This vegan vanilla frosting is smooth, creamy and delicious! Easy 4-ingredient recipe, ideal for use on cakes, cupcakes and cookies!
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 it is, even while using a minimal amount of vegan butter.
An electric mixer is required but you can whip this up in less than 10 minutes from start to finish and get on with the important job of enjoying whatever delicious treat you’ve prepared.
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.
It’s super sweet of course, but that’s what you want in a frosting isn’t it?
I love this frosting on a vanilla cake. This is exactly the frosting (topped with strawberries) we used on the vanilla cake you see below.
Vanilla on vanilla is marvellous of course! But you can also mix and match a bit and use it on a fabulous vegan chocolate cake.
Ingredients You’ll Need For This Frosting:
Ingredient Notes
- Soy milk – can be replaced for any non-dairy milk that you have on hand.
- Vegan butter – the firmer the better. Stick style vegan butters tend to work best in frostings. Tub style also works, but try to choose one that is as firm as possible so that your frosting won’t be too soft.
How To Use This Frosting
This frosting is perfect to spread onto cakes or cupcakes or cookies.
You can also pipe it onto cupcakes, but it’s not quite as good for piping as a vanilla buttercream frosting. The extra vegan butter in a buttercream makes the texture just a little better suited for piping.
But to spread onto your vegan sugar cookies, or spread onto cakes or cupcakes, this frosting is fantastic.
Storing and Freezing
This frosting keeps very well in the fridge for up to a week. It’s also freezer friendly for up to 3 months. Thaw it overnight in the fridge and whip it up again in your stand mixer before using.
More Delicious Vegan Frosting Recipes
- Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting
- Vegan Buttercream Frosting
- Vegan Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- Vegan Lemon Buttercream Frosting
- Vegan Chocolate Frosting
- Vegan Chocolate Ganache
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
How To Make Vegan Vanilla Frosting
Ingredients
- 3 ¾ cups Powdered Sugar (450g)
- 3 Tablespoons Vegan Butter (45g)
- 4 Tablespoons Soy Milk (60ml) or other non-dairy milk
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
Instructions
- Add the powdered sugar, vegan butter, half the soy milk and vanilla extract to a mixing bowl.
- Using your electric mixer, start at low speed, gradually increasing speed. Add the rest of the soy milk in slowly until perfectly smooth and thick.*
- It should be very thick, but still easily spreadable.
Video
Notes
- You can switch soy milk for almond milk or another non-dairy milk if you prefer.
- You might not need to use all the soy milk to achieve the desired consistency. Some vegan butters have a higher water content than others and this can make some end up too runny, so only use as much as needed.
Rebekah says
Can i make it ahead and refrigerate it? How long will it keep? Will i need to stir in the mixer again for the right consistency?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Rebekah, I’d say it would keep a week or even two in the fridge. You would need to stir it well again before using, but usually the mixer isn’t needed. All the best! 🙂
Cam says
I added crushed freeze dried strawberries to the frosting and it was perfect. Thank you for the allergy friendly recipe!
Alison Andrews says
Fantastic! Thanks for sharing and the wonderful review. 🙂
Jen says
How many cupcakes do you think this would frost??
Alison Andrews says
Hi Jen, 12-18 depending on how generously you frost them. 🙂
Bonnie says
I’d like to use this frosting on an ice cream cake. Can it be frozen or should I frost right before serving?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Bonnie, I have no experience with using it that way but this frosting definitely can be frozen so hope that helps! All the best! 🙂
Vikki says
Delicious and smooth consistency!
Patricia says
Super simple and delicious! Served at my son’s birthday party and loved by everyone!
Barbara Chung says
Hey, I want to use this as finishing frosting for a Unicorn cake. Will this frosting harden up at all?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Barbara, it does get pretty firm on the cake if you put it into the fridge. 🙂
Claudia Hamilton says
Haven’t tried this as of yet, but I want to know if it’s very sweet? I usually decorate with whipping cream, but Vegan Whipping doesn’t hold up well. I’m decorating a birthday and graduation cake and I really don’t like sweet frosting.
Alison Andrews says
Hi Claudia, it is very sweet yet, so may not be right for you. Maybe a vegan buttercream frosting would be better, though it’s also sweet.
Jessica says
Hi! Will this hold up in the heat for a smash cake? Don’t want it all melting off before the pics. Thanks!
Alison Andrews says
Hi Jessica, I’m not really sure. If you make it as thick as possible then it may be fine.
Julia Fadzeyeva says
Thank you for the recipe! About to make it for my son’s birthday. Which vegan butter would you buy to make sure it’s not salty and doesn’t interfere with the taste (in the US). I had some bad luck in the past. Thank you!
Alison Andrews says
Earth Balance sticks in the USA should work great for this! 🙂
Elizabeth says
Does this recipe make enough for a nine-inch diameter cake or should I double the recipe?
Alison Andrews says
Hi Elizabeth, you probably would want to double the recipe as this comfortably frosts a 7-inch cake. All the best! 🙂
Andrea Henderson says
Can I use this frosting recipe through a decorating bag and pipe? Will it hold its shape like standard buttercream.
Alison Andrews says
You can, I have used it for our vegan oreo cupcakes and it worked great for piping. Just make sure that it is very thick though, so go very easy/carefully when adding the non-dairy milk as you want it thick.
Crystal says
Excellent recipe! It’s a staple in our house now. I have a birthday party coming up. Can I make this in advance and freeze it?
Alison Andrews says
So glad to hear that! Yes you can freeze it! 🙂
Joanne says
Hi could you tell me is olive oil spread is suitable for this frosting?
Many thanks,
Jo
Alison Andrews says
Hi Joanne, should be fine! I have used an olive oil spread (Nuttelex) when making this and it worked great. 🙂
Jules says
This was delicious! I added about 1/4 tsp vegan lactic acid, which gave it a cream cheesy taste. Perfect for carrot cake. Thanks for the great recipe!
Alison Andrews says
Oh that is a super interesting ingredient! Thanks so much for sharing! 🙂
Zoë says
Looks delicious.
Can I colour this with food coloring so i can get a green buttercream and a blue buttercream for decorating?
Love the website, so many delicious ideas. Wanna try them all haha
Alison Andrews says
Yes definitely! It works great with food coloring. 🙂
Srishti Jain says
Hello! I was wondering if icing sugar would work instead of powdered sugar. I have so much of it, I just wanna use it now..haha.
Alison Andrews says
Hi there, yes it is the same thing, just a different naming thing between the USA and UK I think. All the best! 🙂
Laurence says
I already made this recipe and it was really delicious!! Even my non-vegan friends couldn’t tell what was different 😉
I want to make a cake for Valentine’s Day, but since I’ll be working really late the days before I was wondering if it freeze well ?
Like if I could frost the entire cake a couple of days in advance, put it in the freezer and thaw it in the fridge a day before. I’m afraid it would ‘’leak’’ as it thaw!
Can’t wait to hear from you!
Thank you 🙂
Alison Andrews says
Hi Laurence, you should be able to freeze it no problem. Here are some tips in an article from The Kitchn about freezing frosted cakes. However, I also just wanted to point out that a cake will usually last up to a week in the fridge, sure it’s going to be it’s best in the first few days, but if you only need to make it a couple of days in advance, you could just cover and refrigerate and it should be perfect, you may not need to freeze it. All the best! 🙂