This Creamy Brown Sugar Frosting is super rich and loaded with sweetness and flavor. It’s easy to make and goes well with pretty much everything!
ITTTTTT’SSSSS Frosting Friday again!!! I have taken a few weeks off from our frosting adventures, but I am back and it’s a GOOD ONE! Today we’re talking about Creamy Brown Sugar Frosting. It’s sweet, creamy and crazy delicious.
It crusts perfectly, if you are looking for a great crusting frosting, and the flavor is out of this world! I would eat this stuff with a spoon if my dentist would let me!
The only “downside” to my recipe is it isn’t stiff enough to pipe flowers, or anything that needs a firm edge. And that’s ok! It’s the perfect “spreading” frosting if that makes sense. This brown sugar frosting is absolutely thicker than an icing, although you could easily add less powdered sugar to the recipe and make it more “pourable”.
Let me essplain…
Tips for Creamy Frosting
The trick for me, is to cook the brown sugar with some butter and heavy cream, thus basically enough to dissolve the brown sugar. You could make this without doing this step, but your brown sugar would still be a little crunchy in the frosting…
I’m not opposed to that, actually, but if you want ultra-creamy, you need to melt the sugar.
Just bring this mixture to a boil and then remove it from the heat. If you boiled it longer, you’d be making candy, like caramel.
Cool Completely Before Adding Powdered Sugar
You really need to let it cool completely before whipping it up with powdered sugar. It would get completely solid as it cools, but it will be a thick glorious butterscotchy sauce. Girl, yes.
You could stop there…yes you could.
But I have never been one to back down from adding more sugar.
SO yep…add in some powdered sugar and mix it using your whisk attachment to thicken this all up and create a more traditional type frosting.
This frosting is fantastic on ANY cake…vanilla, chocolate, yellow…
And you could absolutely add chopped pecans to it as well to make a praline frosting. How good would THAT be?!
Happy Frosting Friday, indeed!! Don’t forget to post your pictures on Instagram and use the hashtag #cookiesandcups and if it’s FROSTING use #FrostingFriday
To catch up our Frosting Friday adventures, check out these other great recipes:
Print
Creamy Brown Sugar Frosting
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 5
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Frosting
- Method: Stove
- Cuisine: American
Description
This Creamy Brown Sugar Frosting is super rich and loaded with sweetness and flavor. It’s easy to make and goes well with pretty much everything!
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter
- 1 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 4 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan over medium low heat bring the butter, brown sugar, and heavy cream to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat immediately and allow to cool completely.
- Transfer the brown sugar mixture into the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. With the mixer on low, slowly add in the vanilla and then powdered sugar. Turn the mixer speed up to medium and continue mixing until creamy and combined, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
Notes
This frosting is creamy and will pipe, but isn’t stiff enough to pipe roses. It also is a great “crusting” frosting.
Store airtight for up to 5 days in refrigerator. Bring back to room temperature before using.
Want To Save This Recipe?
Looks great! You said that it wouldn’t work to pipe flowers, but would it work to be thick enough to pipe onto cupcakes?
Thank you for all your great ideas!!
Yes, it just wouldn’t hold crisp edges if that’s what you are looking for 🙂
Ok! Wow! So here’s my total thought: I love rich but that icing was too rich for me to use as an icing on a cake. BUT that sauce mixture (is it technically homemade caramel?) that you add to the powdered sugar is amazing!!! It was like liquid toffee! So I am saving that to use in place of any other caramel sauce for the rest of my life. I think I will still attempt your icing again but use it as a glaze instead of frosting. Perhaps that’s what you meant it for anyway. Great job!
This sounds close to the recipe I continually try to find. My grandmother made a molasses cake with crackle brown sugar frosting when I was very young. She has long since passed and took the recipe with her. I recall her serving it and tapping the top with the back of a spoon and the frosting would crack in multiple areas. It was absolutely the best dessert.
New favorite frosting. Thanks for the recipe!
I love this frosting. I put it on spice cake
Would this frosting work with dairy free alternatives?
Yes, as long as it’s a heavy cream equivalent. If you use a nondairy milk, you will need to use less, as it will be thinner.
I made this frosting for pineapple upside down cupcakes, completely forgot the vanilla! It still turned out pretty delicious! Love love love it
I make this frosting but I put it on chocolate cake, of course, its really a darker chocolate cake.
Hi, Shelly! I almost want to make a batch of this frosting to keep in the fridge and eat by the spoonful. But I have a question: does the vanilla go in after the heated mixture is taken off heat? Thanks!
your recipes says to use the paddle attachment on your stand mixer but your pictures show the whisk attachment. Does it matter which one to use?
ahhh thank you for catching that! Just a typo! I use the paddle attachment for almost everything, so I get into auto-pilot more! You do use the whisk attachment! All fixed!
I have a recipe similar but yours looks better. I use mine for my banana cake and sometimes will put it on banana bread. It is so delicious, next time I’m gonna use yours it looks so good.
This would be epic on banana cake or bread!! Great idea!