hope you guys saw my post earlier this week where I shared the recipe for the Softest Sugar Cookies! This frosting is the perfect compliment! This recipe is a classic buttercream: all butter, whisked together with a bunch of powdered sugar and cream. Typically for vanilla frosting all you have to do is add a bit of vanilla extract. But THIS recipe also adds in coconut and almond extract.

You might think it sounds overkill, but I swear it’s not. This is a copycat recipe for the frosting at The Sweet Tooth Fairy, which is an amazing bakery chain in Utah. Sweet Tooth Fairy has the BEST sugar cookies. The frosting is so light and fluffy and just has the most amazing flavor…now you know the secret, it’s a little touch of almond and coconut.

Trifecta of awesomeness.

Buttercream Cookie Frosting vs. Royal Icing – What is the difference?

So this buttercream frosting gives sugar cookies the creamiest, softest, most nuanced flavor. But is buttercream frosting for every cookie?

I know, I know, some of you are going to want to stack sugar cookies for shipping. No, you can’t use buttercream if you’re doing that. You need royal icing and a royal amount of patience. Royal icing hardens to a candy-like texture that holds its shape during apocalypses, should you run into any.

THIS frosting is sweet, dreamy buttercream, and is meant for jamming into your mouth immediately after slapping it on top of the Softest Sugar Cookie of Your Life. No apologies. If you insist on using royal icing (here’s a recipe), be very careful not to break the cookies. These cookies are much more delicate than your average sugar cookie, meaning they break easier when shipping.

Will this frosting harden like some other cookie icings?

No, buttercream frosting stays fluffy and creamy forever, thank heaven! Just make sure to store it air-tight!

Sugar Cookie Frosting Ingredients

Don’t wimp out on me and go with only vanilla as a flavoring. It’s so worth a trip to the baking aisle for these lesser-used extracts! I’m telling you!

• Salted butter, softened. Add ¼ teaspoon of kosher salt to the recipe if you are using unsalted butter.
• Powdered sugar
• Heavy cream. No, you’re not going to dump coffee creamer in your frosting! You’re going to head to the milk section of your grocery store and find a carton of delicious heavy cream (sometimes called whipping cream).
• Salt
• Vanilla. I love Mexican vanilla!
• Coconut extract
• Almond extract
• Gel food coloring

How to make Buttercream Frosting for Cookies

Get ready for the FLUFFY! If you have a stand mixer, be sure to use the whisk attachment. It gets so much fluffier than when you use the paddle! I tested it both ways. Fluffy frosting=love. (All instructions are also given in the recipe.)

1. Beat the softened butter until it is fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
2. Add half of the powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons cream. Beat well. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.
3. Add the remaining powdered sugar and 2 more tablespoons of cream. Beat well.
4. Add salt, vanilla, coconut, and almond extracts. Beat well. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.
5. Add remaining 1-2 tablespoons of cream, if needed.
6. Add gel food coloring if you want to tint the frosting. Avoid liquid food coloring because it can mess with the consistency.
7. Frost the cookies! Keep reading for decorating ideas!

You can frost these however you want, but I wanted to show you how to do this fun technique:

Aren’t these little scallops cute? It’s easy enough that even a frosting dummy like me could pull it off. Let’s get into the details:

What tools are needed to decorate sugar cookies?

You can really go to town on decorating supplies, including buying a whole kit and sometimes even a whole caboodle! You really don’t need much for buttercream though. To start with though, make sure you have these on hand:

• Piping Bags. These are often sold in the baking or party aisles of a store. You can also use a sandwich bag and just snip off the corner!
• Piping Tips (or piping nozzles as they are also called). These come in all different shapes. Again, if you don’t have one, you can cut a small hole in the corner of a sandwich bag to mimic a round tip. You aren’t going to have as much control over your design though.
• Butter knife or thin spatula for spreading the frosting.

Now that you have your supplies, you’re ready for all the fun!

First, fill your bag with frosting. Do you guys know the glass trick? It’s so much easier to add the frosting if the bag is draped over the edge of a glass. Or if you don’t have a piping bag you can use a sandwich bag and snip the end off like in the picture above.

Next, using the decorating bag with a round decorating tip, add dollops of frosting in a row at the top of the cookie. With your butter knife or spatula, smear the frosting, starting at the center of the dollop and dragging the knife toward the bottom of the cookie. Add a new row of dollops of frosting on top of the row of frosting smears. Repeat all the way down the cookie.

You can also do two colors if you want, like the yellow and pink one I did up there. Or how about a rainbow one! That would be so cute!

Poll time: ^^Sprinkles?^^ Yay or nay? I’m a total scrooge and hate sprinkles. Unless they are jimmies. But they sure do look festive! Don’t let my sprinkle-hating ways ruin things for you!! (This cookie was delicious after I scraped all those white balls of crunchiness off of my super soft cookie.)

How to store cookies that are decorated with Buttercream Sugar Cookie Frosting

In your stomach. That’s where all your cookies should be stored. Possibly your hips if you wait long enough. I’m telling you, one batch will be GONE. Two batches? GONE. Three batches? Fine. Maybe.

But seriously though. Even if you eat ‘em all, storage is ESSENTIAL for soft cookies. I’m not worried about your frosting, I’m worried about your cookies. As I explain in my post on the Softest Sugar Cookie of Your Life, (which you should absolutely check out because I mean the SOFTEST COOKIE!), you need to seal your cookies in an air-tight container within minutes of them cooling and only take them out to frost or eat them. Or photograph them, or maybe just to deeply inhale their scent. No judgment here.

Should sugar cookies with frosting be refrigerated?

I say no. Buttercream frosting will keep on the counter for several days. (Although if they are sitting right there on your counter there is no way they will last that long!) Baked goods stored in the fridge dry out faster than they do at room temperature.

However, there are some people who really enjoy chilled sugar cookies, and I have to say that over the years I have come to appreciate a chilled cookie! Try it out!

Also, if summer is upon you and your house is hotter than room temperature, then refrigeration in an air-tight container is the best for these cookies. Buttercream frosting is made of (surprise!) butter, which can literally melt in warm temperatures. Otherwise, an air-tight container on the counter is fine. No letting them dry out! Now go forth and FROST!

More great frosting recipe to put on Sugar Cookies!

• Cream Cheese Frosting << This would be so good on sugar cookies!
• Maple Pecan Buttercream Frosting << This stuff is amazing on Carrot Cake. AMAZING.
• Fresh Lemon Buttercream Frosting from Spend with Pennies
• White Chocolate Buttercream from Comfortably Domestic
• Blueberry Cream Cheese Frosting from White on Rice Couple

Here are some more killer desserts with frosting!

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