Brown Sugar Frosting is a luscious frosting recipe with just a few simple ingredients. Enjoy everything you love about traditional buttercream with brown sugar flavor.
Brown Sugar Frosting is rich and delicious while being effortless to make. It is so delicious on your favorite cake recipes and cupcake recipes. With only 5 ingredients, it is a breeze to make homemade frosting.
I have been making it for years and everyone goes crazy over it. The addition of brown sugar gives it a rich and decadent flavor that taste great. Along with brown sugar frosting recipes, we also love Strawberry Buttercream Frosting and Blackberry Buttercream Frosting.
Table of contents
Why We Love This
Homemade frosting is so decadent and tastes much better than store bought. This recipe is really simple and anyone can make it. It will elevate your baked goods to the next level.
Ingredients
- Butter. Use real butter and make sure it has been softened at room temperature.
- Light Brown Sugar. Make sure the brown sugar is fresh.
- Vanilla Extract. Pure vanilla extract is best.
- Powdered Sugar. Sift the powdered sugar so the frosting is smooth and without lumps.
- Heavy Cream. I love using heavy cream in frosting. It makes the results so rich and delicious.
Find the complete list of ingredients at the bottom of the page.
Substitutions and Additions
- Heavy Cream. You can use milk, half and half or whipping cream.
- Brown Sugar. You can use light or dark brown sugar, but I prefer light. Dark brown sugar has more molasses and will result in a darker color and stronger flavor.
Step By Step Instructions
Step 1. Start by adding the brown sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer or large bowl. Make sure to remove any tiny brown sugar stones that you may see to ensure that the frosting is smooth.
Step 2. Next, add the butter and vanilla extract. Mix on medium high speed until the sugar is dissolved. It should take about 2-3 minutes.
Step 3. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and stir together. Then add in the confectioners’ sugar to the butter mixture. Start on low speed and mix on low until combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again and increase the mixer speed to medium speed and beat for 1-2 minutes. Gradually add in the heavy cream until the brown sugar mixture is creamy and the desired consistency that you prefer.
Step 4. Finally, the frosting is ready to use on your favorite cakes, cupcakes and cookies. The frosting is also good with walnuts sprinkled on top.
How to Use This Frosting
- Easy Moist Banana Cake Recipe
- Easy Chocolate Cake
- Best Vanilla Cupcake Recipe
- Snickerdoodle Cupcakes
- Pumpkin Cookies with Cake Mix
- Apple Cake
Storage
The frosting can be made ahead of time. Store in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 5 days. Make sure that the frosting comes to room temperature before using it on your favorite desserts.
You can also freeze the frosting up to 3 months. Just make sure it is stored inside an airtight container.
Pro Tips
- Consistency. If your frosting is too thick, add more cream until it’s the consistency that you prefer. If your frosting is too thin, add in more powdered sugar.
- Sweetness. This type of frosting can be very sweet. If you find it is too sweet for your preference, add a tiny pinch of salt and combine. This should help cut down on the sweetness. However, be very careful to only add a tiny pinch so you do not ruin the frosting. Another option is to use salted butter in the recipe instead of unsalted butter.
- Fresh brown sugar. Always use a fresh bag of brown sugar for the smoothest frosting.
- Room temperature butter. The frosting will be easier to make if the butter is room temperature. The texture will also be smoother.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl. When mixing the frosting, make sure to scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula. This will make sure all of the ingredients are well combined.
- Use the paddle attachment. The whisk attachment can add too many air bubbles into the frosting.
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It’s your turn to make Brown Sugar Buttercream Frosting. Come back and leave a star review and comment please. I love hearing from you and getting your feedback!
Brown Sugar Frosting
Ingredients
- 1 cup Butter softened
- 1/2 cup Light Brown Sugar
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 4 cups Powdered Sugar
- 2 Tablespoons Heavy Cream
Instructions
- Add the brown sugar to the bowl of a stand up mixer. Sift through the brown sugar and remove any tiny brown sugar stones that you may see to ensure that the frosting is smooth.
- Add the butter and vanilla extract to a mixing bowl and mix on medium high speed until the sugar is dissolved (2-3 minutes).
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add in the powdered sugar.
- Start on low speed and mix on low until the butter and sugar are combined.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl again and increase the speed on the mixer to medium speed and beat together for 1-2 minutes.
- Gradually add in the heavy cream until the frosting is the consistency that you prefer.
- Then the frosting is ready to use on your favorite cakes, cupcakes and cookies. Enjoy!
So easy with only a few ingredients. The flavor is rich and decadent.
What flavor cupcake do you prefer this with?
Emily – This is amazing on a spice cake or yellow cupcakes.