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Sugar Cookie Buttercream Frosting

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Comments 91
Last Updated:December 10, 2022Published:April 10, 2018
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The best fluffy vanilla sugar cookie buttercream frosting! With a blend of vanilla and almond extract, this recipe is perfect for spreading on soft cut out sugar cookies to make the ultimate buttery and creamy Valentine’s, Christmas, or birthday cookies! 

Pink sugar cookie buttercream on cookie
 

When it comes to sugar cookies, I am particular about which types of frostings I pair with cut out sugar cookies depending on the different occasions. Between royal icing, easy sugar cookie icing, cream cheese frosting, and this sugar cookie buttercream – there’s a time and a place for each.

And this creamy and buttery buttercream is perfect for when you want to make fancy-looking, bakery-style cookies without spending hours intricately icing cookies with royal icing. The trick to getting this buttercream nice and fluffy is starting with room temperature butter and using an electric mixer to whip.

Don’t feel like frosting individual cookies? Make my Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars in a 9×13 pan instead!

Pink sugar cookie buttercream on cookie

Ingredients for Sugar Cookie Buttercream Frosting

  • Butter, softened to room temperature
  • Powdered Sugar
  • Vanilla Extract & Almond Extract
  • Salt
  • Food Coloring, if desired
ingredients for sugar cookie buttercream

How to Make Sugar Cookie Buttercream Frosting

Step 1: In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to whip the butter on high speed for 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy. (If you have a Kitchenaid mixer, use the paddle attachment on speed 4.)

It is important to start with softened, room-temperature butter for this recipe in order to get the creamy, fluffy texture. (See photo below for reference on what butter should look like after being whipped.)

Whipped butter on spatula

Step 2: After the 3-4 minutes, keep the mixer on high speed and add in the vanilla extract, almond extract, and salt. Turn the mixer down to low speed and slowly add in the powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time until it is all incorporated.

Once all powdered sugar is worked in, add food coloring then turn the mixer back up to high speed and beat for 2-3 minutes until it is light, creamy, and fluffy.

Tip: To achieve this light pink color, I dipped the tip of a toothpick in red food coloring then did 1 swipe through the frosting. For a more in-depth look at achieving a light, blush pink, check out my post on how to make light pink frosting.

Pink sugar cookie buttercream on paddle

Step 3: Use a offset spatula to generously spread frosting onto cooled cookies or place frosting in a large piping bag with a large star tip for more intricate decorating.

bowl of pink sugar cookie buttercream with metal star piping tip

For a rosette shape, start in the center and swirl the piping tip around to the outside. For a more traditional swirl (like shown below), start from the outside and swirl the piping inward to create a peak.

sugar cookie buttercream being piped on cookie

Step 4: Immediately after frosting, top with sprinkles! You want to do this right after frosting, otherwise the frosting will start to develop a slight crust.

See FAQ section below for storing instructions.

sugar cookie buttercream cookie with sprinkles

Don’t feel like frosting individual cookies? Make my Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars in a 9×13 pan instead!

Frequently Asked Questions

Will this buttercream frosting harden?

The frosting will develop a slight crust if left sitting out (or when refrigerated), but it won’t completely harden. Which means you don’t want to stack them if piping swirls. For my tips on how to stack non-piped cookies (like the photo below), see my guide on how to freeze sugar cookies.

sugar cookie buttercream on sugar cookie

Does this buttercream frosting need to be refrigerated?

Although the amount of sugar will stabilize the butter (meaning you could technically leave them at room temperature for 2-3 days), I recommend refrigerating these so that the frosting doesn’t “melt” down and flatten out.

Can I freeze buttercream frosting?

If you have leftover frosting, you can freeze it in a plastic freezer bag for 2-3 months. Just make sure all the air is out of the bag. When ready to use, thaw the bag in the refrigerator and once it’s soft, place frosting back in bowl and beat for 2-3 minutes.

Note that frosting may not become as fluffy as before, so this method is typically best when you just want to spread the frosting vs. pipe it. To freeze frosted cookies, see my guide on how to freeze sugar cookies.

What sugar cookie recipe should I pair this with?

I use this sugar cookie buttercream frosting to top my soft & thick cut out sugar cookies. This frosting recipe will make about 2 cups of frosting, enough to generously frost about (24) 2.5″ sized round cookies.

What vanilla extract do you recommend?

Although I typically recommend a clear-colored extract when making white buttercream icing, the flavor in this Nielsen Massey Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla takes the flavor up a notch. It’s pricier than grocery store vanilla, but is worth it when you’re looking to impress.

bottle of neilsen-massy vanilla

Sugar Cookie Buttercream Frosting

The best fluffy vanilla sugar cookie buttercream frosting! With a blend of vanilla and almond extract, this recipe is perfect for spreading on soft cut out sugar cookies to make the ultimate buttery and creamy Valentine’s, Christmas, or birthday cookies! 

Author: Melissa Rose
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Course: Dessert
Category: Cookies
Servings: 24 Cookies (sized around 2.5″)
Print this Recipe
4.95 from 104 votes
Did you make this recipe?
Leave us a review

Ingredients

  • 1 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ½ – 1 ½ teaspoons almond extract *adjust to your taste preference (some brands are stronger than others); I like a prominent almond flavor but you can use less for a less strong flavor
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • Food Coloring

Before you begin! If you make this, will you do me a huge favor and leave a review and rating letting me know how you liked this recipe? This helps my small business thrive so I can continue providing free recipes and high-quality content for you.

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl, whip unsalted butter (1 cup; i.e. 2 sticks) for 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy on high speed. 

  2. Whip in vanilla extract (2 teaspoons), almond extract (*½ – 1 ½ teaspoons), and salt (¼ teaspoons). 

  3. On medium/low speed begin adding in powdered sugar (3 cups) half cup at a time until all is incorporated.

  4. Mix at high speed for 2-3 minutes until nice and creamy.

  5. Spread on top of cookies or place frosting in a large piping bag with a large star tip to achieve a more intricate design. To pipe the swirl, start from the inside and swirl to the outside.

  6. Makes 2 cups of frosting, which is enough to generously frost about (24) 2.5″ circle cookies.

Last Step! Please leave a review and rating letting me know how you liked this recipe! This helps my small business thrive so I can continue providing free recipes and high-quality content for you.

Recipe Notes

Almond Extract: I personally like a prominent almond flavor and use 1.5 teaspoons but some brands can be stronger than others, so start with 1/2 teaspoon and adjust to your flavor liking.

Nutrition

Calories: 128kcal
Fat: 7g
Saturated fat: 4g
Cholesterol: 20mg
Sodium: 25mg
Potassium: 2mg
Carbohydrates: 15g
Sugar: 14g
Vitamin A: 235%
Calcium: 2%

This sugar cookie buttercream frosting is perfect for Valentine’s Day cookies! For these adorable bite-sized heart cookies, I used Sugarbelle’s Multi Heart Cutter and spread on pink buttercream.

pink heart sugar cookie buttercream

Dye the buttercream frosting any color and top with sprinkles for perfect Christmas, halloween, baby shower, or birthday cookies!

Did you make this?
Tag me on Instagram @designeatrepeat or leave a comment below to let me know how it turned out! I love seeing what you’ve made.
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Reader Interactions

91 Comments

  1. Anna says

    10/22/2022 at 6:48 am

    LOVE THIS RECIPY!

    Reply
  2. Bridgett says

    10/10/2022 at 12:23 pm

    Taste is good left out almond extract for allergies, make sure your butter is soft.

    Reply
  3. Martha Intrieri says

    09/14/2022 at 4:56 pm

    5 stars
    Pretty and tasty.

    Reply
    • Melissa says

      09/25/2022 at 10:46 pm

      So glad that you enjoyed this recipe Martha, thank you for taking the time to leave a review, I appreciate it!

      Reply
  4. Doris says

    09/01/2022 at 7:03 pm

    5 stars
    This icing is delicious and is the perfect consistency for decorating. I made the mistake of using salted butter at first and it was not good all. Once I actually followed the recipe, my daughter said it was better than the icing at her favorite bakery.

    Reply
    • Melissa says

      09/03/2022 at 8:29 pm

      That is so great to hear Doris!
      I am so glad that you and your daughter have loved this frosting.

      Reply
  5. Tammy Tucker says

    07/27/2022 at 12:39 pm

    5 stars
    I loved this frosting. It was super easy to frost the cookies and simply delicious

    Reply
    • Melissa says

      07/29/2022 at 10:52 pm

      Thanks for leaving a review Tammy, I am so glad that you have enjoyed this frosting!

      Reply
  6. Gemma says

    07/03/2022 at 6:52 pm

    5 stars
    Great simple to follow recipe ! Can’t wait to make more of your recipes. Oh

    Reply
    • Melissa says

      07/05/2022 at 8:13 pm

      So glad that you found the recipe easy to follow Gemma, thank you for leaving your review!

      Reply
  7. Pam says

    06/28/2022 at 8:59 am

    5 stars
    Yummmm ! Not many buttercream recipes call for salt but let me tell you , that’s little tweak makes the difference between meh buttercream and YUM buttercream!

    Reply
    • Melissa says

      06/28/2022 at 7:28 pm

      I am so glad that you enjoyed the buttercream recipe Pam.
      Thank you for taking the time to leave a review!

      Reply
  8. Les says

    06/17/2022 at 5:11 pm

    5 stars
    Doubled this recipe, spread it on a sheet pan of sugar cookie bars! Saved the buttercream recipe.. I like it! Thanks 😊

    Reply
    • Melissa says

      06/19/2022 at 2:14 pm

      That sounds delicious, I am so glad that you enjoyed the frosting recipe Les! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review.

      Reply
  9. Angela says

    04/16/2022 at 4:46 pm

    5 stars
    This frosting is perfect if you plan on decorating your cookies. Very easy to work with and tastes delicious. I will definitely use this recipe again!

    Reply
  10. deb says

    04/16/2022 at 11:44 am

    5 stars
    perfect!

    Reply
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