Strawberry Buttercream Frosting
This strawberry buttercream frosting is sweet, creamy, and bursting with real strawberry flavor. Homemade strawberry reduction adds natural strawberry flavor and a pale pink color, making it shine on cupcakes, cakes, and cookies alike. It’s silky, pipeable, and easy to make!
Strawberry Buttercream Frosting
This strawberry buttercream frosting tastes like it could have come straight from Strawberry Shortcake’s Berry Bake Shoppe—sweet, pink, and full of berry charm.
Homemade strawberry reduction brings natural sweetness and that classic pastel-pink hue we all remember from dolls, lunchboxes, and scratch-n-sniff stickers.
The strawberry frosting texture is light, smooth, and creamy, making it perfect for cakes, cupcakes, and cookie sandwiches. Frost your favorite bakes and your kitchen will feel like a Berry Patch birthday party.
One bite and you’re basically in Strawberryland at a Berry Bake-Off!
If your favorite place for dessert is Strawberryland, check out my frosted strawberry crunch cookies, strawberry cupcakes, and strawberry cake.
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Easy to make: An easy frosting recipe with simple steps using just a handful of ingredients.
- Real strawberry flavor: Made with actual strawberries, not artificial extracts.
- Smooth & creamy texture: Smooth, creamy, fluffy, and easy to spread or pipe.
- Pretty-in-pink color: Naturally tinted with strawberries for that dreamy pink hue.
- Versatile classic: Perfect for cakes, cupcakes, brownies, or sandwich cookies.
Recipe Ingredients
- Unsalted butter – Room temperature.
- Powdered sugar
- Strawberry reduction – Room temperature. Learn how to make strawberry reduction here.
- Heavy cream – Room temperature.
- Vanilla extract
- Salt
How to Make Strawberry Buttercream Frosting
Whip the room temperature unsalted butter for 5 minutes until it is light and fluffy.
Add in the powdered sugar and mix on low speed until it is fully combined with the butter.
Add in the strawberry reduction and mix until well incorporated.
Pour in the heavy cream, vanilla extract, and salt, and mix until smooth.
Mix the frosting for 2 to 3 minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy.
Melt 1 cup of frosting in the microwave, add it back to the buttercream, and mix on low speed to make it silky smooth.
Courtney’s Expert Buttercream Frosting Tips
- Make the strawberry reduction ahead of time and keep it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Bring to room temperature before making the frosting.
- Be sure the butter, strawberry reduction, and heavy cream are room temperature so they incorporate well.
- Whip the butter for a full 5 minutes before adding the additional ingredients. The butter will become light, creamy, and pale in color. This helps create a perfectly smooth buttercream.
- Don’t worry if the buttercream appears to split or curdle. This is normal. Just keep whipping for several minutes until it comes together. We are adding a water-based substance (strawberry reduction) to a fat-based substance (butter) and that takes a lot of whipping to emulsify.
- To make super smooth frosting, temper the buttercream. Heat 1 cup of the frosting in the microwave for about 20 seconds to melt it slightly. Then, add the melted buttercream back to the mixing bowl and mix on low speed for several minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Strawberry reduction is a concentrated strawberry sauce made from cooking, pureeing, and straining frozen strawberries. It adds intense strawberry flavor and a beautiful pink color to the frosting. You can check out my tutorial on how to make berry reduction.
Don’t worry if your frosting appears to look split or curdled. Just keep whipping for several minutes until it comes together. We are adding a water-based substance (strawberry reduction) to a fat-based substance (butter) and that takes a lot of whipping to emulsify. The temperature of the ingredients can also cause this to happen.
This recipe makes about 5 cups of frosting which can frost about 2 to 3 dozen cupcakes (depending on how much frosting you use) or a 3-layer 7-inch or 8-inch round cake.
For this recipe, I highly recommend going with frozen strawberries. Frozen strawberries are flash frozen at peak freshness so they create a bright and intense strawberry flavor. Additionally, the frozen strawberries create a little more liquid when they are thawed which helps to make the reduction.
Absolutely. It may require a bit more time and effort, but an electric hand mixer will work just fine!
I recommend using a paddle attachment to make buttercream frosting. The paddle does not mix as much air into the frosting and helps to create a smoother texture.
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Strawberry Buttercream Frosting
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups (454 g) unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 5 cups (600 g) powdered sugar
- ½ cup (72 g) strawberry reduction (how to make strawberry reduction)
- ¼ cup (60 ml) heavy cream
- 2 tsp (2 tsp) vanilla extract
- ½ tsp (3 g) salt
Instructions
- Before making the buttercream, make the strawberry reduction. You can make the strawberry reduction up to a week in advance and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Bring the reduction to room temperature before making the buttercream.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or in a large mixing bowl with an electric hand mixer, whip the room temperature unsalted butter for 5 minutes until light, pale, and creamy.
- Add in half of the powdered sugar and mix on the lowest speed until the sugar is combined with the butter. Add the remaining half of the powdered sugar and continue to mix on low speed until fully combined.
- Add in the strawberry reduction and mix on low speed until fully combined with the butter mixture. Then, add in the heavy cream, vanilla extract, and salt, and continue to mix on low speed until combined and smooth. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure the ingredients are well incorporated.
- Increase the mixer speed to medium and whip the buttercream for about 3 to 5 minutes until it is smooth and creamy. If the buttercream looks split or curdled, this is normal, just continue to whip until it emulsifies and turns smooth and creamy. Then, turn the mixer to low speed and mix the buttercream for several minutes to remove air bubbles.
- Optional: To smooth out the buttercream, melt 1 cup of the frosting in the microwave for 15 seconds. Pour the melted frosting back into the mixing bowl and mix the frosting on low speed until the buttercream is super smooth and creamy.
Notes
- Room temperature: Store the frosting in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 day.
- Refrigerator: Store the frosting in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap in the refrigerator for 2 weeks. To use, bring the frosting to room temperature and re-whip with an electric mixer.
- Freezer: Store the frosting in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap in the freezer for 3 months. To use, bring the frosting to room temperature and re-whip with an electric mixer.
Nutrition
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About Courtney
Baker | 80s Lover | Cookbook Author
Courtney is a self-taught home baker and cookbook author of “Girls Just Wanna Bake Cupcakes”. She loves to create new and unique recipes while simultaneously listening to 80s music.
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