Brown Butter Frosting
Made with delicious brown butter, this silky smooth frosting has notes of caramel and a deep, nutty flavor. It's a Fall classic that you'll want to put on all of your cozy bakes!
- Prep time
- 15 min
- Cook time
- 5 min
- Yield
- 3 servings
- Difficulty
- EASY
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 1 Cup (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature, divided
- 3 Cups (360g) powdered sugar
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 3 Tbsp whole milk, room temperature
- 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste
Instructions
- 1
Set 1 stick of the unsalted butter aside so that it comes to room temperature by the time you're ready for it. Use the remaining butter with the instructions for browning below.
- 2
Brown the Butter: Add 1/2 Cup (1 stick) of the unsalted butter into a large frying pan and cook over medium heat until the butter melts, stirring occasionally. Continue cooking for another 1-2 minutes while stirring constantly. The melted butter will start to foam on top, then will turn light brown in color and smell deliciously nutty. Remove from heat at this point and transfer to a glass container. Allow it to re-solidify for about 2 hours at room temperature or place it into the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. It should be completely room temperature and thick (about the consistency of a thick caramel) before continuing on with the buttercream recipe.
- 3
Once the brown butter is room temperature, cream the other 1/2 Cup of unsalted butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium-high until creamy and light in color, about 5 minutes, scraping down the bowl and paddle as needed.
- 4
Add the cooled brown butter and vanilla and mix on medium speed until uniform. Turn the mixer to low speed and add the powdered sugar a few cups at a time, scraping down the bowl and paddle after mixing in each addition. Add the milk and salt and continue mixing on low speed until smooth.