Nanny Burke’s Buttercream

Nanny Burke’s buttercream is my favourite basic frosting recipe! Similar to canned, store-bought frosting, but made with real ingredients and no chemicals.

Nanny Burke’s buttercream has been my go-to frosting recipe for years now. Though I love whipped cream cheese frosting the best, sometimes you just need a basic, Betty Crocker-style vanilla frosting.

This recipe originates from my friend’s grandmother who lives in Cape Breton. Nanny Burke graciously shared her vanilla frosting recipe with me and said, though she’s tried many recipes over the last 50 years, this one is by far the best and easiest. After trying many different recipes myself (including my own mother’s) I have to agree with Nanny Burke. This basic buttercream is so simple, and so good!

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• Step-By-Step Instructions
• Notes & Tips
• Substitutions
• Recipe

Ingredients

Step-By-Step Instructions

Place the butter, vanilla, and salt in a mixing bowl. Set a hand or stand mixer to low-speed and use (a) whisk attachment(s) to mix everything together until just combined.

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Increase the speed of the mixer and beat the butter until creamy, about one minute.

Sift the powdered sugar through a sieve into the bowl of butter. I like to press the powdered sugar through the sieve using the back of a soup spoon.

Mix on low speed until the butter and sugar are just combined.

Increase the speed of the mixer and whip the buttercream until it becomes light and fluffy, about one minute. If using a stand mixer, stop the mixer halfway and scrape down the inside of the bowl.

Use Nanny Burke’s buttercream as a topping for your favourite baked treats. For best results, cool your baked goods fully before decorating with frosting.

Notes & Tips

This recipe doubles and triples well.

Using a scale to weigh the butter and powdered sugar will ensure a balance of buttery flavour and sweetness. Traditional measuring cups are fine, however, the flavour balance may be thrown off.

You can make Nanny Burke’s buttercream ahead of time. Store it in an airtight container with a tight-fitting lid in the fridge for up to one week, or in the freezer for up to two months. To use it, simply bring it to room temperature on the counter, give it a good stir, and proceed to frost your desserts.

Add colours to the frosting with any liquid, gel, or powdered food colouring you like.

Substitutions

For a firmer texture substitute ¼ cup of shortening for butter. This can come in handy if you are frosting cakes in the summer when it’s hot outside. The shortening doesn’t affect the flavour at all, and help prevent the frosting from melting in the heat.

If you want a slightly less creamy colour, substitute clear vanilla extract.

Feel free to substitute the vanilla extract with any other extract flavour you like. Almond or maple extracts are also lovely.

Make this recipe dairy-free by substituting a good quality dairy-free butter. Depending on the butter you choose, you may need to add less or extra powdered sugar to get the desired frosting texture you want.

Use Nanny Burke’s Buttercream With These Recipes

Sugar Cookies With Sprinkles A joyful, colourful treat! These cookies have crisp edges, chewy middles, and are loaded with rainbow hues.

One Bowl Lemon Buttermilk Cake Dense, moist, and can be made without a mixer!

Red Velvet Cake Far from just another chocolate cake.

CHECK FOR STEP BY STEP PHOTOS ABOVE — Many of my recipes feature in-depth step-by-step images, plus useful tips to help you make the recipe perfectly the first time. If you make this recipe, please let me know how you made out in the comments below! I’d also grateful if you’d consider leaving a star rating while you’re here.

Cupcake Baking Tip

A weird / interesting thing happened when I was baking cupcakes to go with Nanny Burke’s buttercream.

I baked the first dozen cupcakes at 350ºF (180ºC) until golden, about 22 minutes. While they were in the oven I looked over the recipe again and realized that I was supposed to bake them at 325ºF (160ºC). I reduced the temperature to 325ºF in a panic for the second batch of cupcakes and here’s what happened:

This cupcake baking tip was just a random fluke that happened to me, however, hundreds of people on Pinterest swear it works!