Whipped cream can be the perfect accompaniment to many desserts, cakes, donuts and even life itself. Freshly whipped cream looks and tastes amazing, however on occasion it doesn’t hold up too well over time and can start to slump. So, here is my delicious solution.
A traditional vanilla buttercream can be amazing, but as I’ve already mentioned, cream can sometimes be far better. So this fusion recipe takes the best elements of buttercream, but with the flavours of freshly whipped cream. It’s super easy to make, creamy and only requires a handheld beater. If you’re after a more stable whipped cream alternative this Whipped Cream Buttercream is a must try!
- 230g Icing Sugar
- 120g Butter – Room Temperature
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 100ml Full Cream (Heavy/Double)
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Add butter (at room temperature, don't melt) and icing sugar to a large heatproof bowl. Then place the bowl in a shallow tub of warm water (kitchen sink works well).
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Using a handheld mixer, beat until butter and icing sugar come together and form a thick paste. Remove bowl from the tub of water.
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With your beater on slow speed, add the vanilla extract followed by the cream, making sure it's well incorporated and smooth.
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Finally, beat on high speed for another 5 minutes, then it's ready to go!
Can you post pictures of this piped? It is hard to tell the consistency in that picture.
I’ve used this Whipped Cream Buttercream with my Cola Cupcake recipe, so I’ve added the photo to the post above for an example of consistency. Good idea!
This looks delicious thank you for sharing!
How many cup cakes can be frosted using this recipe?
They should make between 10-12, depending on frosting style.
I tried this one and the frosting turned out great. Thank you for sharing it. I can’t share picture here but it was quite good.
That’s great to hear. I would have loved to have seen them! If you do have any photos feel free to share @bakergatherer on either Facebook or Instagram 😉
Will this be suitable to ice a layer cake top middle and sides and how long can the buttercream last on the fridge? Many thanks
Hey Jade. I’ve used this buttercream as more of a filling or topping as a substitute or stabiliser for regular whipped cream. However you could try using it as a frosting on the outside of a cake (which I have never tired before). The whipped cream buttercream itself is firm enough, but see how it holds up being used vertically – if that makes sense. Perhaps adding a little more icing sugar could firm it up more if needed. Let me know how it goes 🙂
Can this be done with a stand mixer ?
I’ve never used a stand mixer to make this buttercream because you need to warm the bowl while beating. If you can find a way to safely warm the bowl of your stand mixer, then give it a go. Otherwise I still suggest using a hand beater.
I did it with a hand electric mixer and didnt vwarm the bowl, but it was a very warm day when I made it.
I also added coffee essence as I made a coffee cake.
Turned out delicious and a lovely smooth velvety consistency and not as sweet as regular buttercream. Thank you 🌸
Hi how long does this last, how long can it sit out in room temperature and fridge etc?
I’d like to treat this buttercream similar to cream cheese frosting – make fresh and then eat. Otherwise perhaps keep it refrigerated until serving rather than leaving out, just in case!
Hi, may I know what if I whipped the full cream before I add into the buttercream? What’s the different? Thank you.
I’ve never personally added whipped cream to buttercream, but now I’m curious. This whipped cream frosting recipe is more of a cream stabiliser. Generally if you add whipped cream to baking (either as a filling, topping, or as a substitute to buttercream) it may not hold its shape, or begin to ‘melt’. Using this recipe to stabilise the whipped cream gives a buttercream texture and can be piped and used as regular buttercream can, however tasting more like whipped cream etc.
Theres a high chance u can over whip ur cream if u whip it first then mixing it with the buttercream. Would recommend sticking to the recipe.
I’m in the US and am not sure what “full cream” is…if it’s what we call full fat milk, or whipping cream, or heavy cream — or something we quite don’t have here. Can you share information you see on the nutrition label (like how many grams of fat in 100 ml)? That might help me figure it out. Also, can you tell me if once prepared this recipe will form a crust like a traditional buttercream or stay soft and sticky/tacky like whipped cream? Thanks!
I also like to use Double Cream, which has total fat of 48g per 100ml. Regarding this recipe forming a crust, I can’t say I’ve paid too much attention to this, however I do know the icing stays nice and soft/yet firm for quite some time. The texture is amazing.
The lady that commented and said that the granulated sugar would not turn smooth and would be grainy was right it certainly did so I threw it out and started over and used powdered sugar with that in mind I had made that mixture first that way I didn’t have to waste the cream Etc. I also use some cream cheese and this whipped cream buttercream frosting turned out wonderful and workable okay
I wouldn’t suggest using granulated sugar at all, icing sugar is the only way to go. Glad the cream cheese addition worked out well.
Hi thank you for the lovely recipe,can i substitute the full cream with Double cream?
Absolutely.
Hello Dan – I’d like to use this to fill and cover my Yule Log this year – how much cocoa should I add to the mic for a rich chocolate taste please?
You know what, I wonder if melting chocolate into the cream beforehand would work nicely!
Should the cream be room temperature or from fridge thanks
That’s a good question. I’ve always poured mine in directly from the fridge. So, I believe either options would be fine 🙂
Looks great, but I have a question. Would this recipe be good on a tres leches cake. Or is it just going to make it sweeter???
In this instance I’d personally keep the cream layer light and fluffy. So I’d probably use regular whipped cream instead of this buttercream as you may find it denser.
Seems nice, can u tell us till what temperature will it remain stable, in my region temperature goes upto 40 degrees
I can’t say I’ve ever been in temperature this hot, or heated up this buttercream to test. So my reccomendation is to treat it like regular buttercream, which generally won’t hold up overly well in extreme temperature regardless.
Sorry if this isn’t too much help, but at the end of the day, butter doesn’t like heat 😉
Dane, you’re a genius! I’ve been working with whipped cream because it’s so light, yet creamy and silky. I found buttercream too dense and …buttery/fatty/cholesterol-y. Lol. But alas, whipped cream doesn’t have the stability buttercream does. Then I thought, is it possible to mix whipped cream and buttercream? Amazingly, it is! I cant wait to try. Thank you for this!
P.s: check out my ig: @the_dimpled_baker
Do share yours as well 🙂
I’ve been wanting to try mixing cream with buttercream for a while but wasn’t sure if it would work. Glad I’ve come across this recipe. So the heat under the bowl, that’s part of the stabilising process?
I regularly make a fresh cream frosting and stabilise with a bit of cream cheese and that works well. Tastes just like the icecream vans mr whippey! Yum. Maybe I’ll add some of that too and see what happens. Thx!
Hi, can I colour this with gel, looks an amazing recipe…
Absolutely!
Hello…I stay In India…where we get only 30% fat cream….so can I use it for this recipe……will it be stable…..
Not too sure on the % of different creams sorry, however did you give this a go?
can we use butter cream with whip cream both together for cake frosting ?
I don’t see why not. Give it an experiment and see how it goes.
Do I have to put this buttercream in the fridge? Or will it be ok in room temperature? Thanks in advance.
Much like any buttercream, I’d still suggest it be kept in the fridge if not being used. Alternatively if it’s already on a cake (for example), it should be fine left out for awhile. But do just remember that it is all still dairy at the end of the day. Hope that helps.
Hello, can you freeze this before using on a cake?
I’ve never considered freezing this buttercream. However, much like others buttercreams, you could freeze, bring back to room temperature and give another beat through before using. So perhaps you could give it a try, and let me know if you do.
Just love this recipe! Worked perfectly to make icing with dark colors and the piping is so much easier. Thank you.
This recipe sounds delicious and I’d like to try it on a “letter” cake where there are just large dabs of frosting between the layers and on top. Do you think it will work for that purpose? Also, does the butter make this frosting a beige color, rather than true white? Thx!
This should work perfectly for a letter or number cake. Regarding the colour, I guess that would depend on the colour of butter you use. Overall it’s always pretty white or “whipped cream” colour anyway.
Just wondering how you would suggest adding favor to this? I haven’t made it yet but I’ll love to flavor it with strawberry somehow without ruining the texture which sounds fantastic from all the comments.
You could absolutely add different flavours. For example, swap out the 1 Teaspoon of Vanilla for 1 teaspoon of another flavour or extract. You could also use freeze dried fruit powders too, which would give different colours and/or flavours as well.
Tried this recipe and it is delicious. Light and easy to make. Definitely better than buttercream which tends to be heavy and overly sweet sometimes. Beautiful! Thank you for this!
Thanks for sharing this recipe. You have made myvdsy! I am not huge fun of icing and normally use whipped cream on my sponge cake however i have just tried this WHIPPED CREAM BUTTERCREAM for my cupcakes and it was delicious! It was not overly sweet like ordinarily buttercream and yet the texture was firmer than whipped cream. I think this is the best icing i have ever tried and will save this recipe forever. Thank you for sharing.
Hi, can i use non-dairy whipping cream?
I’ve never really come across non-dairy whipping cream, unless you tried to whip coconut cream. Regardless on what product you use, I’m not sure how it will turn out sorry. Perhaps if you, or someone else gives it a go, please let me know what happens!
What is the science behind using a warm water tub?
No science that I’m aware of. It simply allows you to be in control as you soften the butter further to form a paste without melting it into a liquid.
It is important that the butter is on the warmer side if you plan to pour cold 5degree cream from fridge straight into butter. If the butter gets too cold it will harden and the mixture will look curdled.
I have done this in the past when I thought it was good idea to combine cream into my butter cream to lighten it up. Now seeing this recipe I know what went wrong previously.
I made the recipe this morning (doubled the ingredients) for a three-layer spongey-cake with fruit in the layers and it came out PERFECTLY ! Thank you so much ! Just a note: I did not frost the sides of the cake and had just enough to frost between the layers on both sides of the layers.
This frosting is excellent! For a recent birthday party at our home, some kids wanted whipped cream frosting, while my husband and I are partial to buttercream. One internet search later, and I found this perfect and easy marrying of the two together! Everyone approves!
Just made it. It is too sweet and not close to whipped cream at all.
Have used to dam the cake and crumb coat it. It has good workability and great to crumb coat even in hot weather. 30 degree celcius
Will try cover the cake in whipped cream and see if they are compatible.
This frosting tastes soooo good ! It’s now my go-to buttercream frosting recipe ! Thank you!