Vegan Fluffy Buttercream Frosting
TIME/SERVINGS
Total: 8 minutes
Active: 8 minutes
Makes: 4 cups
From: Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World , by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero
This is our all-purpose “go-to” vegan frosting. It’s great for piping into lush, swirling mountains of frostiness, and just as good for spreading onto a cupcake like rolling hills of heaven. This recipe makes a lot, so you can halve it if you are going to be spreading the frosting rather than piping it. It’s especially delicious adorned with some chocolate sandwich cookies and put atop our tender Basic (Vegan) Chocolate Cupcake.
- 1/2 cup nonhydrogenated shortening
- 1/2 cup nonhydrogenated margarine, we use Earth Balance
- 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted if clumpy
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup plain soy milk or soy creamer
- Beat the shortening and margarine together until well combined and fluffy. Add the sugar and beat for about 3 more minutes.
- Add the vanilla and soy milk, and beat for another 5 to 7 minutes until fluffy.
Variation:Cookies ‘n’ Cream Frosting (pictured): Stir into frosting 1/2 cup (about 5 cookies; mash first, then measure) of finely mashed vegan chocolate cream-filled sandwich cookies, like Newman-O’s. Frost cupcakes generously, and top each cupcake with half of a sandwich cookie.
This recipe, while from a trusted source, may not have been tested by the CHOW food team.
COMMENTS | ADD YOUR OWN
Sounds unappetizing, and the photo doesn't help that impression.
oy, no vegan position against transfats?
I see nothing with trans fats in the recipe.
ewwwww. yucky.
shortening and margarine = transfat
crisco has a zero trans fat shortening now, i guess.
no--shortening ugh-
She specifically indicates nonhydrogenated shortening and margarine, hence no trans fats since she is speaking of plant oils, exclusively. An article on one shortening option:
http://fanaticcook.blogspot.com/2004/...
This is the lightest fluffiest frosting I have ever made, the shortening makes it not quite so *buttery* and its amazing. Of course if you use earth balance shortening and earth balance margarine they have no trans fats, since both are non-hydrogenated. But this recipe is delicious but not fat-free, so a little goes a long way, I plan to pipe it on top of the cupcakes in swirls.
Whats with the shortening? Ick! Just use the soy margarine aka Earth Balance. Here is a recipe that I use everytime and is great.
1/2 soy margarine, softened aka Earth Balance
1/4 cup soy milk, rice milk or other non dairy milk of choice (I always use vanilla soy milk)
3 cups veganized powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
If you cut this recipe in half, it will generously frost those Basic (Vegan) Chocolate Cupcakes.
Sorry, I meant 1/2 cup of soy margarine...
What's wrong with buttery? "Fluffy" frosting sounds awful. Creamy consistency is best for cupcakes.
This frosting is excellent. Isa Rocks! I have some chocolate cuppers with this frosting on them sitting on my table now. :-)
I am not sure why there are so many negative comments here. I have tried 7 recipes out of Isa's cupcake book and they are all amazing. They don't taste hippy/funny/"vegan". They taste like normal, delicious cupcakes. Spectrum makes a non-hydrogenated shortening that I have used and its fine. Crisco is gross, margerine is gross and so is butter, but when mixed with yummy flavors they all become something wonderful. I highly recommend both of her cookbooks and to try vegan baking in general!
this frosting is so delicious -- don't be afraid of the shortening! and it's even better with the cookies mixed in, yum.
I suppose its the shortening that makes the frosting "fluffy."
There are negative comments because it's hard to stomach the statement that "butter is gross." I can bet you serious cash that if I tasted those cupcakes, I would not find them to taste like "normal, delicious cupcakes."
When I hear "fluffy" and "made with shortening" I immediately think... Twinkie filling.
Err... not exactly yummy. But I'm sure it's shelf stable!
There are negative comments because people can't conceive of vegetarian or vegan food that tastes good. It's a lack of imagination on their part, and nothing else.
I love vegetarian food, for the record.
I made this recipe over the weekend, came out great.
In my cake decorating class we were taught a recipe much like this (shortening/powderedsugar/liquid) as a "faux buttercream" for icing cakes (and sometimes "faux cakes" - a styrofoam shape covered in foil!) for display (fair competitions, display carts, etc). It performs in the bag exactly like a classic cooked buttercream, but is shelf stable and holds well in warm environments. That version tastes pretty bad - greasy and too too sweet. But the mix of fats and addition of vanilla might fix that.
Regardless of how this particular formula tastes, isn't it a bit of a misnomer to call a vegan icing a "buttercream?"
There were several negative comments before anyone said butter was "gross," and even then it wasn't from the recipe author. I do agree with Atomica on one point - many people can't stomach the idea that vegetarian or vegan food can be delicious; they find it threatening somehow. I see it all the time and I still can't figure out where all the hostility comes from. Anyway, I'm off to my local Whole Foods to see if they have Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World in stock!
I'm not a hippy. I'm not a weirdo. My body just can't process dairy. I think this recipe is awesome and I'm adding it to my repertoire. All you cow-suckers need to just lay off with the eww's, ugh's and oy's. Try not eating any dairy for a year, then pull out this recipe and realize that it tastes great and doesn't make you sick, and then update your post.
I am a meat eater, but have several vegan friends, so I made the vegan cupcakes with this frosting and they were great. The nonvegans thought so too.
I can't wait to give this a try!
I think the idea behind the shortening, rather than all margarine, is to reduce the salt in the finished product. I know that many of us who grew up with butter are predisposed against any margarine or shortening, but butter IS a shortening, people. Earth Balance is so good, I might not switch back even if my son outgrows his milk allergy. Don't knock it til you've tried it.
I used to be afraid of vegan food. A lot of it seemed weird. My partner can no longer eat any cow-based dairy (goat cheese is fine and eggs are-when you think about it-poultry). I have discovered that there is a lot of good vegan foods. Technology has come a long way, too. I don't think there was vegan "butter" years ago. Go to your local co-op and try one of their vegan cupcakes. You will be surprised.
I made these cupcakes and got rave reviews. Even my SO, a non-vegan, loved them. I especially liked adding a chocolate ganache (chocolate and soy milk) drizzled over the frosting.
I have been looking for a vegan "buttercream" recipe for a wedding cake that I am making. This one looks good to me. Do you think it will work for a wedding cake?
This probably doesn't taste weird to many non-vegans 'cause many (if not most) packaged baked goods use vegetable shortening "buttercream". To avoid all that fat, I usually just sift confectioners sugar over cupcakes. If the cake is good, that's all it needs for a finish.
I think the frosting in the picture looks great! I have severe food allergies so I can't eat dairy or eggs. I look forward to trying the recipes.
I could live on cheese and raw meat happily but choose to decrease my meat and dairy consumption for ethical reasons. I LOVED this recipe! I used organic non trans-fat shortening and I increased the vanilla.
I agree that it's off-putting at first, I certainly wasn't sure. But I recommend trying it anyway. We couldn't stop until we ate the whole tray. I wish I had known about this for our wedding. I certainly recommend it for wedding cake buttercream. You really need the soy milk to make the icing move, by the way, but I might go easy on it when using the buttercream in any key structural spots.
http://omnivoreherbivorecarnivore.blo...
Kyla
This is back to the recipe: I'm not much of a baker, but I found that after a few hours, the ingredients separated and the frosting became kind of runny. So, the next time I made it, I took out the soy milk altogether and WOW, it was so good. You can't really go wrong with butter/sugar/shortening/vanilla. So as an alternative, you can take out the soymilk and the frosting behaves well for days.
I have only recently become vegan after being raised in a household where my father's best friend was a butcher. When my boyfriend and I got together, I was introduced to vegetarianism and veganism as he has been vegan for five years.
In changing my diet, I found that the things I missed the most were baked goods, mainly cakes, cookies, brownies and pies. I stumbled across this recipe on the internet a while back, and tried it only to discover that not only did these cupcakes and frosting satisfy my sweet tooth, but I felt better about baking without the use of dairy. My boyfriend also loves it when I bake vegan treats, and the frosting and cupcakes are supposedly the best he's ever had. He's a chef, I take his word for it. I have become a huge fan of Isa as well, having tried out many of her other recipes with only continued success.
My opinion on this frosting is that it is truly amazing, and everyone that has tried it LOVES it. This includes my father (who still doesn't realize it is vegan), my mother (who complained when she didn't see me adding real milk to it, but kept sneaking back into the kitchen to stick her fingers in the bowl for another taste), girls I go to school with, my friends and my boyfriend. The proof in how good it is lies in the fact that every time I use this recipe, I never have to throw anything away. Thank you for an amazing and delicious recipe!
I have a question. After you frost the cupcakes with the vegan "butercream" frosting, do you have to refrigerate the leftover cupcakes (if they are not all eaten). Since I used earth balance and its just oil, I would think not, but I would like to know for sure.
Brian
Would this be considered gluten free?
Ay, ay, ay, people, move on with your lives. Got nothing better to do than fight over FROSTING? Come clean my kitchen. Geez, lighten up. Sounds like the perfect vegan frosting for my children's birthday cakes next week. Thanks.
Pardon my ignorance, but this will be my first test of baking/cooking anything vegan. But why the non-hydrogenated goods? I was under the impression that non-hydrogenated goods was for the removal of Trans Fatty Acids. I thought Crisco had 0 grams of Trans Fat and Land O Lakes Margarine (Soft) also has 0 grams of Trans Fat. I am only asking so that I can make great desserts for my vegan and vegetarian friends. Thanks.
Hydrogenating oils is a chemical process that changes the structure of plant oils in order to make them easier to spread and give them "better texture" Ok...seems weird to me but apparently some people think it's a good plan. Here's a breakdown:
Partially hydrogenated oils = transfats
So a product that is nonhydrogenated contains oils straight from the plants, and zero transfats. Items labeled "0 Transfats" can either be non-hydrogenated oils (yummy) or fully hydrogenated oil (ICK). The last time I looked at Crisco (a few months ago) it was a big ole tub of hydrogenated oil, which is technically not a transfat, but still really bad for your arteries and waistline, go non-hydro all the way :) I prefer Earth Balance or Smart Balance Light (regular Smart Balance has small amount of whey protein) Earth Balance works well for baking and Smart Balance Light seems to spread better and also has more flavor. Hope that helps :)
I loved it and so did the rest of my family who isn't vegan, it's very sweet though and turns out kinda vanilla colored especially when using organic cane sugar. Also we live in Hawaii and it made my layer cake slide around a lot, but the good thing is it's a lot easier than regular buttercream and faster.
I find it humorous that people who are frequent visitors to CHOW, publish reviews and comments all the time, and probably fancy themselves "foodies" would say negative things without even trying the frosting, and even "bet cash" that they wouldn't like them. Nice open minds!
i just tried this recipe, and had to throw it all out. i plan on making some adjustments and trying again. it was too liquidy and curdled. i followed the directions diligently, so i'm not sure where i went wrong. i think this time around i am going to reduce the soymilk, or remove it enitrely. well, here i go !
Can I use Rice milk instead of soy?
So, where do people find vegan powdered sugar? White sugars are refined with charcoal that is sometimes partially composed of animal bones (there's no way to tell which batch you get!). I know that might be reading into things a bit too far, but still that makes me uncomfortable. Any thoughts?
Atomica said:
"Sounds unappetizing, and the photo doesn't help that impression. "
Let me get this straight. It "sounds unappetizing," so you don't think that it is good. But you think that the photo does make the food look good. So you're torn with your impression of it? But not only are you torn by your impressions, you are intent on remaining unappitized by the recipe because of the first impression and so you seem to not like that fact that the picture threatens to change your mind on the issue... Ok. People say the darndest things.
Oooh...nom nom nom! I just made this and added cocoa to make chocolate frosting and I plan to spread it on my cooling cupcakes. SO GOOD. I think my head will explode with how much I love this. I made a batch of the same for my workmates earlier this week and they were all over them like heart disease on an omni.
<3 Isa Chandra so much. She really knows her stuff.
I'm a vegan peanut butter freak and I love replacing butter with PB in my recipes. I used non-stir PB in place of the shortening and margarine and it's a delicious PB frosting.
One of the best frosting recipes i've tried.
I'm shocked at the rudeness of some of the commenters. What's up with that?
Anyway, my son is vegan, so I plan to make this frosting for a "tomato soup cake". The other vegan recipes I've seen don't sound nearly this good. I'll let you know how it goes.
Okay, I tried it. I used all Earth Balance and no shortening. It is delicious. I've filed this one for future use.
Thanks!
Wait, isnt shortening un-vegan?
Nanis,
Thank you. I agree, some of the commentators are indeed shockingly rude.
I do not know why some omnivores think it is acceptable to be so rude to vegetarians. (Let me say right here that there are many others who are the very soul of kindness, who would not think to so rudely criticize others for their dietary choices.)
For those who do indulge in such venting of spleen, what can you do? Laugh and move on is my motto. I like the suggestion of Retro Housewife who suggested that those without anything better to do than argue over frosting could go clean her kitchen!
Well, folks, you can come do mine when you're done with hers! Who knows, you might find something delicious to eat in the process!
:-)
Ok, I take back what I said about the shortening. I used the Spectrum non-hydrogenated shortnening. Made this for the basic chocolate vegan cupcakes and it was soooo good. And you can easily cut this recipe in half and frost 12 cupcakes generously. I think this recipe is made for piping it on. Yum!
I'm not a vegan but made this for the first time (all Earth Balance margarine and no shortening, vanilla Silk, and mashed-up Newman-O's) for a batch of vegan cupcakes I'm bringing to an auction this eve. (Have had the cake recipe for ages.) I've never worked with soy margarine or soy milk and didn't know how they behave. Not a problem, and the flavor is amazing, I'm a convert! I found it key to beat it for the full five minutes, which changes the texture, which in turns makes it more delicate and I think brings out the flavor--it's more than just a mouthful of sugar. I figure that this is yet another type of cake topping--there are buttercreams, ganaches, Italian meringues, seven-minute icings, and now vegan buttercream. Each is diff and has its own charms. And IMHO, you can never have too many recipes in your repertoire!
I doubled this recipe, wondering whether that would be enough to pipe lettering on 130 cupcakes made from the vegan chocolate cake recipe. I didn't need to! I have about 3/4 of the double batch left over. This frosting is far too sweet for me and I don't care for the coating it left in my mouth, so I would never use it as pictured on this recipe; it would overpower the cupcake. But, I must say that the little bit I used (~1 teaspoon) on each cupcake was a nice flavor accent and not at all unpalatable. The room full of yogis were quite appreciative.
As people have already said, Earth Balance products are both vegan and trans-fat free. Stop arguing about it. Cupcakes aren't diet food anyway! If you're looking for a healthy cupcake it's not going to taste good. This frosting is full of sugary fatty goodness and it's gotten consistently good reviews from non-vegan and even anti-vegan, steak-loving friends. As far as all of the arguments over what "fluffy" is supposed to mean, this frosting is the consistency of standard frosting, I think the poster used the word "fluffy" because after beating it for 8 minutes, its full of air (but its not bubbly! all frosting is beaten to get the right consistency!) If you haven't tried it, back off! or just stop being so closed minded. I agree that a lot of vegan foods taste "fake" or rubbery or dry, but this is a solid recipe.
I'm not a vegan, but I have this cookbook and every recipe I've tried out of it has been great. I do a lot of baking and like to include treats my vegan friends can share. These recipes are good, not just good "for being vegan."
I just made this and it came out almost exactly like your typical "decorator's buttercream" where the main ingredient is powdered sugar. It tastes exactly like what you'd expect on a kid's birthday cake or cupcakes. Fluffy, light and sugary. Definitely not a "buttercream" creaminess. Really when you look at this recipe, it's almost the same as what is on the powdered sugar box.
I made this last night, and it came out really tasty. Mine wasn't very fluffy though - it was about the same consistency of store-bought frosting. I added crushed Newman O's and it was a great added touch.
I'm not a vegan, but my siblings and I LOVE this frosting. It is so much better than the Betty Crocker stuff in the can. My littlest brother, who professed to hate frosting, loved this. Definitely a repeat recipe.
SOY MILK HINT: I left it out and used a little agave nectar at the end. It made the icing less stiff and improved the flavor. Plus now there's nothing in it that will go bad at room temp. A little maple syrup or honey would be a nice flavor too (maybe cut back about 1/2 cup on the p. sugar).
As a kid, I remember loving the frosting on my friends' birthday cakes (we didn't use much sugar at home) and hearing my mother scoff, "It's just Crisco & powdered sugar."
Someone above asked, "isn't shortening non-vegan?" Vegetable shortenings (including Crisco) by definition are vegan--just vegetable oils, solidified (sometimes artificially). ANIMAL shortening--also known as lard!--is used in many baked goods, especially pie crusts & biscuits. I had never heard butter referred to as shortening...but maybe all solid fats are shortenings...?
Anyway, I just tried this recipe & it's very good. Sure it may sound unappetizing if "fats" sound gross to you, but if you like traditional frostings then this is no different.
I just wanted something "normal" that didn't involve egg whites, whipped cream, or having to boil sugar.
I used organic palm oil, "Tropical Tradtions" brand. It also makes the most fabulous pie crusts & I started using it for pancakes & homefries; finally I don't smoke up my kitchen or have hair that smells like burnt oil!
I just made this for my daughter who has food allergies. This frosting is AWESOME!!!! Do not listen to the posts saying that it is gross! This recipe will be addded to my favorites! Thank you!!!!
I have only been a vegan for about 3.5 years, and one of the things about which I was most concerned when I made the switch was, "Oh, my god! How am I going to make decent cakes now?!?" Thanks to Isa's "buttercream" and cake recipes, I haven't had to give up my love of baking. This "buttercream" frosting recipe - despite the shortening (I use Earth Balance, which is non-hydrogenated) - is light, creamy, not the slightest bit oily or heavy, and in my opinion, better than the non-vegan, pound-of-butter recipe I used prior to converting (which, admittedly, was also delicious...and let's face it, probably less healthy than this version). Check out Isa's blog if you're interested in more fantastic vegan recipes!
I have a question. I avoid making desserts with dairy and transfats, for kosher and health reasons respectively. (My sabbath meals are meat-based, hence the dairy restriction.) I have been making cake frosting with the non-dairy, transfat-free variety of Tofutti cream cheese, because it stays firm on cakes and cupcakes. I have wanted to try a "buttercream"-type frosting, but I notice that whenever my Earth Balance margarine is out of the fridge for even 10 minutes or so, it starts to soften up. Because of that, I haven't used it for frosting, for fear that it would start to "melt" on the cake. But none of the comments here mention any problems in that vein. Can anyone comment on whether I need to worry about that?
Yes, Earth Balance does melt and I used 1c of it as I had no shortening and the whole thing was a gooey mess. I even refrigerated the frosting for about an hour before attempting to ice my fully-cooled cake. Basically, it ended up more like a pour on glaze, and barely stuck to the cake. It was thin and sparse with large pools of the frosting at the bottom on the plate. This recipe was a total loser for me -- glad I tested it a couple of weeks before my little girl's birthday party.