Strawberry Buttercream Frosting

Thick strawberry buttercream frosting is perfect for layering cakes, piping detailed designs, or just spreading on top of a sheet cake, brownies, or cookies! The possibilities are endless for this frosting that holds its shape perfectly but also packs PLENTY of bright strawberry flavor in every bite.

what makes this strawberry frosting so good?

• Naturally colored - This frosting is made without food coloring (although you could of course use a few drops if you want a deeper color). The strawberries naturally color the frosting and give it the cutest pastel pink color. The pretty light pink color is enough to sell me on this frosting, but it's not the only thing that makes it so incredible!
• TONS of flavor - This frosting features strawberries in two forms: freeze dried and jam. Using two types brings forth so much more flavor without compromising the consistency. And they're also two forms of strawberries that are available year round - so you can make this frosting any time, any where!
• Perfect consistency - This frosting is thick enough to hold up any cake layers, pipe intricate and detailed designs, or just make little swoopy swirls. It's perfectly thick and can easliy be thinned out if you want a slightly softer consistency.
• Easy to make - Finally, the icing on the cake (get it?) is the fact that it's SO EASY TO MAKE. It barely requires any thought behind it and is virtually fail proof. I've made this frosting time and time again and it comes out the exact same every single time.

how to make strawberry buttercream frosting

If you know how to use a mixer, then you know how to make this frosting! It really is so easy that you could even summarize the process into 2 steps: cream together butter and sugar then mix in everything else. That's seriously all there is to it! However there are a few tips to keep in mind when making this easy frosting to ensure it comes out perfect every time:

Room temperature ingredients - As with any buttercream (unless the recipe says otherwise), room temperature ingredients are always best - and it's no different here. For a smooth, lump free frosting, make sure the ingredients have had enough time to come up to room temperature before starting. Usually that requires around an hour of sitting out on the counter but it can differ depending on how warm your home is. Room temperature ingredients are simply easier to incorporate and will lower the chance of little clumps of undissolved sugar or butter popping up in your finished frosting.

Measuring powdered sugar - You may have heard about the "spoon and level" method when it comes to measuring flour, but it also applies to powdered sugar. Powdered sugar will condense and pack into a measuring cup if you try to scoop the cup directly into the bag. This will result in an overly sweet frosting. Whenever possible, it's always best to measure powdered sugar by weight using a food scale. But if you prefer to use cups, use a spoon to pick up scoops of the powdered sugar and drop them into your measuring cup then use a flat utensil (like a butter knife) to level off any excess. This ensures the sugar is lightly packed in the measuring cup.

Strawberry jam - Before adding the jam into the frosting, I'd recommend quickly checking it to see if there are any large strawberry chunks in there, pull them out, and THEN measure out the jam. Some brands of jam will have no visible clumps while others may have a lot, so just something to keep in mind if you want a smoother consistency.

Adjusting taste and texture - You can easily adjust this frosting if you find it's too sweet or too thick. To soften the sweetness, add a pinch of salt! This frosting is on the indulgent side (that's just how buttercream is!) but adding a little extra salt helps balance out the richness. If the frosting is too thick, you can mix in a splash of milk to thin it out slightly. But be careful not to add too much or the frosting will separate.

do you have to sift the powdered sugar?

That will depend on the brand of sugar you're using as well as how you store the sugar.

Some brands of powdered sugar will be noticeably finer in texture with virtually no clumps while others are just more prone to clumping. If you buy a lot of powdered sugar in advance and keep them stacked on top of each other in your pantry for several weeks, they can also form clumps as they sit and will need to be sifted.

You can usually tell if the sugar needs sifting just by looking at it. If you see a ton of clumps, sift it. If it looks very soft and fine, you should be OK to use it. If you're not sure, it's always better to sift the powdered sugar (even if you don't need to) than NOT sift it when you DO need to.

recipes to pair this frosting with

Once you have the frosting, what's the best thing to pair it with? You can get really creative with the sweets and treats that you use this frosting with. Some of my favorite strawberry recipes to pair this frosting with include:

1. Strawberry Shortcake Cake
2. Fresh Strawberry Cake
3. Strawberry Cupcakes
4. Strawberry Sheet Cake

But don't feel like you need to pair it with more strawberries. It also goes really well with anything from chocolate brownies to vanilla cake! So here are some other desserts that you can pair this frosting with:

1. Lemon Brownies
2. Homemade Vanilla Cake
3. Chocolate Chip Cookies (think: sandwich cookie!)
4. Gooey Brownies
5. Chocolate Cake
6. Pistachio Cupcakes

The possibilities really are endless.

Lastly, if you made this or any of my recipes, be sure to leave a comment and review below! I love hearing your thoughts! Also tag me on Instagram @eatsdelightfulblog so I can see what you're making.

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Enjoy!

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