Cinnamon Buttercream
Add some warm spiced flavor to your fall desserts with Cinnamon Buttercream! It’s a smooth and creamy cinnamon frosting you can use to decorate sugar cookies, cupcakes, small cakes, and more.
Despite the unusually warm weather outside in PA, fall baking in my kitchen is in full swing! And what better way to add more fall flavor to your homemade baked goods than with this Cinnamon Buttercream?!
This cinnamon spice buttercream frosting is super smooth and creamy and adds a warm and cozy feeling to all of your fall baked goods.
It’s my classic small batch buttercream frosting with a hint of cinnamon added.
It originally debuted with my pumpkin sugar cookies, but you can also use it for pumpkin pie cupcakes, pumpkin cake, pumpkin poke cake, banana cupcakes, snickerdoodle cookie bars, and more.
You can even use it as a buttercream frosting for puff pastry cinnamon rolls.
And if you’re not a huge fan of apples and pumpkins, you can use it for any of my 6 inch cake recipes and small batch cupcake recipes including gingerbread cupcakes.
Ingredients For Cinnamon Buttercream
To make your cinnamon buttercream frosting, you’ll need the following ingredients:
- Powdered sugar: Thickens the frosting so you can easily spread or pipe it.
- Butter: Butter provides richness and creaminess (hence the name buttercream)
- Ground cinnamon:The star of the frosting! Obviously the fresher is better, but your average ground cinnamon will do. You can also use pumpkin pie spice for even more flavor.
- Salt: Add a pinch of salt if using unsalted butter.
- Milk: Helps smooth out the frosting (especially if you’re using a knife to spread)
- Vanilla extract: Adds more depth of flavor so it’s not one note
How To Make Cinnamon Frosting
Here’s how to make cinnamon buttercream:
- Beat together powdered sugar, butter, cinnamon, and salt until smooth and creamy then scrape down the bowl.
- Add milk and vanilla then beat for an additional minute. If it’s too thick, add a little more milk. If it’s not thick enough for piping, add more powdered sugar.
Can cinnamon buttercream be made in advance?
Yes, you can make cinnamon buttercream frosting in advance! Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
You may need to bring your frosting to room temperature if it’s too hard to spread.
Do you have to refrigerate buttercream frosting?
No, you do not need to refrigerate buttercream frosting. Because it uses a good amount of powdered sugar, it’s safe to leave out at room temperature for 2-3 days.
However, buttercream tends to melt if it’s too warm because of the butter’s melting point. In the winter I can leave my cake out, but in the summer I refrigerate my cakes.
You will also want to refrigerate your cake if you want it to last longer than 3 days.
Cinnamon Buttercream FAQ
It’s likely your butter is too cold. Make sure you’re using room temperature butter.
Chances are the temperatures of your ingredients are off. Your butter is too warm and/or your cream is too cold. Warm butter + cold cream doesn’t mix well. To fix this, slightly warm up your bowl over a pan of simmering water then beat until smooth again.
Your butter is too soft, you may have added too much liquid, or your kitchen is too warm. To fix this, add a little more powdered sugar to thicken it up or refrigerate for 15 minutes before using.
More Frosting Recipes
Enjoyed this cinnamon buttercream? Check out my other frosting recipes:
- Small Batch Chocolate Frosting
- Peanut Butter Frosting
- Small Batch Cream Cheese Frosting
- Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
- Coconut Frosting
Cinnamon Buttercream
Add some warm spiced flavor to your fall desserts with Cinnamon Buttercream! It's a smooth and creamy cinnamon frosting you can use to decorate sugar cookies, cupcakes, small cakes, and more.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (4 ounces or 8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup - 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch of table salt
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream or whole milk, room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl (with the paddle attachment if using a stand mixer), beat together the butter, 1/2 cup powdered sugar, cinnamon, and salt until smooth and creamy, about 1-2 minutes.
- Scrape the bowl down with a rubber spatula. Add the cream and vanilla. Beat for another 1-2 minutes or until light and fluffy.
At this point you can decide how much more sugar to add. Ideally you want to use all 1 cup for best consistency. However, some people find it too sweet so you can be the judge.
If the frosting is too thick, add a few more drops of milk. If the frosting is too thin, add a little more sugar. - Decorate cake as desired or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Notes
- I recommend using this frosting for Pumpkin Sugar Cookies and Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes.
- Need cake ideas? Check out my full list of Small Cake Recipes and Small Batch Cupcake Recipes.
- Enjoyed this recipe? Check out my full list of Small Batch Frosting Recipes, including chocolate, strawberry, and more.
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Thanks for this! What a great idea!
I love the smaller amount. Every recipe I have seems to frost things much more generously than I. Always have quite a bit leftover.
This seems like a perfect autumn treat!
Yes same problem here! That’s why I do smaller batches. Glad you enjoy it!