This vegan vanilla frosting is smooth, creamy and delicious.
Ideal for use on cakes, cupcakes and cookies!
Just 4 ingredients, this really couldn’t be simpler and you’ll love how rich and buttery it is, even while using a fairly minimal amount of vegan butter.
An electric mixer is required but you can whip this up in 10 minutes from start to finish and get on with the important job of enjoying whatever delicious treat you’ve prepared.
I love this frosting on a vanilla sponge cake. This is exactly the frosting (topped with strawberries) we used on the vanilla cake you see below!
Vanilla on vanilla is rather marvellous I must say! Or mix and match a bit and use it on a fabulous vegan chocolate cake!
But there are other uses! Like on top of some delicious raw brownies!
This frosting is perfect to spread on cakes or cookies, but it is also ideal to pipe onto cupcakes.
The cool thing about this recipe is that it’s so simple and easy to throw together.
And it just works out every time.
Not to mention that it contains simple ingredients.
I still haven’t figured out what ‘shortening’ even is, let alone putting it into my frosting recipes!
So if you’re similarly a fan of the simple, then this is for you!
So I think you’re really going to love this vegan vanilla frosting, it’s:
- Smooth
- Velvety
- Deliciously Sweet
- Simple
- Perfect on cakes, cupcakes or cookies
It’s super sweet of course, but that’s what you want in a frosting isn’t it?
It’s definitely what I want!
Any comments or questions about this vegan vanilla frosting recipe, post them down below.
And if you make this recipe, let us know how it turned out for you.
Tag any photos #lovingitvegan on instagram so we can see what you’re making! Thanks!
And if you haven’t already – subscribe to our mailing list! Not only will you get an awesome free ebook containing 10 gorgeous recipes, but you’ll also stay in touch with all the latest recipes posted to the site.
- 3 and ¾ cups (450g) Powdered Sugar
- 3 Tbsp (45g) Vegan Butter
- 4 Tbsp (60ml) Soy Milk (or any other non-dairy milk)
- 2 tsp (10ml) Vanilla Extract
- Add the powdered sugar, vegan butter, soy milk and vanilla extract to a mixing bowl.
- Using your electric mixer, start at low speed, gradually increasing speed until perfectly smooth.
- It should be very thick, but still easily spreadable. If it's too thick, add a bit more soy milk, if it's too thin, add more powdered sugar.
Hi, I am making my son’s second birthday cake and would like to know if this recipe would work for frosting a cake the day before its served as well as doing some piping for decoration ?? thank you
Sure, it absolutely would.
Will the icing keep its consistency if it is refrigerated overnight and served the next day? or if i can put the cupcakes with the icing on it in the freezer overnight? I’m making cupcakes today for a party thats tomorrow and was wondering If i frosted the cupcakes and left them in the fridge or freezer if it would be fine to do so?
Yes, it will. You can frost your cupcakes the night before and then keep them covered in the fridge overnight (not freezer) and they will be perfect. Very important that they’re covered in a sealed container though, otherwise they will dry out.
Hi, I was just wondering how much frosting this makes. I need about 5 cups of frosting and just want to know if I’ll have to multiply it or anything to get that amount. Thank you!
Hi Heather, I haven’t measured it in cups so not sure exactly – it’s enough to generously frost a 2-layer cake. I’m inclined to think that’s a fair bit less than 5 cups though but exactly how much less I don’t know. If I had to guess I would say you would likely need to double the recipe to get that much.
Ok thank you so much!
Made this for my son’s 6th birthday to top a vegan vanilla cake. I have tried making vegan frosting before, but without much luck. This one was absolutely perfect. Just like store-bought frosting, but without the extra crap! Highly recommended to substitute the store-bought stuff!
Yay! So glad you liked it Sara! Thanks for posting! 🙂
Hi, Trying your vegan vanilla cake tonight after reading so many amazing reviews about it. Just wondering if i can substitute the vegan butter with vegan margarine would change the taste? Thank you!
No this is perfect, any vegan butter or margarine is interchangeable.
Personally I don’t think it will matter for the way it tastes nor texture because margarine and butter are made with the same products however margarine is put in a container and is softer…
Hi Alison.
I’ll be making Vegan frosting for the first time this weekend. My son is allergic to dairy, nuts and soy leaving my only option in “non-dairy” milk with coconut milk. We’ve tried coconut milk yogurt and the flavor is pleasing to us at all. Can I use anything else instead of coconut milk? Will the amount needed even be identifiable in the frosting flavor?
Thanks in advance for your help.
Hi Kary! The amount of non-dairy milk used is so minimal that you can’t really distinguish any flavor from it, however, it does contribute to the creaminess of the final result. I think coconut milk would work fabulously, or really any kind of non-dairy milk, you could also use rice milk or one of the more ‘exotic’ ones like oat milk or quinoa milk – any one of them would do great here. All the best! Hope it turns out great! 🙂
Turned out perfect and delicious! My allergic husband and daughter and vegan step-mom will all be so thrilled!! =)
Fantastic! Wonderful to hear! 🙂
Does the butter need to be softened/room temperature or should it be solid/fresh fron the fridge? Im wanting to use this on my sons cake for tomorrow.
Thanks!
It’s better/quicker if it’s softened/room temperature. The vegan butter I use is always a spreadable texture even straight out the fridge though, so either way has been okay for me. If yours sets more solidly in the fridge then definitely room temperature or softened will work better.
What vegan butter do you use? Whenever i try and make vegan buttercream the butter separates and the buttercream is ruined.
Oh that sucks! That hasn’t happened to me. I use a brand called Nuttelex, it’s Australian.
Does this hold up in the heat outdoors for several hours? Can I use coconut oil (or canola etc.) instead of vegan butter? Thanks!
Hi Melinda, not sure how well it would hold up in the heat for a long time. I live in a very hot climate and when I take cakes or cupcakes outdoors I always do so in a cooler bag and then it’s fine. You could experiment with coconut oil, but I have no idea how it would turn out.
Hi there! I was wondering if you did try this recipe using coconut oil how it turned out? I usually do use this rather than vegan butter and have never had a problem and am hoping same with this fabulous recipe! ?
Does this frosting need to be refrigerated? If I have leftover cake at the end of the day can I just leave it on the counter or put it all in the fridge?
Room temperature is okay as long as it’s not too hot where you are. In terms of lasting longer/freshness, keeping it covered in the fridge will allow your cake (and frosting) to keep for up to a week. Whereas at room temperature you’ll need to consume it within a couple of days.
Where do you buy vegan butter? Shortening is made by crisco. It looks like white butter.
Hi Elaine, the brands available to you will depend on where you are. I use an Australian brand called Nuttelex and they make vegan butters out of coconut oil or olive oil. In the USA they have Earth Balance brand. In some countries you’ll just look for a brand of margarine that doesn’t contain animal products and that will work perfectly too.
Earth Balance is available at many stores that offer a “natural foods” section. I’ve never been able to find the sticks, but the tub version bakes just like real butter.
Whole Foods is the only place I’ve Earth Balance sticks. If I have them, I use them. If not, I just measure the tub Earth Balance into my measuring cups.
Absolutely amazing!!! so simple and delicious. I used shortening as a substitute for coconut oil and it worked out just as well! Thanks for the great recipe!!!
Brilliant! So glad to hear that shortening worked well in this recipe! 🙂
Made this vegan vanilla frosting for my daughter’s birthday cake. It was very delicious. Thank you for sharing your recipes.
Wonderful to hear! Thanks for posting Marilyn. 🙂
In love with Chocolate cake + vanilla frosting combo- only vegan in the house so it’s all for me! lol, delicious recipe <3
Yum! I also love the contrasts 🙂
Hello! I was hoping to use this for cupcakes. LOVE THE FLAVOUR BUT …..It didn’t do well in a piping bag to decorate. Just fell flat. Would Crisco thicken this up? Thanks!
Hi Cathryn, if it’s too thin, just add more powdered sugar (1/4 to 1/2 cup) to thicken it up. I have used this in a piping bag no problem. It is supposed to be thick enough. So just add more powdered sugar if it isn’t.
Hello, I just was wondering about how many cups this recipe makes! I’m super interested in making it, and based on the reviews and your description, I won’t regret it!
Probably around 2 cups.
Hi There! This frosting recipe sounds amazing, only I do not have an electric mixer. Is there a way to achieve the same result without one, or is that too good to be true? Thank you!
I don’t think so sorry! I think a mixer is essential for this, it’s just very thick, I don’t see how it would work without one.
Hi could I Substitue olive oil or coconut oil for vegan butter??
Definitely not olive oil, but you could try coconut oil. I haven’t personally tried it though.
Just made this icing and it turned out perfectly. I was thinking maybe for different flavours to add
lemon juice, peanut butter, bit of cocoa powder, maybe lime juice. Thank you…glad to have found your recipe!!
Hi Carol! So glad you liked it! Yes, so much fun to play around with different flavors! I’m a big fan of mint, strawberry vanilla, matcha green tea flavor, lemon, chocolate, haven’t tried peanut butter yet, but that’ll be fun too! All the best!
hmmmm…do you use fresh strawberries?
No I used strawberry essence, you can see what I did here: http://lovingitvegan.com/vegan-vanilla-cupcakes-strawberry-vanilla-frosting/
Hi,
This recipe is perfect! My son has multiple food allergies and this will be our go to frosting from now on. I used rice milk and earth balance stick as we had them in the fridge, delicious!! I have some extra and I’m wondering if this can be frozen and defrosted for use in the future? Thank you!!
Hi Sarah, So glad you like the recipe! Sure you can freeze it. Just move it to the fridge to defrost when you’re ready to use it.
Hi! This recipe looks pretty simple and it has lots of great reviews, so I really want to try it. However, I’m a bit skeptical as to whether it would work for frosting cupcakes since most people seem to have used it for cakes. Thanks for your help!
Cupcakes, cakes, cookies, it’s good for all of them.
I used this recipe in conjunction with another vegan vanilla icing recipe to compare ingredients. I didn’t have any vegan butter so I used coconut oil and I used a combo of sweetened and unsweetened almond milk instead of soy milk. I also added a pinch of salt, although I don’t think that did anything. It turned out great! It was super sweet so in the future, I’ll probably just stick to unsweetened almond milk, but it was very delicious and we kept eating it while frosting our gingerbread men. If you go the coconut oil route, I would try melting it first. Even after using a hand mixer for a while, there were still lots of little clumps. It didn’t really bother us, but one got stuck in the icing tip, so be careful. Or just use vegan butter haha. Awesome recipe! Super creamy and (except for the clumps) the perfect consistency for piping. I will definitely use it again; thank you for posting!!
That’s super helpful Emma! Thanks for posting! Great to hear that coconut oil also works well, a lot of people have been asking about that. Thanks!
I chose this recipe to frost a vegan cake for my daughter because it used such a small amount of Earth Balance. She loved it and it turned out perfect! Will definitely use this recipe in the future.
Awesome! 🙂
Is there anything else I can use instead of powdered sugar?
Not in this case, no.
Can shortening be used as a substitute for the vegan butter?
I have never tried it with shortening so I don’t know. If you do try it, please let us know if it works out! All the best.
Will this icing crust enough to create rose swirls on a cake? This will be the first time I’m using this recipe for a friends daughter with food allergies.
It hardens quite nicely. I think if you chill it for a few minutes it should do the trick!
Hi, I made this last night, first time baking anything vegan. I did everything as said but it seemed a bit too sweet. Any thoughts on an icing that is not as sweet? Maybe like a vegan whipped cream icing?
I’ve used whipped coconut cream on a cake before, I used it as the filling on my chocolate layer cake. You can check out vegan whipped cream here: http://lovingitvegan.com/how-to-make-vegan-whipped-cream
I have a whipped cream icing that calls for thickening milk with flour and when cooled beating into creamed sugar/butter/shortening mixture. I made it vegan by subbing out the whole milk for unsweetened almond milk and using Earth’s Balance and crisco for the fats. No one knows it’s vegan, which in my house is HUGE!
Hi, can i add cacao (and less powdered sugar) to make a chocolate frosting? thanks xx!
I adapted this recipe to make it chocolate here: http://lovingitvegan.com/how-to-make-vegan-chocolate-frosting/
thanks!!
Hi you are amazing at this so would rice milk work in this or not it needs to be thick enough to spread
Definitely! Rice milk is fine to use. If your consistency is ever too thin you can just add more powdered sugar.
Can I use something else other than the vegan butter ?
Some of the comments above mention using coconut oil, so you could try that. I haven’t personally done so though.
Can I substitute the powdered sugar for the Swerve version of powdered sugar? I am on a low carb diet and sugar isn’t really in the lineup right now!
I haven’t used Swerve so really can’t say. I looked up the product though and it says it’s a straight swap so I would assume that it would work! If you try it let us know how it comes out! All the best!
Hi Alison, first-time reader and maker of your recipes here! I tried both the normal version and chocolate version of this frosting according to instructions but both of them turned out too… runny. The vegan margarine available here is really quite soft so I think this might have something to do with it, or the weird sort of thin coconut dairy substitute I used (never used it before and certainly not for baking). My frostings are super-sweet as it is so more powdered sugar isn’t really an option – how do I thicken it in a vegan way? Some type of starch? Coconut oil? Ideas? Refrigerating them made them a smidgen thicker but still not enough to frost without them running all over the place!
Hi Madrona! I would use much less liquid then. Start with just the vegan margarine and powdered sugar and then add the non-dairy milk in tiny increments, only as much as you need to get to the right consistency.
Has anyone tried this with coco powder?
Thanks 🙂
Hi really like your frosting recipe but don’t know what vegan butter is. Can I use olive oil margarine or canola margarine. I live in the country in Australia so some specific things are not easy to find. Thanks, Kelly
Hi Kelly! Yes, vegan butter/vegan margarine, both perfectly great here.
Hi, would almond butter work for this recipe?
Almond butter doesn’t work as a replacement for vegan butter/margarine. Generally frostings that use almond butter or peanut butter use regular vegan butter/margarine as well as it’s important for the texture.
Hi Alison. Your recipes for vegan are all interesting and I’m getting excited to try for my friend’s little man. I’m thinking of using vegan buttercream for filling and coat crumb. On top of that, I’m wondering if I can use modeling chocolate to cover my cake and decorate? Im worried that the vegan buttercream will not hold and just melt if i will cover the cake😬, so i would love to hear your opinion. Thank you.
Hi Jemayma, if your frosting is the right consistency (not too thin), it should be fine for this! Just make sure it’s thick enough and if it comes out a little thin, just add more powdered sugar to the right consistency. It definitely doesn’t melt, it’s perfect frosting!
Hello!
How would I store the frosting if I made it the night before for cupcakes the next day? Could I add cocoa powder to make it chocolate? Thanks!
Just keep it in the fridge. It will be perfect. Yes, I have made this into a chocolate frosting, I have linked to it in the comments above, or just do a search for vegan chocolate frosting on this site and you’ll find it. All the best!
Can I use organic cane sugar instead of powdered sugar?
No, it has to be powdered sugar for this.
Hi Alison, thanks for the recipe. I’m having trouble sourcing vegan butter where I live on the south coast in Australia. I made the frosting using nuttelex, which is sunflower oil based, but it has a margarine flavour to it. A squeeze of orange juice improved it a bit. I’ve also now found a product called cocoland coconut spread which I am going to try. It is coconut oil based and claims to taste like butter. What is the vegan butter that you use made from? Thanks, Georgina
Hi Georgina, I also use Nuttelex! I like the one made from coconut oil or even the one made from olive oil. I have never noticed a ‘flavor’ from it, it just creates that perfect frosting texture that you’re going for. Maybe the sunflower oil one has a stronger taste. The one you mention from Cocoland, I haven’t tried, but it’ll probably work great.
Super easy and I like how there isn’t much vegan butter used for the amount of frosting it makes. Plenty for a 3-layer 6-inch (small) cake. I am tempted to add cocoa powder to see how it turns out… and then make it again and try different extracts! Such a great recipe. Thank you.
So glad you liked it Maria! I have made a chocolate version, you can see it here. 🙂
I know this is a HUGE HIIIUUUUGE tweak……but can I add coconut cream instead of vegan butter???(supermarkets here are not really vegan friendly)
Also I want to use this frosting for your carrot cake recipe…..will it work??? What do you think change???Should I add lemon???Cinnamon???My favourite pancake syrup???
The thing is that I have NEVER had carrot cake….so I do not know which flavours will work with the cake!!!
You can use any frosting for any cake and can then just see if you like it. You can’t use coconut cream as a replacement for vegan butter. If you read the other comments you’ll see that some have had success using coconut oil. Also, even if you can’t find a vegan ‘butter’ you can usually find a margarine that doesn’t have animal products.
Hi there ! Thanks for the recipe – I tried this frosting and it came out tasting perfect 🙂 Only trouble, it started running after I put it in to a piping bag and on the cupcake itself although it initially seemed quite thick and like the right consistency. I had barely left it outside for ten mins before piping and its a cold summer day today.. Any tips to make it less runny ? I would like to try it again with perhaps more sugar but I am afraid the frosting would end up tasting too sweet. I used Earth Balance vegan butter. Should I try with half butter and half shortening you reckon? Thanks 🙂
I would lean towards making it almost too thick and then it’s perfect. I have used this on cupcakes and I’m in a very hot climate, and it doesn’t run, but it must be thick! So I would add more powdered sugar to get it right.
Hi Alison, thank you or the recipe, I have since a long time been looking for a vegan cream recipe which is not too runny. I just made this, but found that, with all the mixing, the powder sugar still did not dissolve and I feel bits of it on my tongue when I taste it. I also find it way too sweets; I only included 300gr powdered sugar anyway), and I still find it overly sweet. Any ideas on how to improve this? Thank you!
HI there! This looks absolutely perfect!!!! I was curious to know if this frosting hardens after a bit or if it stays soft? And if it doesn’t harden, do you know what I could add to it to make it harden? Thank you very much, Lisa
It does harden very nicely. Especially if you put it in the fridge. It should be very nice and thick to start with though so make sure you have the right consistency (thick).
How much coconut oil must I put to replace butter????
YES…..I HAVE THE SAME QUESTION!!!!
I would imagine the same quantity as the vegan butter, but this isn’t something I’ve tried so you will need to experiment. Let us know how it turns out.
Thank you, thank you!
This recipe was great and your carrot cake is over the moon! I feel guilty when folks asked if I made it because I did but your recipe is perfect! We recently went to to dinner at a vegan restaurant and my husband loves their cake. After having it and comparing it to the one I made with your recipe, he admitted the one I made was much better. Yay!
Hahaha love it! Thanks so much for sharing! 😉
So I tried making this today but it wouldn’t stick to the cake. It just kept falling off even if I chilled it for a bit. Did you use any shortening in the recipe cause that’s what my coworker said helps it stick and hold onto the cake. I’m asking because I didn’t see it in the recipe up above.
Hi there, I didn’t use shortening in this recipe. It sounds to me like your frosting may have been too thin. In which case, add more powdered sugar until you have a thick consistency, that is still spreadable.
OH MY GOSH!! This recipe is simply amazing! I used coconut oil instead of the vegan butter and as I didn’t have any other milk on hand, I had to use hubby’s 2% cows milk. Otherwise, I’d have used almond milk. I put all of the ingredients in my little blender and blended it really well. It turned out the exact consistency that I wanted. I frosted a 9×13 cake with it and have some left over. Thank you for the recipe! I’m bookmarking this page so I can find it again and again! 🙂
Oh wow, I had no idea doing it in a blender would work! Thanks for sharing!
Hey Alison!
Quick Question…
Does this frosting work for cupcakes? I’m thinking about making a cupcake flower bouquet for my mom’s birthday and I want to know if it’s sturdy enough to create flower designs on. Thanks!
It definitely works for cupcakes – I use it on cupcakes and pipe it. You just have to make sure it’s thick and firm – if it’s not – add more powdered sugar. However when it comes to a flower design I have no idea – piping it is the most advanced thing I’ve ever done with frosting. 😁
I haven’t tried this yet but it sound amazing, I was wondering if I can add food coloring to it? My daughter is having an 80s party and wants everything neon.
You definitely can!
Hi I would like to ask if this recipe is enough to cover a 9inch two layer cake?? Also, if it will hold until the next day without being in the fridge?? Can I also combine fondant with it as design?
Thank you!
The cake in the picture is a 7 inch layer cake, and this makes plenty for a cake of that size and as you can see it’s quite thickly frosted. So it might be fine for a 9 inch cake spread just a little thinner or you could increase the recipe slightly. If your frosting is nice and thick, it will hold fine without being in the fridge. I have no experience with fondant sorry. 🙂