Brown Sugar Frosting recipe is a light brown sugar frosting that’s whipped to be extra light and fluffy. This simple frosting is made without powdered sugar!
I love this brown sugar frosting because it’s so light and creamy without being heavy or greasy. I created this recipe as an alternative to my popular whipped buttercream frosting.
Like that recipe, this frosting recipe is an ermine frosting and is made without powdered sugar. It’s perfect for those times when you don’t happen to have any powdered sugar on-hand or when you want a simpler alternative to Swiss meringue buttercream frosting.
The brown sugar frosting isn’t overpoweringly sweet either, so it pairs well with sweeter cakes. It’s especially good with fall-flavored cakes like apple spice cake and pumpkin spice cake.
“the best frosting EVER…
It is not excessively sweet or heavy, but very fluffy and light. It was elevated but still simpler than SMBC, and using dark brown sugar rather than light gave such a wonderful depth to it! I will absolutely use this recipe again.
I used it for vanilla bourbon cupcakes and topped with some sugar roasted pecans… delish.” – Allie
How to make brown sugar frosting
Here you’ll find step-by-step photos showing how to make this recipe. The full recipe, including ingredients, is given in the recipe below.
Step 1: In a small saucepan, whisk flour into milk and heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens. It will be the consistency of a thick paste.
Step 2: Remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature.
Step 3: Stir in vanilla.
Step 4: While the mixture is cooling, cream the butter, sugar, and salt together until light and fluffy on medium high, about 3 minutes.
Step 5: Then add the completely cooled milk mixture.
Step 6: Beat it for about 5 minutes on medium-high to high until it looks like whipped cream. If you can still taste the sugar granules, keep beating it until you can’t.
Recipe Tips!
Here are some tips to help you troubleshoot your recipe:
- First, not cooking the milk mixture long enough. The mixture should be a thick paste. If it’s too wet, the frosting will be too loose.
- Second, the cooked milk mixture needs to cool completely. If it’s too warm, it will melt the butter, and you’ll end up with loose frosting that doesn’t come together.
- Third, using butter that’s too warm. The butter should be at cool room temperature. It should dent if pushed, but it shouldn’t be too warm and certainly not beginning to melt.
- Fourth, using old brown sugar. Brown sugar that is hard and lumpy won’t mix well with the butter. It’s best to use soft, fresh brown sugar.
- Fifth, not whipping the frosting long enough. The frosting needs to be whipped to get the right light and airy texture. Cutting the time short could leave you with a grainy frosting or a frosting that separates.
- Cool room temperature: A lot of people think that room temperature butter means that the butter is on the verge of melted or is partially melted. That’s too warm.
- Cool room temperature butter means that if you press it with your finger, your finger will leave an indentation in the butter, but the butter should still hold its shape and should still feel cool to the touch.
- The butter should be about 68-70F.
Storage
Any leftover frosting or cake/cupcakes frosted with the frosting should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
More frosting recipes without powdered sugar!
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Brown Sugar Frosting
Ingredients
- 7 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ cups milk
- 1 ½ tablespoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups salted butter at cool room temperature
- 1 ½ cups brown sugar packed
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, whisk flour into milk and heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens. It will be the consistency of a thick paste.7 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 1 ¼ cups milk
- Remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature.
- Stir in vanilla.1 ½ tablespoons pure vanilla extract
- While the mixture is cooling, cream the butter, sugar, and salt together until light and fluffy on medium high, about 3 minutes.1 ½ cups salted butter, 1 ½ cups brown sugar, Pinch of salt
- Then add the completely cooled milk mixture.
- Beat it for about 5 minutes on medium-high to high until it looks like whipped cream. If you can still taste the sugar granules, keep beating it until you can’t.
Video
Notes
- Butter temperature: Make sure that your butter isn’t too warm! The butter should be at cool room temperature. You want it to dent if you press it, but you don’t want it to be so warm that it’s near melting.
- Milk/flour mixture: When cooking the milk/flour mixture, you don’t want it to look wet. It should be like a thick paste. If it’s wet and runny, your frosting will be too loose.
- Mixing: If you’re using a hand mixer, beat it on high. This recipe work well with a stand mixer because it has the power to really whip the frosting.
- Mixing time: Please don’t cut the mixing time short! I know it’s tempting, but it’s important to beat the butter and sugar together for the time the recipe calls for to keep it from being gritty. If you cut the mixing times short, you won’t end up with the right texture of frosting.
- To get the best flavor, you’ll want to use real butter and pure vanilla extract.
- Nutrition values are estimates.
Nutrition
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Originally published 7/21/14. This post is regularly updated.
Reader Interactions
Love this recipe?
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Comments & Reviews
Joella says
I tried it, and it looked like brown mashed potatoes, and I don’t know if I did it right, but I followed the instructions as closely as I could
Kate says
Hi! It sounds like something went wrong. When you say mashed potatoes, do you mean it was lumpy? If you give me more info, I’d be happy to help you troubleshoot.
Diane says
How do you store this cake? I might have missed it but I didn’t see it .. the icing turned out good .it is a little to much butter for me . but the true test comes when my guest taste it ..and what there opinion will be of it ..
Diane says
How do you store this cake? I might have missed it but I didn’t see it .. the icing turned out good .. but the true test comes when my guest taste it ..and what there opinion will be of it ..
Kate says
I would store it in the fridge. Glad it turned out well!
Colleen Hoffman says
I searched for this recipe, having no powdered sugar on hand, and was pleasantly surprised at the wonderful texture and much less sweetness than regular frostings. I whipped mine for a very very long time. Maybe even more than I needed to, and it was just velvety smooth, not grainy at all. I love what one commenter wrote about letting the butter and brown sugar mixture set overnight before combining with the milk flour mixture. I’ll have to try that next time. Gosh, this frosting just has such a wonderful flavor that I don’t think I ever want to make any other kind. So delicious all by itself. Forget the cake! Mmmmmmm. Bravo Ma’am, bravo!!!!! I used it for cupcakes for a Narnia Book Party, and actually covered the cupcakes in coarse sugar crystals so it wouldn’t have mattered if it had turned out grainy.
(https://mrshlovesjesus.wordpress.com/2019/02/16/the-lion-the-witch-and-the-wardrobe-narnia-party/). Please stop by and see the pictures I posted!!!!! Thank you again!!!!!
Kate says
You are very welcome! I’m glad that you liked the frosting! =)
Kat says
My family loves your cinnamon and chocolate whipped frosting recipes. It is now the only recipe I use for homemade frosting. Could you please clarify something for me for this particular recipe? The recipe calls for 1-1/2 cups (3 sticks) of butter but the video looks like 1-1/2 sticks. Is my thinking all wrong?
Kate says
Thank you! Sorry for the confusion, and no, you aren’t wrong. I made a half batch of frosting for the video, which is why there is 3/4 cup butter in the video. =) Please let me know if you have any other questions!
Prismonic says
So light and fluffy. This is a nice alternative to heavy chocolate icing or thick sweet vanilla frosting. I use it to fill homemade donut holes. A tip: Stir the butter and sugar part together and let sit overnight. The butter will absorb well the sugar. Then do the recipe as directed.
Kate says
Thank you! I’ve never tried letting the butter/sugar sit. I’ll have to give that a try!
Marie says
Is there a way I can get the same texture and level of sweetness, but have a different flavor, such as orange?
Kate says
Hi! You could use different flavors of extracts in place of the vanilla extract. I also have a vanilla version of this recipe if you wanted a more neutral base for the frosting.
Sara says
Though the vanilla was a bit much in my icing, I absolutely loved the smooth texture and flavor of the butter cream. I’ll definitely use this recipe again!
Kate says
I’m so glad that you liked it! And it sounds like you know how you want to adjust it for next time. Thanks for commenting! =)
Janice says
This frosting was excellent on my gringerbread cake! Loved it! Ermine frosting is my new go-to frosting for cakes. It’s the best!
Kate says
That’s fantastic! I’m so glad that it was a hit! Thanks for commenting!
Jaclyn says
I’ve made your other granulated sugar buttercream and trying this one tonight. I used heavy whipping cream in the recipe last time and it was amazing, people were just eating the frosting alone!
Kate says
Hope you enjoy this one, too!
Laura Agigian says
This buttercream is absolutely wonderful. It is not sickeningly sweet, like most buttercreams made with powdered sugar. IIt has a complex flavor that starts out pleasant, then the butter and brown sugar flavors come through. t has a light, airy texture that resembles whipped cream, and holds up well to piping. I made it with a moist banana cake that was filled with pastry cream. I was the balm!
Here is the link to the ONLY banana cake recipe you will ever want to use! If the link does not work, it is called “Banana Cake” VI on AllRecipies.
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/8333/banana-cake-vi/?
Kate says
Thank you so much! I’m so happy to hear that you liked the frosting. I’ve tried it with my banana cake, but I’ll have to check that recipe out. =)
Tania says
I found this recipe one night when I was making birthday cupcakes for my son’s classroom, and suddenly realized I was out of powdered sugar. It was so delicious. Kids loved it! I used it to frost banana cupcakes. I’m using it again on pumpkin chocolate chip muffins. Thanks for helping me discover this fantastic frosting! I used almond milk (I have one child who is lactose intolerant) and it still came out great.
Kate says
Yay!! I’m so happy that you liked the frosting! Thanks for commenting!
Beverly says
It was delicious! I used 1 cup of almond milk and 1/2cup of flour. This frosting would be great on waffles!
Kate says
Thank you! I’m so glad that you liked the frosting, and thank you for your notes. It’s helpful to hear the things that have worked for other people.
Sam says
Okay I was impatient and I didn’t Let the milk/flour mixture cool completely and it melted my butter… anything I can Do to save it? I put It in the fridge.
Kate says
I’m not sure whether you can save it or not. To try, I would chill it and then try to whip it up at that point. Hope it works out!
Aaron says
What temperature do you heat the milk at
Kate says
I cook it over medium-low on my gas range. It cooks hotter than my electric ranges have, so you may need to cook over medium depending on your range. Hope that helps!
Ryanne says
Can I add Peanut Butter to the recipe?
Kate says
I haven’t tried to add peanut butter to this recipe. I have a peanut butter frosting recipe if you’re interested.
Chris Storla says
I whipped it for a very long time but it remained separated and grainy. I don’t understand what I did wrong.
Kate says
Hi! If you’re interested, I have a video and step-by-step photos on my granulated sugar version of this recipe.
I’m also happy to help you troubleshoot if you can give me more information. Was your brown sugar hard at all?
Tia says
Hi! This sounds so good! Will this freeze well? I want to make a cake and freeze some slices for later.
Kate says
Thanks! Yes, it should freeze just fine. I haven’t had any issues when I’ve frozen/thawed this frosting. Hope that helps!
Kat says
Does this frosting need to be refrigerated or can the cupcakes be left at room temp?
Kate says
Yes, it’s best to refrigerate the frosting because of its high milk and butter content.
Abigail C. says
Super excited to try this with banana cupcakes! Does it make a difference whether what type of brown sugar I use? I have light brown sugar but would like a prominent taste, what amount do you suggest I use? Thank you so much!
Kate says
Hi! You can use either one. Dark brown sugar will give you a little richer, more toffee flavor. I usually use light brown sugar, and it’s a fairly mild flavor.
Arden Kuhn says
Tried this recipe today and I really loved it. It’s so refreshing to use something other than powder sugar
Kate says
Thank you so much! I’m so glad that you liked it! Thanks for commenting! =)