With a subtle honey flavor, this sweet and creamy honey vanilla buttercream frosting is perfect for pistachio cake, honey cupcakes, or any cake! It’s everything that you want in a frosting – sweet and creamy while also being incredibly easy to make!
Easy To Make Honey Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
Did you know that there are tons of types of frostings? The kind I typically make, which is American buttercream frosting, is classified as an easy frosting recipe.
Some recipes, like French buttercream or swiss meringue buttercream, are made by cooking and whipping egg whites, sugar, and butter. It’s a whole process!
If you’re anything like me, you want a good result, but with minimal effort. That’s what you get with this creamy, dreamy frosting.
The simple steps in making homemade frosting are to mix your softened butter with powdered sugar, and then thin it slightly.
We’re adding great flavor from honey and vanilla. I love this frosting with my pistachio spinach cake!
Why you’ll love this luscious honey buttercream recipe
Minimal ingredients – Just a handful of simple ingredients turn into the perfect frosting. It’s easy to work with and can easily be adjusted to be a thicker frosting, or made more thin for drizzling.
Easy to make – If you have a stand mixer this recipe is so simple! And even if you don’t have a standing mixer, it can easily be made with a hand mixer and a large bowl. The entire recipe is done within 5 minutes.
Super versatile – The honey and vanilla are subtle flavors in this sweet frosting, making it the perfect buttercream to go with so any cakes, cupcakes, and even to put on cinnamon rolls!
What you need for vanilla honey buttercream frosting
Scroll down to view the recipe card below for the full ingredients list, nutrition facts, and step-by-step instructions.
- unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- honey
- vanilla extract
- powdered sugar
- dairy-free milk, if needed
How to make homemade buttercream
Step 1: Add the room temperature butter to the bowl of a stand mixer and attach the paddle attachment (see note on how to make this with a hand mixer). Mix on medium-high speed until creamy, about 1 minute.
Step 2: Scrape down the sides using a spatula, add the honey and vanilla extract, and turn to medium speed until fully mixed, about 1-2 minutes.
Step 3: Add the powdered sugar and mix at a low speed to start, until the powdered sugar is mixed in – scrape down the sides of the bowl once or twice.
Step 4: If needed, add 1-2 tbsp of milk and mix on high until your frosting is the consistency you want (add more liquid to thin it, or a bit more powdered sugar to thicken it).
Step 5: When your cake has cooled enough on a wire rack to remove it from the cake pans, spread frosting between each cake layer and a generous amount of buttercream on the top of the cake. For a stunning contrast, decorate with edible flowers!
NOTE: To make this recipe without a stand mixer, place butter in a large bowl and use a hand mixer with the whisk attachment on it. Cream the butter, then add the ingredients in the same order as listed above until your frosting has soft peaks and is ready to use!
Watch me make the best vanilla frosting
The full how to video can be watched below, or on my YouTube channel!
Can this be made vegan?
Yes, absolutely! You’ll need to make 2 swaps to make this into a vegan buttercream frosting.
The first swap is to use vegan unsalted butter.
The second swap is to replace the honey with another liquid sweetener – both maple syrup and agave nectar are good alternatives here!
How do you make homemade powdered sugar?
Making powdered sugar is easy at home! All you need is granulated sugar, cornstarch, and a food processor or blender.
For every 1 cup of granulated sugar, add 1 tbsp of cornstarch. You can increase the amounts based on how much homemade powdered sugar you need.
To make powdered sugar for this recipe, add 2 cups of sugar and 2 tbsp cornstarch to a food process or blender.
Blend until smooth and powdery, and it’s ready to use!
Ways to use honey buttercream
Use this honey vanilla frosting anywhere you’d use a vanilla or cream cheese frosting.
It goes great on pistachio cake, carrot cake, applesauce cupcakes, in my green whoopie pies, and even stuffed between two chocolate chip pretzel cookies for delicious cookie sandwiches!
How to store
Leftover frosting should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge. It will last for at least 7 days.
When you plan to use it to frost desserts, remove it from the fridge to bring it to room temperature a bit.
This will make it easier to work with since the butter will harden it when cold.
Can you freeze frosting?
You can also freeze American buttercream!
Place it in an airtight freezer bag or container and keep it frozen for up to 3 months.
To use frozen buttercream, place it in the fridge overnight to defrost, then re-whip it when it’s at room temperature.
Substitutions, optional variations & dietary adjustments
Below you’ll find a list of substitutions that will work well in this vanilla honey buttercream frosting recipe.
If you try something different out, please leave a comment below letting us all know how it turned out!
Unsalted butter – You can make this recipe a vegan frosting by using vegan unsalted butter.
Honey – Both maple syrup and agave nectar are good alternatives to replace honey!
Vanilla extract – Vanilla bean paste is a great alternative that gives a lot of great vanilla flavor. You can also mix up the extracts that you use here – try orange extract, almond extract, or mint for new delicious flavors.
Powdered sugar – Powered sugar is an important piece to the success of this frosting recipe. You can make your own powdered sugar with the directions above, and up to 25% of the powdered sugar could be swapped with arrowroot powder to make it less sweet
More frosting recipes you’ll love
- Healthy cream cheese frosting (no butter!)
- 3-Ingredient chocolate frosting (dairy free)
- Honey greek yogurt frosting
Easy To Make Honey Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1-2 tbsp dairy-free milk if needed
Instructions
- Add the room temperature butter to the bowl of a stand mixer and attach the paddle attachment (see note on how to make this with a hand mixer). Mix on medium-high speed until creamy, about 1 minute.
- Scrape down the sides using a spatula, add the honey and vanilla extract, and turn to medium speed until fully mixed, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add the powdered sugar and mix at a low speed to start, until the powdered sugar is mixed in – scrape down the sides of the bowl once or twice.
- If needed, add 1-2 tbsp of milk and mix on high until your frosting is the consistency you want (add more liquid to thin it, or a bit more powdered sugar to thicken it).
- When your cake has cooled enough on a wire rack to remove it from the cake pans, spread frosting between each cake layer and a generous amount of buttercream on the top of the cake. For a stunning contrast, decorate with edible flowers!
Nutrition
If you try this best vanilla buttercream recipe, I’d love it if you left a star rating and comment below letting me know how it turned out!
XO
Heather
