Magnolia Bakery’s Buttercream Vanilla Icing Recipe (2024)

I've been making an icing like this for years. Beat tgoether conf sugar and butter, then dribble in heavy cream, beating and adding cream until the mixture is very light and fluffy. Or you can add cream cheese instead of some of the cream. You can also add flavorings other than vanilla, like coffee, instead of some of the cream, grated rinds, etc. Don't forget a dash of salt to bring out the flavor.

FYI, the back of the Domino confectioner’s sugar box seems to have this exact same recipe, except halved, which is convenient.

So this icing is way too liquidy, the actual Magnolia Icing, is: 1 cup butter4 cups confectioners' sugar2-3 tablespoons milk1 tsp vanillafood coloring

I have made a similar buttercream for years- to cut the sweetness and to add chocolate (why not?) I add about 1/4-1/2 cup sifted cocoa.

Very good recipe, but made more than twice as much frosting as I wanted.

This was SOoooOOO heavy and sweet. I can see how, if the cupcakes were sitting in a bakery for even a couple hours, having a heavier frosting would be a good idea. But for home baking, not so much. I halved the recipe, and probably added another 1/4-ish cup of milk to make it creamier. Then it was delish!

To make this into an amazing chocolate buttercream frosting I bring 1 cup of heavy cream to a boil, remove it from the heat and mix in 6 oz of unsweetened chocolate. Mix until smooth and consistent and add to the magnolia frosting when cool instead of the milk

I regret not reading the reviews as my frosting was so sweet it was inedible. It too ruined my cupcakes. In hindsight I should have known 8 cups!!! of confectioners sugar would have been way too much.This recipe needs revising or pulling.

I added some lemon zest and about 1/4 tsp sea salt to cut the sweetness and add dimension. With the zest I saw no need for added colors.

Angela, Thank you for the very helpful note. Using your tip as an inspiration, I used my calculator and divided each ingredient by 2 and the icing turned out perfectly, which was convenient.

This recipe is disgustingly sweet. I saw some of my guests throw their cupcakes away because of the icing.

I love the taste of this frosting, it's a great "go-to" buttercream! The only challenge I have sometimes is keeping it firm - I think you would want to reduce the amount of liquid or maybe even refrigerate to keep it a bit stiffer to pipe. When I halved the recipe, it frosted (20) cupcakes.

I used just 4 cups sugar. I also made the mistake of adding heavy cream to butter that was still frozen and ended up churning the cream into more butter - still tasty though. Note to self for next time - wait till butter is room temp before beating w/ sugar and adding heavy cream.

I agree! I took for granted the positive reviews for this frosting. I can't imagine anyone using the entire amount of sugar. I used only a portion and they were just gross. The cupcakes were great, but this frosting needs to be removed from the site! I'm so disappointed!

Magnolia's frosting is too sweet. Try a real buttercream; there is no comparison

I saw it required 8 cups!!! of sugar, so i cut the recipe in half and then put 2.5 cups of sugar in. It was still disgusting. Appallingly sweet, insulting to readers. At least provide something to work with.

Far too sweet.

Too much sugar. I used HALF the sugar and it was perfect.

Too sweet. Use less sugar (u can honestly use half the sugar w just less milk. Also makes a TON

This was awful. Way too sweet and an ugly consistency. Followed the recipe exactly.

Pretty good, but have made better frostings.

What a disappointment! I am so sorry. I trusted this recipe for magnolia. The icing was inedible resembling more like a crumbled fondant versus a spreadable buttercream. I should’ve known 8 cups was a ridiculous amount. The cake while OK was certainly nothing to rave about. I’m kicking myself for spending all this money on high-quality ingredients only to have a crappy result. Oh well. I agree with another reviewer this recipe needs to be pulled.

A question: The recipe calls for 8 cups of confectioner's sugar: Is that 8 cups of SIFTED sugar, or 8 cups straight out of the box/container? Thank you.

This frosting is WAY TOO SWEET! Yikes! The enormous amount of confectioners' sugar overwhelms any other flavoring you might add to it and gives it a faint gritty texture, especially if the cupcakes are stored for a day or two.Another buttercream frosting pops up on this page which uses the same amount of butter but 75% (!) less sugar and is a much better version of American buttercream. I prefer French, Swiss or Italian buttercream for its silkiness and adaptability. Not hard to make either.

If you’ve ever eaten a Magnolia cupcake, you know their icing is heavy and sweet. If you prefer something different, try a different recipe.

No wonder they make my teeth hurt. So much sugar!

8 cups of sugar with only half a pound of butter? Yikes. I've not tried it and wouldn't with that amount of sugar, but then I'm not a fan of super sweet desserts. I'd start with one cup and work my way up. It's easier to add than take away which in this case would mean adding more butter. But butter frosting freezes well. It looks easy.

I doubled the vanilla and added some salt and used less sugar and it was ok! Still too sweet for me though but paired well with a bitter chocolate cupcake.

This yields and insane amount of frosting. I halved the recipe, iced two dozen cupcakes, and still had some left over. Be prepared to freeze a gallon bags worth of buttercream if you make the full amount.

This icing is WAY too sweet! I only used 4 cups of sugar and it still was overly sweet! Do not go through the trouble, not to mention waste. Very disappointing!