Creamy Gluten Free Frosting Recipe + Tips (2024)

Table of Contents

Classic Frosting Flavors:

Most people tend to make more classic flavors of frosting to top their gluten free cakes and cupcakes. Here are some of my favorite classic frosting recipes:

• The Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting in my Gluten Free Chocolate Cake recipe is thick and full of rich chocolate flavor!
• Chocolate Buttercream Frosting is the star of my Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcakes recipe.
• The creaminess of this Vanilla Buttercream Frosting adds to the sweet flavor of these Gluten Free Banana Cupcakes.
• This Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting is the hero of my incredible Gluten Free Carrot Cake recipe.
• I added some instant coffee and cocoa powder to make the Mocha Buttercream Frosting in my Gluten Free Mocha Cupcakes recipe.

Extracts and Dried Fruit Powders – My favorite way to add flavor to frosting is to use an extract like vanilla, almond, or freeze-dried fruit that has been ground to powder. A great example is my Gluten Free Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Frosting recipe.

I used coconut extract to flavor the Coconut Frosting I used to make my Gluten Free Coconut Cupcakes.

Spices and Powders – You can also use spices like cinnamon or nutmeg to flavor frosting. I used cinnamon to make this creamy Cinnamon Frosting on top of my Gluten Free Pumpkin Cupcakes. Cocoa powder is a staple for making chocolate frosting.

Juices – If you love lemonade, add lemon juice and pink gel food color to the frosting to make Pink Lemonade Frosting as I did in my Gluten Free Pink Lemonade Cupcakes recipe.

Caramels – Add in a little caramel to make Caramel Buttercream Frosting like in this Gluten Free Caramel Cupcakes recipe.

You can also make this yummy Burnt Caramel Buttercream Frosting for even more flavor!

Champagne – Get festive and use champagne to make your frosting! I used it to make Champagne Frosting in these Gluten Free Champagne Cupcakes.

How To Color Frosting:

I usually recommend using gel food coloring if you plan to color frosting. It is more condensed than watery food coloring and blends into frosting without changing the texture.

I used a combination of black gel food coloring and food-grade charcoal to make the Black Frosting for these Gluten Free Black Velvet Cupcakes.

My friend at Family Spice used Cool Aid to color and flavor her Ombre Frosting recipe. I plan to give this a try sometime; it looks really cool!

How Do You Pipe Frosting?

Piping your frosting has a little bit of a learning curve, but many frosting patterns are straightforward to pipe! This tutorial by Wilton has a lot of easy videos to show you how to make all sorts of designs with frosting.

This short video shows how to pipe the pink flower petals used to make my gluten free pink lemonade cupcakes.

You can also pipe frosting into a pastry like these Gluten Free Fried Jelly Donuts. They are delicious with traditional jelly or frosting!

Tools Needed To Make Frosting:

You can make perfect fluffy frosting in a standing mixer or by using an electric mixer. Either will work beautifully to make

• Standing mixer – A standing mixer is the workhorse of the kitchen. It can whip up the fluffiest of frostings!
• Electric mixer – An electric mixer is a handheld mixer that you hold and moves through the ingredients to whip them up.
• Piping tips – Piping tips are what give shape to your frosting. This easy starter kit is reasonable and has all you need to get started.
• Piping Bags – I like to use disposable piping bags. This brand is a bargain and gets great reviews.

How To Make Gluten Free Frosting:

Step 1: Be sure your butter is at room temperature. This is important so the butter whips into the powdered sugar. I recommend removing the butter from the refrigerator for 1-2 hours (or longer) before making the frosting.

Step 2: Add the powdered sugar, room-temperature butter, vanilla extract, and milk to a standing mixer or large mixing bowl. (If you use a mixing bowl, you will want to use an electric mixer to whip up the frosting.)

Step 3: Mix the ingredients at a low speed and gradually increase the speed. Going slowly at first will prevent the powdered sugar from flying out of the bowl.

Step 4: Whip for 2-3 minutes until creamy. Refrigerate the frosting for 15 minutes.

Step 5: Add the frosting to a piping bag with a large spoon. Be sure to use a scraper to scrape down the sides of the bowl to get all of the frosting out.

Can you freeze frosting?

You can easily freeze frosting. I like to freeze it in freezer bags. Be sure to squeeze the extra air out of the bag before sealing it.

How long will frosting keep fresh?

Most frosting should keep fresh for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.

How do you store gluten free frosting?

I always store my gluten free frosting in an air-tight container in my refrigerator.

What kinds of gluten free frosting are there?

There are several kinds of gluten free frosting, but buttercream and cream cheese frostings are the most common. (Note that ermine frosting is not gluten free because it contains flour.)

How do you make dairy-free frosting?

You can make dairy-free frosting easily by using palm shortening instead of butter for the fat.

Can you use vegetable shortening to make frosting?

Yes, you can use vegetable or palm shortening to make the frosting.

What can you use frosting for?

Frosting can be used for anything. I love using it for layer cakes, birthday cakes, and cupcakes.

How to Make Gluten Free Frosting

Sandi Gaertner

This gluten free frosting recipe makes a thick and creamy vanilla buttercream frosting that is perfect for decorating cake and cupcakes!

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Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 281kcalCarbohydrates: 45gProtein: 1gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 31mgSodium: 104mgPotassium: 10mgSugar: 44gVitamin A: 361IUCalcium: 8mgIron: 1mg