Vegan Better Buttercream Frosting is a big deal.
Vegan buttercream frosting seems like an oxymoron, I know. Because can anything named “butter” or “cream” or the ultimate, “buttercream” really be a non-dairy, vegan food?
But it seemed unthinkable to try to recreate all the cupcakes, birthday cakes, or “just because” cakes without a buttercream frosting to top them off.
So the search began.
And some of our first sampled recipes involved store-bought vegan butter. But I wasn’t a fan of the aftertaste. (The taste of vegan butter has gotten better though since I started trying out frosting recipes with vegan butter several years ago.)
So then I thought I’d have to ice my cakes with non-dairy whipped cream forever. And whipped cream is good but not always an ideal choice.
Life without frosting is almost unthinkable.
The dreamy, light, fluffy frosting was a part of every reason to celebrate. Birthday cake celebrations, holiday sugar cookies, and school celebration cupcakes. And fundraiser desserts! They all included our topping of choice!
Yes, buttercream frosting is a shameless constant in our family. It’s bonded to our history like Elmer’s glue to paper. Our life wouldn’t be the same without it!
So giving up frosting was non-negotiable! We must find a substitute!
Therefore, finding a better buttercream frosting (aka vegan buttercream) was the only solution.
Finally, the better buttercream frosting favorite.
So, I experimented with many recipes. Then we discovered vegan shortening. And it was the solution we were looking for. Using this helped create better buttercream frosting. Because vegan shortening works perfectly. (Also, try vegan butter combined with shortening.)
However, we only recommend vegan shortenings that are sustainably sourced, because palm oil deforestation is devastating many areas.
Bonus! Because vegan shortening is shelf-stable, too! We always keep it in the pantry whenever the desire (or family demand for sweets) arises.
This is our go-to choice for the buttercream frosting fix our family often craves.
Vegan buttercream frosting rocks for everyone!
Another frosting creation we like is bougie brown sugar frosting. You won’t be sorry for spending a bit more time on this one. It is so tasty and worth the extra effort. Plus, if you’re out of powdered sugar, this is your salvation!
Better buttercream frosting for everyone!
So be sure to let us know how you like our Better Buttercream Frosting. Try it on our Summer Sunflower Cupcakes,
or our
Or our happy half-moon cookies.
Then, please, post pictures on Instagram or Facebook! Because we all need more photos of frosting. And sweet dreams are made of these. 😉
copyright © thehamptonsvegan 2017 – 2025 All rights reserved.
Better Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
Method
- Beat shortening until light and fluffy.
- Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well.
- Add vanilla and check consistency.
- If it is too stiff, add 1 tablespoon milk and continue beating and checking consistency, adding more milk gradually as needed until spreadable, light, and fluffy.
- *Chocolate Better Buttercream Frosting*Add 1/4 -1/3 cup cocoa powder to vanilla frosting and a little bit more milk to reach desired consistency. Probably no more than an extra 1-2 tablespoons milk needed.
