Classic American Buttercream Recipe

By
Nila Jones
Nila Jones is a contributing writer at Serious Eats.
Nila Jones
Nila Jones is a gutsy home baker-turned-blogger who secretly prefers cake batter over cake and who has made it her personal goal to demystify so-called difficult recipes so that everyone, even the most ignorant novice baker, can bake like a master baker. She ran her blog, The Tough Cookie, from 2013-2017.
Learn about Serious Eats' Editorial Process
Updated April 15, 2020
20141208-battle-of-the-buttercreams-nila-jones-american.jpg
Classic American buttercream. . Nila Jones

This classic American buttercream is deliciously creamy, super sweet, and incredibly fluffy, and one of the easiest buttercreams to master. It's just a matter of beating softened butter until it's fluffy, adding powdered sugar, cream and a little vanilla and whipping it all together. No cooking required! It has a pale, ivory color and it's a bit firmer than most other buttercreams, because of its high butter content. This also means that it doesn't hold up very well in warmer temperatures, because the fat in the butter will melt.

Recipe Details

Classic American Buttercream Recipe

Active 8 mins
Total 8 mins
Serves 8 to 12 servings

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

  • 2 1/4 cups plus 1 teaspoon powdered sugar

  • 3 tablespoons heavy cream

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  • Pinch fine table salt

Directions

  1. Add the butter to a stand mixer fitted with the whisk or paddle, or a medium mixing bowl if using a handheld mixer. Beat butter at medium speed until creamy, smooth, and lightened in color, about 2 minutes.

  2. Add sugar, cream, vanilla, and salt and mix at low speed until somewhat incorporated. Increase the speed to high and mix until buttercream is smooth and fluffy, 3-5 minutes. (If the buttercream is too thick, add a little more cream, if it’s too thin, add more powdered sugar.)

  3. Use immediately or refrigerate in an airtight container or a zipper-lock bag for up to 2 weeks or in the freezer for up to 2 months. To use buttercream that has either been refrigerated or frozen, first allow to come to room temperature then beat until smooth and spreadable again. Cakes or cupcakes decorated with buttercream generally keep for up to 3 days, stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Serve buttercream at room temperature.

Special Equipment

Electric mixer

This Recipe Appears In

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
200Calories
13gFat
22gCarbs
0gProtein
×
Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8 to 12
Amount per serving
Calories200
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 13g16%
Saturated Fat 8g40%
Cholesterol 35mg12%
Sodium 14mg1%
Total Carbohydrate 22g8%
Dietary Fiber 0g0%
Total Sugars 21g
Protein 0g
Vitamin C 0mg0%
Calcium 6mg0%
Iron 0mg0%
Potassium 8mg0%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

More Serious Eats Recipes