Best Sugar Cookie Frosting (Stackable Recipe) + Video
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With hints of vanilla and almond, this Sugar Cookie Frosting is sweet and scrumptious. And since buttercream frosting for cookies hardens as it dries, you can easily stack or package your treats while still enjoying a delicate, fluffy texture in every bite!
You can use this to decorate your Christmas cookies or to make homemade icing for any easy cookie recipe. This really is the easiest sugar cookie icing recipe for making decorated cookies!
The fun part is that you can add additional colors and additional flavor easily to new recipes like this to create the perfect iced cookies!
All you need are a few basic ingredients to get started on this easy recipe – and you’ll have the perfect frosting for the holiday season.
Change up and use vibrant colors or keep this perfect icing just the way it is. All options are good options when it comes to adding this frosting to the top of the cookie!
Sugar Cookie Frosting
This tasty sugar cookie frosting recipe is absolutely heavenly and is essential for all of your holiday cookie decorating needs. I could eat it with a spoon!
Spread this frosting on my favorite Christmas Sugar Cookies, which are soft and chewy on the inside and slightly crispy on the edges.
Or, if you love icing just as much as frosting, you could top these cookies with my delicious Sugar Cookie Icing instead.
My sugar cookie frosting is easy to prepare — ready in just 5 minutes! Simply whip your ingredients together, and you’ll have perfectly soft frosting for cookies in no time at all.
If you love this Christmas cookie frosting, give my Candy Cane Buttercream Frosting a try next.
Recipe Video
Be sure to watch the video! Look for it in the recipe card, at the bottom of this post.
To see us make homemade frosting for cookies from start to finish, watch the video in this post!
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Unsalted Butter – I recommend using unsalted butter so that you have more control over how much salt goes into the recipe.
If you only have salted butter on hand, no worries — you can simply omit the additional salt! - Milk – Whole milk is best to give your cookie frosting a creamy consistency, but you can also use nonfat milk if you prefer.
- Powdered Sugar – This is also called confectioners’ sugar.
Powdered sugar is the key ingredient in this sugar cookie frosting recipe, making it sweet and thickening the mixture. - Salt – Omit this ingredient if using salted butter.
- Almond Extract and Vanilla Extract – These give frosting for sugar cookies a delicious and sweet flavor.
- Gel Food Coloring – You’ll only need to add a little bit, and the drops of color won’t affect the consistency.
You can use any colors of your choice and decorate to your heart’s content! - Sprinkles – While this garnish is optional, adding holiday sprinkles gives your cookies a fun and festive touch.
For best results, add sprinkles immediately after decorating — they’ll stick easier while the frosting is soft.
Icing vs Frosting for Cookies
A common misconception is that these terms are interchangeable, but they are actually not the same!
Icing is thin and glossy, often used to decorate cookies or drizzle over pastries. It dries hard, shiny, and smooth and is typically made with just powdered sugar and liquid.
On the other hand, frosting is known to be thicker and fluffier than icing and is commonly spread on cakes or cookies.
It can have different textures and consistencies depending on the preparation.
The buttercream cookie frosting we make here is super popular, but whipped cream and cream cheese frosting are tasty too!
Tips to Make Frosting for Sugar Cookies That Hardens
- Eliminate clumps.
Use a sieve to sift the sugar and get rid of any clumps.
This is one of the best ways to get a perfectly smooth consistency when you cream the butter and sugar!
- Use room temperature butter.
Softened butter is the easiest to combine with other ingredients and guarantees a soft, fluffy texture for your sugar cookie frosting.
Avoid using melted butter as it won’t combine properly with the powdered sugar — you’ll get frosting that lacks structure and doesn’t set properly.
- Keep it covered.
Frosting is easiest to spread and decorate with when it’s soft, so try to keep it covered when you’re not using it!
If your frosting starts to get too hard while you’re decorating, give it another mix or add a little bit of milk to help soften it.
- Dry before stacking.
While this frosting for sugar cookies will harden, it still takes time!
Let your treats dry fully in a single layer before storing and stacking them.
How to Decorate with Cookie Frosting
Whether you’re hosting a cookie decorating party, packing up sweet treats for family and friends, or simply gathering the kids for a fun holiday activity — there are so many different ways to decorate your cookies.
Find the method that suits the occasion and the tools you have on hand!
Spread by Hand
An offset spatula is the best tool for spreading frosting quickly and easily.
It not only gives you better control over the thickness of the frosting layer, but also creates cleaner edges.
That said, spoons may be a bit easier for small hands to work with. They can scoop with one side and spread with the other, all while minimizing mess!
Use a Piping Bag
A piping bag is a great option that will give your hands more control as you decorate.
By using bags with various decorator tips, you’ll have plenty of options for creating different textures and fun designs.
The easiest way to fill a piping bag is to place the bag (fitted with a tip) in a tall glass with the pointed side facing downward.
First, open the top of the bag and roll a cuff over the edge of the glass so that it holds.
Next, carefully spoon your sugar cookie frosting into the bag, aiming to fill from the bottom up.
Be careful not to overfill your bag as this might make it more difficult to work with.
Finally, unroll and close the cuffed end of the bag, and remove it from the cup. Simply cut off the tip of the bag and you’re ready to frost!
Try the Double Bagging Method
If you’ll be using several different colors of frosting, there’s an easy method called “double-bagging” that allows you to use the same piping tip over and over.
Just add each color to a different piping bag, and fit your tip onto a separate, empty bag.
Then, snip off the end of a bag of buttercream and drop it into the bag with the tip.
When you’re ready to change colors, pull the inner bag out and drop in a new one!
You might want to squeeze a small amount of frosting out onto a piece of paper towel first — this will push any remaining old color through the tip.
Kitchen Tools You Will Need
- Stand mixer or large mixing bowl with hand mixer for whipping up your frosting.
- Offset Spatula – This spatula has so many uses and is perfect for smoothing an even layer of buttercream on each cookie.
- Piping Bag – These bags make decorating easy and clean up less messy!
You can fit different bags with your favorite piping tips, or use the double bagging method for a seamless switch between different colors. - Decorator Piping Tips – Use different shapes and sizes depending on the design you want to make.
Sugar Cookie Frosting Recipe FAQ
If stored properly, your frosting will keep for about 3 weeks. Just place it in an airtight container and stick it in the refrigerator.
Since homemade frosting for sugar cookies lasts for a good amount of time, this is the perfect recipe to prepare in advance!
Once you’re ready to use your frosting, take it out of the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature.
You may need to give it a good stir or a quick run through the mixer to get it back to that original perfect, fluffy texture.
You can easily adjust the consistency of your cookie frosting. Add a little bit of milk to thin your frosting, or a little bit more powdered sugar to thicken it.
Then, mix until you get your desired consistency!
Enjoy!
With love, from our simple kitchen to yours.
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Best Sugar Cookie Frosting (Stackable Recipe) + Video
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 tablespoons milk
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- pinch salt
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Gel food coloring
Garnish
- Sprinkles
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter with an electric mixer. Add in 1 cup powdered sugar, 2 Tablespoons milk, and a pinch of salt. Beat to combine.
- Add in another cup of powdered sugar, the almond extract, and vanilla extract. Beat to combine.
- Add in an additional cup of powdered sugar. Mix until well combined and smooth. Add additional powdered sugar or milk to get the right consistency.
- Stir in gel food coloring.
- Spread or pipe frosting onto your sugar cookies. Top with sprinkles immediately. Allow it to harden before stacking.
Video
Donna’s Notes
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe’s nutritional value will vary depending on the ingredients used, measuring methods, and portion sizes.
Originally published November 2020, updated and republished November 2024
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Super easy to make and absolutely delicious! This frosting took my sugar cookies to a whole new level.
Hi Kelsey!
We’re so glad that you enjoyed our recipe!
TSRI Team Member,
Devlyn