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Spread or pipe this buttercream-style sugar cookie frosting onto any of your favorite sugar cookies! This frosting is perfect for coloring for any seasonal or holiday decorating and crusts up for gently stacking your finished cookies.
The perfect sugar cookie frosting
I have to confess something: I’m not very good at decorating cookies with royal icing.
If I’m doing really basic decorating on gingerbread cookies then I can kind of manage, but otherwise…it’s just not cute.
So instead I like to make this sugar cookie frosting. It is a buttercream-style frosting, similar to my homemade buttercream frosting, but perfect for using on any of your favorite sugar cookies.
The frosting has the perfect sweetness with plenty of delicious vanilla flavor and a light, fluffy texture. It’s a great complement to everything from easy sugar cookies to your favorite cut outs.
How to make my sugar cookie frosting
If you’ve made any of my frosting recipes in the past, you already know the drill for making this sugar cookie frosting. This one is just as easy to make — just designed for using on cookies instead of cake!
Ingredients you’ll need
To make this frosting, you will need:
- 1 ½ cups room-temperature unsalted butter
- 5 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
- 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2-3 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
- Food coloring (optional)
Before getting started, make sure your butter is softened to room temperature. If you forgot to set it out ahead of time, I have some tips on how to soften butter quickly.
When measuring powdered sugar (a.k.a. confectioners’ sugar), use the same fluff, scoop, and sweep method as when measuring flour. This will give you a more accurate measurement (although the most accurate is to use a scale to weigh your ingredients!).
If you plan to add food coloring, I like to use gel food coloring.
For a pure white frosting, use clear vanilla extract (clear vanilla flavor) instead of pure vanilla extract.
You can also swap the vanilla for other flavor extracts, such as almond extract, peppermint extract during the holidays, or lemon extract for a springy flavor.
Making this recipe
Grab a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or an electric hand mixer and large bowl. Cream the softened butter on medium-high speed for about 6 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
With the mixer on low, gradually add the powdered sugar. Mix until well combined.
Add the vanilla and 2 tablespoons of milk or cream. Mix on low until well combined. If you need a thinner frosting, add more cream or milk a splash at a time.
Once the frosting is the consistency you like, increase the mixer speed to high and beat the frosting for another 5 minutes, until it is smooth and fluffy.
I know this seems like a lot of mixing, but I promise it is the key to the most perfect frosting!
To add food coloring, add the coloring to the entire batch of sugar cookie frosting or divide the frosting into smaller bowls for multiple colors. Start with just 1-3 drops of food coloring; mix and add more coloring if needed. Remember, you can always add more but you can’t take it out!
Now your frosting is ready for all of your favorite cookie recipes!
Using this frosting
This sugar cookie frosting is the perfect accompaniment to my no-spread sugar cookies. You can spread it onto the cut outs with a butter knife or small offset spatula or pipe it on using piping bags and tips.
For Halloween, I like to use this frosting to make monster sugar cookies. During Christmas, I often use it to make snowflake sugar cookies. You really can get pretty cookies without a lot of effort!
If you aren’t making cut-out cookies, you can use this sugar cookie frosting on sugar cookie bars, my easy sour cream sugar cookies, or my favorite chocolate chip cookie cake.
This frosting will form a crust, so be sure to add any sprinkles or sanding sugar right away so they will stick.
Make-ahead and storage tips
If you’re hosting a cookie-decorating party, you can make this sugar cookie frosting ahead of time to make your party prep even easier.
Store the frosting in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 1 month. If frozen, let the frosting thaw in the fridge overnight.
Before using the frosting, let it come to room temperature. Whip it with an electric mixer for a few minutes to revive the texture before spreading or piping onto your cookies.
Once the cookies are decorated, this frosting does crust up slightly. After the crust forms, you can gently stack the cookies, separating the layers with sheets of parchment paper.
Store frosted cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
FAQs
No, this is a buttercream-style frosting, so it will not harden like royal icing. That said, it does form a crust, so you can gently stack the cookies after the frosting sets.
Sugar Cookie Buttercream Frosting
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups unsalted butter room temperature
- 5 cups confectioners’ sugar sifted
- 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 to 3 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
- Food coloring optional
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, cream butter on medium-high speed for about 6 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add in confectioners’ sugar, and continue beating until well blended.1 ½ cups unsalted butter, 5 cups confectioners’ sugar
- Add in vanilla and 2 tablespoons of heavy cream or milk. Mix on low speed until moistened.1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract, 2 to 3 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
- Add up to an additional tablespoon of heavy cream or milk until you reach the desired consistency.
- Beat at high speed until frosting is smooth and fluffy; about 5 more minutes.
- If desired, use food coloring to color the full batch of frosting, or dividing the frosting into smaller bowls to create multiple colors in one batch. Start with 1-3 drops of food coloring, adding more as needed.Food coloring
- Spread or pipe frosting onto cooled no-spread sugar cookies.
Notes
- Makes enough frosting to generously top one batch of no-spread sugar cookies.
- Frosting can be made ahead of time. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 1 month until ready to use. Let the frosting come to room temperature, then beat with an electric mixer for a few minutes before spreading or piping onto cookies.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
