Old Fashioned Fluffy Vanilla Frosting

Recipe makes about 5 cups of frosting. Depending on whether you frost a cake, regular cupcakes, or mini cupcakes, the frosting’s amount of servings will vary!

Note about the whipping cream: To achieve the slightly cold temperature that’s needed for this recipe, just let cream sit at room temperature for a few minutes. Just enough to take the chill off. I usually take it out before I start my butter in the mixer.

1. In the bowl of your stand mixer, add your room temperature butter and salt. With your paddle attachment, beat together on medium high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

2. Stop mixer and scrape down sides and bottom of bowl. Turn mixer back on to low speed and slowly add your sifted powdered sugar. Once all sugar has been added, turn speed back up to medium and beat for a minute. Finally, turn speed up to high and beat 2-3 minutes, until fluffy.

3. Stop mixer again, and scrape down sides and bottom of bowl. Add your vanilla extract (and if using, your vanilla bean seeds) and beat again on medium until incorporated.

4. Finally, while mixer is on medium low speed, add both amounts of the slightly cold heavy whipping cream. Turn speed back up to medium high and beat another 2 minutes.

To achieve mint green color shown in pictures: I love using AmeriColor’s food coloring gels. They’re very saturated in color and because they are a gel (versus a liquid) they don’t dilute anything I add the color to. Please know, a little goes a long way with these food colorings.

For this amount of frosting, I dipped a toothpick into my AmeriColor “Turquoise” food coloring gel bottle and swiped that toothpick across the frosting once. Then I incorporated everything in the mixer, completely. It was only after everything had been well mixed that I decided there wasn’t enough color, so I swiped the toothpick across the frosting and followed the above steps, again and again, until I got desired color. This took me 3 good swipes.

Once you have your desired color simply add it to a pastry bag fitted with your favorite tip, and pipe away! For these mini cupcakes, I used an Ateco #806 tip. One of my favorites.

If you’re not going to use frosting right away, but are planning on using that day, just leave at room temperature. Simply press plastic wrap directly on the surface of your frosting (in mixer bowl) and then cover with another sheet of plastic wrap across the top. Leave somewhere cool (kitchen counter or pantry). Keep from heat or sunlight. Then when you’re ready to use, just rewhip for another 30 seconds and use as needed.

If you’re planning on using within the next day or two, transfer frosting to an airtight container. Again, press plastic wrap directly onto the surface and then cover container with its lid. Store in fridge until the day you need it. On the day you’re planning on using it, remove from fridge and allow to come to room temperature completely, for a few hours. Then transfer to your mixer bowl and re-whip for 30 seconds to re-fluff. Yes. Re-fluff.

*If stored in fridge properly, will keep for 3-4 days.

Recipe adapted from EveryDay with Rachel Ray Magazine.