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Fluffy Vanilla Frosting Without Butter (No Dairy!)

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4.8 from 11 reviews

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Fluffy and creamy vanilla frosting without butter, cream cheese, margarine, or vegan butter! The method – a smooth mix of coconut cream and coconut oil. Similar to traditional buttercream, the frosting can be piped onto cakes, cupcakes, or even used as an icing for cookies.

With the success of vanilla, I have made this dairy free frosting into more flavors. Of course, there is chocolate frosting made without butter. Planning a spring party? The strawberry butter free frosting tastes just as amazing as good as it looks! But my favorite – caramel butter free frosting made with maple syrup caramel – just the thought of it makes my mouth water.

There I am, in my kitchen, it’s a special celebration for my husband and me, and I’m out of butter (cue the dramatic music). My small batch of cupcakes was ready to be frosted, so what’s a girl to do?

I always have cans of coconut milk in my refrigerator (because I love to make coconut milk whipped cream!), and the idea came to me. Let’s swap butter with coconut cream and coconut oil to make frosting.

Coconut oil alone will make greasy frosting, while coconut cream on its own lacks stability. I have tested both and could not make it work without adding copious amounts of powdered sugar. But melting the two together mimics the fat content of dairy butter. Perfect. Now we have creamy, pipeable frosting!

Cans of coconut cream and oil on a table.

Choose The Right Ingredients

A can of coconut milk, or coconut cream will work. The latter has less liquid. But most importantly, the coconut cream must contain guar gum. The gum is a stabilizer and helps make the frosting thick and creamy.

I have tested no-guar gum varieties, and they weren’t as successful without adding a lot of powdered sugar. And if you’ve determined so far, I don’t want a lot of powdered sugar in my frosting.

Another tip – use refined coconut oil. It doesn’t have as strong a coconut flavor as virgin coconut oil.

The Frosting Is Easy To Make

The complete instructions are in the recipe card (along with more helpful photos!). But this will give you an idea of just how easily this frosting is made.

Scoops of coconut cream and oil in a saucepan.

1. The coconut cream, oil, and a tablespoon of powdered sugar go into a small saucepan and heat until just melted. This emulsifies (fancy word for mixes) the two liquids, and the little bit of powdered sugar helps bind them.

Powder sugar sifted over a bowl of fluffy vanilla frosting.

2. After the mix cools, you start adding the powdered sugar and mix until thick and creamy. We do this in increments so the ingredients are thoroughly combined. This also incorporates air to make the frosting fluffy.

Pro tip – Sift the powdered sugar as you add it – this will make the frosting smooth. Nobody likes grainy frosting. 🙂

Vanilla butter free frosting swirled on a cupcake.

3. And just like that, the frosting is ready to use immediately! You’ll have enough for a small batch of cakes or cupcakes, and it can sit at room temperature for up to 8 hours.

Dairy Free Frosting Storage And Use

You can refrigerate the frosting, and it will firm when chilled. But this is nothing to worry about. Bring it to room temp and mix it again with a hand mixer to loosen it.

The frosting will develop a bit of a shell as it sits out (which makes it great for stacking cookies), but it remains so creamy. No one will know it’s not frosting from one of those store-bought tubs! 🙂

Curious about what happened with my cupcake drama? Everything turned out perfect – and I added a couple heaps of sprinkles, which turned into my funfetti sprinkles butter free frosting recipe!

I’d love to hear what masterpiece you topped the frosting on! Let me know in the comments below!

Fluffy frosting without butter in a mixing bowl.

Fluffy Vanilla Frosting Without Butter (No Dairy!)

4.8 from 11 reviews
This vanilla frosting without butter is your answer to fluffy and creamy frosting without butter, cream cheese, margarine, or vegan butter! The method – a smooth mix of coconut cream and coconut oil. Similar to traditional buttercream, the frosting can be piped onto cakes, cupcakes, or even used as an icing for cookies. The recipe includes helpful troubleshooting tips to make better-than-store-bought frosting at home!
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Yield2 Cups (approx.)
Prep10 minutes
Chill10 minutes

Ingredients

Instructions
 

  • A can of coconut milk or coconut cream will work. Refrigerate the can at least overnight. This causes the liquid and coconut solids to separate – we only use the thick solids from the can (too much liquid, and the frosting won't thicken). You will have extra in the can. You can double the recipe, or save it for smoothies!
  • In a small saucepan, add the coconut solids, coconut oil, and 1 tablespoon of powdered sugar (this will help bind the cream and oil). Heat over medium-low heat and stir with a spatula until the mix is melted – this should only take about 1 minute. Do not boil. The mixture will resemble a creamy soup.
    5 tablespoons unsweetened canned coconut milk or cream, full fat, 5 tablespoons cold pressed refined coconut oil
  • Transfer to a small mixing bowl and stir in the vanilla extract. Let cool to room temperature – about 10 to 15 minutes. You still want the mix to be liquid when you add the powdered sugar. NoteYou can also refrigerate it for about 5 minutes to speed up the cool down.
    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Use a hand mixer fitted with the whisk attachments, and add a 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar and salt to the coconut mixture. I recommend sifting the powdered sugar for smooth frosting. Start at a low speed to incorporate the powdered sugar. Turn up the speed to high and beat for 1 minute. At this point, the frosting will look sticky, clumpy, and gooey. Do not give up! The frosting will come together as you mix in the remaining powdered sugar.
    2 cups, plus 1 tablespoon powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • Continue to add a 1/2 cup of powdered sugar at a time – beating for at least 1 minute after each addition. With the final 1/2 cup, beat the frosting for 3 minutes, until it is light and creamy – this will incorporate air to make the frosting light. The frosting should be thick and creamy and resemble the store-bought frosting you buy in the small tubs at the grocery. If the frosting still looks loose, refrigerate it for about 10 minutes, then beat for a couple more minutes until it thickens. Be cautious with adding more powdered sugar! This frosting will set, and too much will make it too thick (think fudge).
  • The frosting is ready to use right away and can sit at room temp for up to 8 hours. Or, it can be refrigerated for up to 1 week. Important if refrigeratingthe frosting will firm. Bring to room temperature and re-mix to loosen.
I’d love to hear from you!If you try the recipe, please let me know! Leaving a comment + star encourages others to try it, and the support helps me continue to provide FREE recipes. Thank you!

Notes

  • Serving Size – This is a small batch frosting recipe for small batch cakes and cupcakes. It is easily doubled.
  • Yield – Enough frosting for a small 6-inch cake or layer cake, 6 cupcakes, or 12 to 24 cookies.
  • Coconut Milk or Coconut Cream (Full-Fat Only) – For the frosting to work, whichever you choose, it should include guar gum. This acts as a stabilizer to help thicken the frosting. Do not use carton coconut milk.
  • Special Note – The amount of coconut solids in the can, can be hit or miss. Sometimes the can has been shaken too much, and the solids and liquid won’t separate, even after refrigerating. If your can has too little or is just mixed, save it for another recipe and try a new one. 
  • Piping and Decorations – This is not traditional buttercream and will not behave as such.  Intricate details, designs, or flowers probably won’t hold their shape.

Nutrition Estimates

Calories: 220kcal | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 0.1g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Sodium: 50mg | Potassium: 15mg | Sugar: 40g | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 2mg | Iron: 0.2mg
Nutrition information is calculated by a third-party and should only be considered an estimate and not a guarantee.

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4.82 from 11 votes (9 ratings without comment)

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12 Comments

  1. Thank you for this beautiful yummy tasty recipe!!!
    My experience went 50/50!!
    I doubled the ingredients because I needed it for a carrot cake decoration, the letting it melt and cool down took naturally much much longer, for me living in already a cold climate I probably wouldn’t have needed to keep the ingredients in the fridge that delayed the process for me. At first once my liquid mix cooled down I thought it would never ever frost, once I added the icing sugar (I kept the 2 cups qty for double of everything else and the sweetness was perfect). It frosted and it was perfect, the peaks were a little on the soft side but that’s maybe due to the fact I put a lot less icing sugar and I was so worried to cuddle the mix I stopped maybe a bit early. Now here’s where I went wrong I believe, I was worried my frosting would melt at room temp so I put it in the fridge and when I realised it would be far to hard to spread (10min later) I took it out and mixed it again…. and that’s when it curdle leaving me with a watery frosting! My own fault though, the taste was delicious but my skills messed it up 🤣 I will definitely try again on a smaller batch this time 🙏🏽 Thank you

    1. Hi Sarah – I’m so glad you liked the frosting! And I appreciate the nice note and feedback!

  2. Hi! I attempted to make this earlier today. The taste is great, but the texture is off. It’s a bit grainy/gritty as of all the ingredients didn’t incorporate correctly. I have reread the instructions and feel I followed them. Any tips or suggestions of what I may have done wrong? The canned coconut milk was solid and my coconut oil was solid. Any thoughts/tips would be appreciated. The taste is amazing, I just need some help getting a smooth creamy texture. 😊

    1. Hi Katie – thank you for trying the recipe! A few things I can think of – perhaps the coconut oil didn’t melt all the way? It can leave little bits if not fully melted? Or, the liquid mix cooled too long before being whipped and the coconut oil started to firm up. You could try just letting it cool for 5 minutes on the counter rather than the fridge. Another thing that may be the culprit is the powdered sugar – sifting it helps get out any persistent lumps. If all that doesn’t seem to work, you could try adding a bit more powdered sugar to get it fluffy – a tablespoon at a time. Just taste it as you are whipping it up – it can get very sweet quickly. Hope some of this helps!

    1. Hi Brooklyn – since I have not tested the recipe with shortening, I can’t say for certain how it would turn out. I know that there are frosting recipes that just use shortening and they turn out nice. I think Crisco may even have a recipe on the back of their container (or they used to!) Thanks for visiting the blog!

  3. 5 stars
    This icing is AMAZING. I am so thankful I found this!
    I am wondering if you have ever made ice cream with similar ingredients? After storing this in the fridge it tastes so similar to ice cream just wondering what you would add to shift the consistency and keep it vegan? It’s SO good I’m tempted to eat it all by itself 🤣

    1. Hi Braci – I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it! I’ve been known to eat it by the spoonful 🙂 I do have a couple of ice cream recipes that I use canned coconut milk too – Strawberry Ice Cream, and Pina Colada Ice Cream. I used honey in the ice cream, but you could swap in maple syrup to make it vegan. Thank you for visiting the blog!

  4. 5 stars
    This frosting is incredible! It’s like ganache when it’s fully set. I am so thrilled it’s the best vegan frosting I’ve come across so far! Thank you!!

    1. Hi Steph – I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Every time I make it, I think I eat more by the spoonful than what goes on my cakes! 🙂 Thank you for trying the recipe and visiting the blog!

  5. Seems like people need to use the Coconut Cream & start from that point from comments on Pinterest. My only question is how many cups of frosting this makes? Need to fill & cover an 8″/6 layer cake + piped decorations.

    1. Hi Laurie! This is a small batch recipe and will make approx. 1 and 1/2 cups. For the size of the cake you are making, I don’t think that will be enough. You could double the recipe, just please note I have not tested doubling the recipe.