Lemon Buttercream Frosting
This easy lemon buttercream frosting recipe combines vanilla American buttercream with fresh lemon juice to create a delightfully sweet frosting with true citrus flavor!
- Prep time
- 10 min
- Cook time
- No separate cook time
- Yield
- 6 servings
- Difficulty
- MEDIUM
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 226 g Unsalted butter
- 360 g Powdered sugar (sifted)
- 3 tablespoons Lemon juice (freshly squeezed)
- ½ tablespoon Vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 3 tablespoons Heavy cream (36% fat content)
Instructions
- 1
First, bring your butter to room temperature. Here is how to soften butter. In the meantime, prepare a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Alternatively, use your electric hand mixer.
- 2
Cream the room-temperature butter at medium-high speed for 3 minutes until it becomes light in color and fluffy in texture.
- 3
Add in the powdered sugar tablespoon by tablespoon on low speed, then turn the mixer back on medium-high speed and whip it for another 4 minutes or until the mixture becomes light, fluffy, and increases in volume.
- 4
Lastly, while the mixer is on at low speed, add the lemon juice, vanilla extract, salt, and heavy cream and continue whipping for another minute until it is smooth and silky.
- 5
This lemon frosting should have the perfect pipeable fluffy texture, but if, for some reason, it is too thick, add some more cream (1 tablespoon at a time). If the frosting is too thin, add more powdered sugar (1 tablespoons at a time).
- 6
Note that the lemon buttercream texture is best straight after making it when the butter is at the right temperature (room temperature), and the mixture is freshly whipped. I like to use the frosting immediately or store it at room temperature in a piping bag for a few hours. If stored in the refrigerator, you will need to bring it back to room temperature before using it and might need to give it another minute or two to whip in the stand mixer to increase the volume again.