The Best Raspberry Buttercream Frosting
We’ve taken our amazing Buttercream Frosting recipe to the next level by adding delicious fresh raspberries. It definitely is The Best Raspberry Buttercream Frosting you’ve ever tasted!
It used to be that fresh Raspberries were only in season in the late summer but that is not true anymore. You can find them in your grocery store any time of year now … so you have no excuse not to try our delicious The Best Raspberry Buttercream Frosting! Light and fresh with just a hint of tart, this yummy homemade frosting will take whatever you are baking to the next level, we promise. We love it on brownies and other chocolate cakes and cupcakes. But honestly, it would taste great on anything you would put a regular Buttercream Frosting on. We hope you enjoy it as much as our family does!
How to Prepare the Raspberries
Step 1: Our Raspberry Frosting starts with a 6 oz. clamshell of Fresh Raspberries which is approximately 1 cup of raspberries. If you can’t find fresh, frozen will also work.
Steps 2 & 3: Place the cup of raspberries in a food processor and purée them.
Step 4: Run the puréed raspberries through a sieve to remove the seeds.
How to Make the Frosting
Step 5: Add the butter and 1/3 cup raspberry purée to a mixing bowl. (Keep the rest of the raspberry purée to add later if the frosting needs more liquid.) The butter should be what we call “slightly softened” which is somewhere in between straight out of the refrigerator and room temperature.
Step 6: Mix the butter and purée until they are completely combined (about 3 minutes.) Stop halfway through and scrape the butter/raspberry mixture off the mixing paddle and the sides of the bowl.
Step 7: Add the powdered sugar to the butter/raspberry mixture in the mixing bowl.
Step 8: Start your mixer (or electric beater) on the lowest setting. (Two Sisters Tip: place a clean dishtowel around your mixer to keep the sugar from flying out.) Keep on low until the butter and sugar are incorporated (about 30 seconds), remove the dishtowel, and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Increase the mixer speed to medium-high and mix for 30-45 more seconds until the frosting starts to be light and fluffy.
Step 9: If the frosting is too thick at this point, add more raspberry purée and mix again. This frosting is a little looser than a typical buttercream because of the fresh fruit but it will firm up in the refrigerator. The raspberry flavor will also deepen after sitting in the refrigerator overnight so this is a good frosting to make ahead and frost the next day. If after some time in the refrigerator, the frosting is still too “wet”, add 1/2 cup additional powdered sugar. Keep adding powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time until you have the frosting at the desired consistency.
How to Serve
How much frosting will you need? That always depends on how thick or thin you apply the frosting or how much decorating you do but here are a couple of guidelines. Our recipe should make enough Raspberry Icing to cover a 9″ x 13″ sheet cake or a two-layer 8″ cake. If you are making cupcakes, you should be able to frost 24 cupcakes if you apply the frosting with a knife. If you swirl on the frosting with a pastry bag like we have done here, you should be able to frost 15-18 cupcakes depending on the size of the swirl.
Expert Tips and FAQ’s
Yes! You will still puree the frozen raspberries but make sure they are completely thawed and strain out any water/liquid before you puree them. Follow the rest of the recipe just as it is.
Frosting stored in an air-tight container in the refrigerator should be good for up to a week. If you carefully wrap the frosting in order to avoid freezer burn, the frosting should be fine in the freezer for 3-4 months.
Yes. Because it is a thin frosting it will hold up best in the refrigerator. We store the baked goods frosted with this Raspberry Frosting in the refrigerator but then remove them from the refrigerator a couple of hours before we will serve them so the frosting comes back up to room temperature (which is how it tastes best.)
Add another teaspoon of raspberry purée and mix again. Continue to add the purée, a teaspoon at a time, until the frosting is the consistency that you like it
Temperature plays a big part in the consistency of frosting. A thin frosting could mean that the butter has gotten overworked and is too melted. The first thing to do is refrigerate the frosting for an hour and then check to see if the frosting has set back up again. If not, the next step is to add more powdered sugar or cornstarch. Start with either 1/2 cup of Powdered Sugar or 1 tablespoon of Cornstarch. Mix again and see if the consistency is better.
Other Frosting Recipes You Will Love
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The Best Raspberry Buttercream Frosting
We've taken our amazing Buttercream Frosting recipe to the next level by adding delicious fresh raspberries. It definitely is The Best Raspberry Buttercream Frosting you've ever tasted!
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup Raspberry Purée
- 1 cup of Butter - softened (we used Salted Sweet Cream Butter)
- 5 cups Powdered Sugar
Instructions
- Our Raspberry Frosting starts with a 6 oz. clamshell of Fresh Raspberries which is approximately 1 cup of raspberries. If you can't find fresh, frozen will also work.
- Place the cup of raspberries in a food processor and purée them.
- Run the puréed raspberries through a sieve to remove the seeds.
- Add the butter and 1/3 cup raspberry purée to a mixing bowl. (Keep the rest of the raspberry purée to add later if the frosting needs more liquid.) The butter should be what we call “slightly softened” which is somewhere in between straight out of the refrigerator and room temperature.
- Mix the butter and purée until they are completely combined (about 3 minutes.) Stop halfway through and scrape the butter/raspberry mixture off the mixing paddle and the sides of the bowl.
- Add the powdered sugar to the butter/raspberry mixture in the mixing bowl.
- Start your mixer (or electric beater) on the lowest setting. (Two Sisters Tip: place a clean dishtowel around your mixer to keep the sugar from flying out.) Keep on low until the butter and sugar are incorporated (about 30 seconds), remove the dishtowel, and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Increase the mixer speed to medium-high and mix for 30-45 more seconds until the frosting starts to be light and fluffy.
- If the frosting is too thick at this point, add more raspberry purée and mix again. This frosting is a little looser than a typical buttercream because of the fresh fruit but it will firm up in the refrigerator. The raspberry flavor will also deepen after sitting in the refrigerator overnight so this is a good frosting to make ahead and frost the next day. If after some time in the refrigerator, the frosting is still too "wet”, add 1/2 cup additional powdered sugar. Keep adding powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time until you have the frosting at the desired consistency.
Notes
How much frosting will you need?
That always depends on how thick or thin you apply the frosting or how much decorating you do but here are a couple of guidelines. Our recipe should make enough Raspberry Icing to cover a 9″ x 13″ sheet cake or a two-layer 8″ cake. If you are making cupcakes, you should be able to frost 24 cupcakes if you apply the frosting with a knife. If you swirl on the frosting with a pastry bag like we have done here, you should be able to frost 15-18 cupcakes depending on the size of the swirl.
Did you Make this Recipe? Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @twosisterscrafting on Instagram so we can see it!
Hi, I have baked your recipes before and love them. This was great but my husband thought it was too sweet of course my girlfriends didn’t!!
This frosting was so good! It’s a definite keeper! I could eat it by the spoonful. I accidentally mixed the butter and sugar together first and then added the raspberry purée, still worked out great!
I made the buttercream to go with a lemon cupcake, it turned out great! The color was beautiful and the taste was perfect! It was a bit sour but it paired great with the lemon.
I used this frosting for my granddaughter’s chocolate birthday cake. It was a great success – both kids and adults loved it! I had made a double batch, so will have some to use again for cupcakes.
Can I use frozen raspberries without thawing them or will it turn the icing runny when left to sit?
No, you would need to thaw them. You are right the frosting will be way too runny.
Can I make this raspberry buttercream ahead and freeze it? I only need to use it (for a wedding cake) in two weeks. Also, can I add chocolate to it?
Hi Maureen, you can make it ahead and freeze it. I love the idea of adding chocolate to the frosting. It would probably make it not as wet, which is a bonus. I am definitely going to try this. Thanks!
Can I use this buttercream for under icing a birthday cake
thanks
I don’t think it would work. It would be a good frosting between the layers but it might slide off the side of the cake.
Defintiely does not slide off, if you make the right consistency. It was perfect for my 4 layer red velvet drip
cake
Hi. Just made the chocolate cupcakes with your raspberry frosting. They were really good. Will make it again.
Do you recommend the paddle attachment or whisk attachment on my stand mixer for this recipe?
Hi Mary-Margaret, I always use the paddle attachment.
This looks delicious, but if I wanted to make this a cream cheese frosting instead of a buttercream, how should I alter the recipe? Thanks!
Hi Colleen, I would use our https://www.twosisterscrafting.com/the-best-cream-cheese-frosting/ and substitute the liquid for the raspberry puree. It will be a very soft frosting, so you won’t be able to use it to frost a coke or cupcakes. It will need to be on something flat like a cookie or sheet cake.
Just in case anyone is thinking about doing this, the recipe will not work with vegan butter!! I think the fresh raspberries reacted with the vegan butter. The frosting “split” and has weird little chunks in it. Too bad!
I made a mistake and didn’t get enough raspberries for all my cake needs, so i made a double batch of this and substituted in some tart raspberry jam i had lying around. had to reduce the sugar to 7 cups total, and added some salt and vanilla so it wasn’t so one-note. Huge success!
Hi, I only have unsalted butter. How much salt would I use? 1 tsp?
Thank you can wait to try this recipe today.
I would start with 1/2 teaspoon and see what you think before adding the other 1/2 teaspoon.
can you freeze this frosting? I have 4 containers of black raspberries I would like to try this with.
Yes, this frosting can be frozen for up to two months.
Made this last week for fun experimenting purposes and it was a hit! Love the aspect of using fresh raspberries. Thanks for the recipe !
You’re so welcome. Glad to hear you enjoyed the frosting!
I live in the UK and I am bit confused about which butter to use. Is english salted butter suitable for this recipe or shall I use unsalted?
Hi Renata, you should use salted butter.
Made this for a vanilla cake and added some vanilla extract to the frosting and it came out so delicious. Love the tart taste from the raspberries! ❤️
I’m making blue raspberry frosting so can I add blue food coloring to this recipe or will it just turn purple?
I think it might turn a bit grey-ish – I think you could get it to blue but you might need to use a little more food coloring. I would try a gel Food Coloring. They are usually more concentrated so you can get a brighter color with less food coloring.
I made this frosting over the weekend. I did add some 1/2 lemon juice to the raspberry puree. I found that my frosting was quite grainy. Any tips on how to avoid this? I continued to let it beat in my kitchen aid with the paddle attachment but it did not smooth out. Should I have sifted the powdered sugar or had the butter softer?
That’s strange that you had that problem with this recipe. There is so much liquid in this recipe that usually takes care of any graininess. Definitely try sifting the powdered sugar next time.
How do you purée the raspberries. Do you heat them or just put them in the blender
Hi Ava, I just put them in the blender.
Okay thank you
This recipe is sooo good! I used it for some cupcakes I made for a baby shower and it’s soooo good! The recipe was enough for 24 cupcakes! The butter and sugar together creamed nicely and the flavor of the raspberry is just tart enough. I will definitely use this again!
Thanks!
Hi Tracy! We are so glad that you liked the frosting. It is one of our favorites too. I love it on Brownies!
Can we use strawberries instead of raspberries? Will it give the same effect?
Yes, although you don’t need to run the mixture through a sieve. Here’s our recipe. https://www.twosisterscrafting.com/strawberry-buttercream-frosting/
Just in case anyone else is confused, I mixed the Butter and Powdered Sugar, but kept waiting on it to get ‘creamy’. I assumed we were missing the usual milk. But since nobody had commented about it, and it was definitely not in the recipe….I went ahead and added the raspberry puree. THAT is the only liquid in the recipe, and it turned out perfect after that. I did have to add about another 1/2 cup of sugar to make it “pipe-able”. I’m setting it in the fridge to thicken a little more also before frosting the cupcakes later. But Wow….Yes, the flavor is HEAVENLY!!!! Thanks for this Keeper!!! I also agree with the above…I’d triple this recipe for most of the things we would do with it!!!
oops, I meant Double it!!! I forgot I didn’t have enough raspberries for a full recipe, so I cut it in half. But, I would still say to double it for lots of cupcakes, or a medium sized layered cake!!
Hi! I plan on making this to go on top of chocolate cupcakes for a wedding, but I need to know if I can store the frosting in the piping bag (in the refrigerator) or if it has to stay in the bowl and then be whipped up again before using. Thanks!
Hi Ariana, yes you can store the frosting in a piping bag in the refrigerator.
Just made this recipe on lemon cupcakes and it just changed my life
Hahaha, we are so glad you enjoyed it!
Hello, can you use frozen raspberries?
Did a search of the comments, got my answer! Thanks!
This was amazing for my daughter’s birthday cupcakes! I made it even simpler on myself by using Thrive Life freeze dried raspberries, so I got a super strong flavour without needing to drain off the excess liquid from the raspberries.
What a great idea! We’ll have to try that.
My husband insisted I add more purée because it didn’t taste “raspberry-y” enough. Now it looks like it’s separating. Any suggestions to save it? (The plan to fill macaron shells) thanks!
Hi Ellen … First, the raspberry flavor will continue to develop and will be stronger in a couple of hours. To fix the immediate problem there are two things you can do. First, put the frosting back in the refrigerator and let it set back up a bit and see if that helps. It might be that the butter is melting but it will harden back up in the refrigerator. Second, if you think you’ve added too much liquid with the raspberry puree you could try to mix in another 1/4 cup of powdered sugar. Hope this helps! Good luck.
If we don’t have raspberries can we use jam? And how would you go about using the jam?
Hi Anna, I’m not sure jam would work. It might add too much sugar to the frosting.
Hi about how many cupcakes are you able to frost with this recipe?
Hi Carly, you should probably be able to frost 15-18 cupcakes with this recipe.
Hi! How far in advance can you make this frosting?
Hi Nathalie, you can make this frosting up to a week in advance.
Just made this for graduation cupcakes. Awesome! Way easier than I thought it would be. They got a ton of compliments
Hi Janet – Yay! We’re so glad you like the frosting. This one is definitely a crowd pleaser.
made this today and everyone flipped over it! my only problem was that there just wasn’t enough to ice and decorate a 2 layer cake. I mean, there was enough, but not to get fancy. so good!!
This raspberry frosting recipe is just what I was looking for. Tastes wonderful and looks so pretty. Thanks!
how long can I leave the cake iced with buttercream outside fridge (room temp)?
It should be fine for a few hours. The only problem would be if it was in the direct sun or someplace very warm. Since it’s a pretty wet frosting, it might slide a little in those conditions.
Can you use frozen (thawed) raspberries?
Sure!
Maybe I’m just not seeing it, but it says to add the butter and cream. I don’t see cream in the ingredients list. What type of cream and how much?
Hi – sorry. We mean cream the butter and powdered sugar in the mixer. Cream as a verb not a noun. Sorry for the confusion.
Do these need to be refrigerated?
If you are frosting the cake/cupcakes the same day, it (they) do not need to be refigerated. If you make it the day before, it should be refrigerated.