This page requires that scripting be enabled in your browser to function properly. If you need help enabling scripting, please vist our
technical FAQ page.

Vanilla - Chocolate Powdered Sugar Frosting

Read Reviews (435)

"Fluffy powdered sugar frosting." — Anonymous

Ingredients Edit and Save

Watch video tips and tricks

How to Make Buttercream Frosting

German Chocolate Cake Frosting II

No Cholesterol Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Mint Candies Cookies

Thin Mint Crackers

Robbi’s M&M Cookies

How to Make Chocolate Macarons

Sugar Cookie Frosting

Sugar Cookie Icing

Sugar and Sweeteners

Battle of the Butter: Salted vs. Unsalted

Vanilla Extract vs Vanilla Bean

Original recipe makes 3 cups (approx.) Change Servings

2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons cocoa powder (optional)

Check All Add to Shopping List

Directions

Cream sugar, butter and vanilla. Add a small amount of milk (1 to 2 tablespoons). Add cocoa if desired and beat until fluffy. If frosting is too sweet add a little more milk.

Kitchen-Friendly View

ADVERTISE WITH US

I took the reviews into consideration while making this for cupcakes, and didn't want them too sugary, so I added 3 tbsp cocoa pwdr. and kept everthing else the same as the recipe called for. My icing came out so thick and I think I might have figured out why some are having problems with it being too thin. If you are using margering instead of butter, there is a higher content of water in it. This frosting is fantastic for cupcakes, nice and thick if you use butter. I'll be keeping this easy and delicous recipe.

—VJGUNKEL59

See full review »

Most Helpful Critical Review

Oct 09, 2011

I consider myself to have a sweet tooth and I found the vanilla version of this recipe ENTIRELY too sweet. I really wanted to use the white version, because I want to color it for a birthday cake. In reading the reviews, others said that using unsweetened cocoa mellowed the sweetness, so I tried that. It is better, but I'm still not sure about it. The consistancy was good. Overally, not a huge fan of this recipe.

—colleen

See full review »

483 Ratings

See other versions of this recipe!

Nov 15, 2005

This recipe is a bit sweet if you are using it without the cocoa. If you do use cocoa with it, it tastes great. I added a half cup of cream cheese (making the vanilla version) and it tasted even better. This does NOT yeild 3 cups, I only got 1 and 1/2 or so cups out of this.

—CANDY46221

See full review »

Sep 04, 2004

Very easy to make. No problem with the consistency, but others might have had a problem if the butter was melted or didn't mix long enough. Mom's tip is to add a touch of salt to help even out the sweetness. Turned out great.

—PHARLAN

See full review »

Nov 19, 2012

Powdered sugar frosting, basic buttercream frosting, whatever you want to call it this recipe has the perfect proportions of butter to powdered sugar. I made the vanilla version and didn't measure the milk, just added enough to get the consistency I wanted. For novice cooks, it is important to cream the butter and sugar well, a good few minutes, until it is very light and fluffy! Update 11-19-12: The chocolate variation of this recipe, while fluffy and delicious, is a very LIGHT chocolate. If you like it darker, replace some of the powdered sugar with more cocoa powder.

—naples34102

See full review »

Feb 08, 2004

I needed a frosting recipe for cookies I was making. My friend had neglected to give me her frosting recipe with the cookies, so I needed something delicious and easy. It's so good, I had a hard time not licking the spoon as I frosted. Absolutely delicious! Will use this recipe from now on.

—MIRANDA

See full review »

Feb 08, 2004

This was the easiest, fastest, and most delicious frosting recipe ever!! I don't know what happened to the person who wrote the review saying it was like pudding...maybe they put in too much milk, but I didn't have that problem at all. We used it to frost our Valentine's Day cookies, just added a drop of red food coloring for pink frosting and it is great!!!

—BABYREU

See full review »

Feb 01, 2005

I made the chocolate version using unsweeted cocoa- delicious. After mixing it up (I added the cocoa in at the beginning - works fine) I added another tablespoon of cocoa for a slightly more intense chocolate flavor. This is so easy to make and tastes just as good as store-bought but WITHOUT THE TRANS FATS. The very first ingredient in store-bought frosting is partially hydrogenated oil!Gross! So, feel good making this frosting for your kids! Note: The color is a light creamy brown.

—TERESA_C

See full review »

Rate This Recipe

Edit

Glad you liked it! Your friends will, too:

Did you tweak the recipe? Edit and save your own version of it!

Edit this recipe

More Recipes Like This See all

Chocolate Frosting I

Chocolate Butter-Creme Frosting

Chocolate Frosting II

Chocolate Covered Cherry Cookie Frosting

Fudge Frosting

Creamy Chocolate Frosting II

Chocolate Icing

Chocolate Frosting III

Chocolate Cookie Buttercream Frosting

Icing for Sour Cream Cookies

ADVERTISE WITH US

Nutrition

Calories
38 kcal
2%

Carbohydrates
5.4 g
2%

Cholesterol
5 mg
2%

Fiber
0.1 g
< 1%

Protein
0.1 g
< 1%

Sodium
14 mg
< 1%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Nutritional Information

Vanilla - Chocolate Powdered Sugar Frosting

Serving Size: 1/48 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe: 48
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 38
Calories from Fat: 18

% Daily Value *
Total Fat 2g 3 %
Saturated Fat 1.2g 6 %
Cholesterol 5mg 2 %
Sodium 14mg < 1 %
Potassium 7mg < 1 %
Total Carbohydrates 5.4g 2 %
Dietary Fiber 0.1g < 1 %
Protein 0.1g < 1 %
Sugars 5.2g
Vitamin A 1 %
Vitamin C 0 %
Calcium < 1 %
Iron < 1 %
Thiamin < 1 %
Niacin < 1 %
Vitamin B6 < 1 %
Magnesium < 1 %
Folate < 1 %

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.