A silky smooth but perfectly pipeable peanut butter frosting that’s the perfect complement to any cake or cupcake. Also great for just eating by the spoonful!
Maybe you guys haven’t noticed, but I’ve been working on bulking up my “Frostings” section on the blog.
In the past, I would share cake or cupcake recipes and tag on my preferred complementary frosting, but I’m a big believer in choices. Maybe you’d rather frost your funfetti cake with chocolate frosting (or even peanut butter frosting) instead of buttercream, right? Well I wanted to have a good variety of options for you to choose from.
So far I’ve shared my favorites of the following:
- Cream cheese frosting (<—- possibly my favorite frosting of all-time)
- Chocolate frosting
- Vanilla buttercream frosting
And today I’m adding peanut butter frosting to the list.
This recipe is super easy to make, and on Monday I’ll be sharing a very complementary and very dark chocolate cupcake recipe with you, but of course you can put it on whatever you want. You can even just eat it by the spoonful, I know I did.
And yet it remains a mystery to me why my cardio sessions aren’t paying off 😭
Anyway, Peanut Butter Frosting requires just 6 ingredients to make. It’s smooth, creamy, and is great for piping on top of cupcakes or decorating a cake.
Tips for Making Peanut Butter Frosting
- While chunky or creamy peanut butter can work in this peanut butter frosting recipe, I don’t recommend using chunky unless you don’t intend to pipe the frosting. The little peanut pieces will clog up your frosting tips in a second.
- I don’t recommend using natural peanut butter (the kind that separates, you know the one that you usually need to stir before using). I haven’t tried it myself but I’m pretty certain that it wouldn’t work too nicely work with this recipe (it would be too oily).
- This peanut butter frosting pipes very nicely as written. However, for a stiffer frosting, you can add an additional ½-1 cup (65-125g) of powdered sugar.
How Many Cupcakes/How Much Cake Will this Peanut Butter Frosting Cover?
- If you’re generously frosting your cupcakes (as seen in my cupcake photo below), then this frosting will handily cover 12-15 cupcakes. If you’re being a bit more modest, it will cover 24 (I covered 24 cupcakes with peanut butter frosting rosettes using the 1M tip).
- This frosting will also cover a 9×13 sheet cake or a round 2-layer 8″ or 9″ cake. Now I’m just thinking about how I want to make a cake with this frosting and then cover it with ganache… Yum!
Enjoy!
Oh, and do you have any requests for other frosting recipes you’d like to see? I’m currently working on caramel but would love any suggestions that you have!
How to Make Peanut Butter Frosting
Peanut Butter Frosting
Ingredients
- 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (245 g) creamy peanut butter
- 3 cups (375 g) powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 Tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Combine butter and peanut butter in a large bowl and use an electric mixer to beat until creamy and well-combined.1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, 1 cup (245 g) creamy peanut butter
- Gradually (about ⅓ cup at a time), with mixer on low speed add powdered sugar until completely combined. Be sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl so all ingredients are well-combined.3 cups (375 g) powdered sugar
- Stir in vanilla extract and salt.1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon salt
- With mixer on low-speed, add milk and stir until well-combined. Gradually increase speed to high and beat for 30 seconds.2 Tablespoons milk
- Spread or pipe frosting onto completely cooled cupcakes or cake.
Notes
Natural Peanut Butter
Since first sharing the recipe I have now tested this recipe with natural peanut butter and it worked just fine, though was a bit gritty.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Dan
Most excellent, not too sweet, easy and quick. Loved it.
Sam
Thank you so much, Dan! I am so glad you enjoyed the frosting. 🙂
Kris
This frosting is LEGIT!!! I used it to frost a chocolate poke cake I made for our Easter dinner and everyone raved about it!! Can’t wait to make it again for other things
Sam
Thank you so much, Kris! I am so glad you enjoyed the frosting. 🙂
Kate
This was my first attempt at making any sort of homemade frosting and it was super easy to follow and oh, so delicious! I am hoping it makes it until tomorrow when I actually make my cake (pending getting eaten by the spoonful tonight). Air tight container and in the fridge so fingers crossed!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you have enjoyed the frosting and I hope that there is plenty to frost your cake tomorrow, Kate! lol 😉 Trust me every time I make this myself, you can find me eating by the spoonful too. Delicious! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Debbie
Can I use margarine instead of butter?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Debbie! Margarine can be substituted for butter however it does not blend the same way butter does. It tends to break down unevenly. You might need to adjust the amount of liquid you are using to get the right consistency.
Chrisanne Cubby
This frosting ADDS 350 cal to each piece of cake?
I made a 9″ cake and will be using half this recipe. I will be cutting the cake into 8 pieces.
The cake itself is 190 calories a piece. And this will add 350 calories to each piece of cake?
I may just do powdered sugar on the top.
350 calories a serving is quite a lot!
Alejandra
I just finished making this frosting with the dark chocolate cupcake recipe you have. I followed everything as written and my frosting tasted very powdery. It felt like all I could taste was the powdered sugar. Is there something I could change to get a more silky texture?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Alejandra! Thank you for trying both of my recipes. I am sorry that your frosting was not smooth and creamy. It should not taste like powdered sugar but more of whipped peanut butter. You may have over measured the powdered sugar. You can try adding in a bit more milk to the frosting. Taste it and add in a little more peanut butter as needed. I hope that helps.
Any WC
Omg YUM. Just made this because I was craving peanut butter and something sweet!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed the frosting, Amy! I hope that it was the perfect fix to your peanut butter craving. 🙂
RebeccaNJ
I halved this recipe for a batch of mini vanilla cupcakes and they were amazing, I don’t even like cake and I couldn’t stop eating these, and my picky kids loved them too. So easy to make and with simple ingredients I already had in the house. Thanks so much, best peanut butter icing recipe I’ve used!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that everyone enjoyed the mini cupcakes, along with the frosting, Rebecca! Thank you so much for trying my recipe. I appreciate the feedback. 🙂
Heather Piercy
such a great frosting! I made it exactly as recommended and it was excellent. What a great treat. Thanks for the easy recipe!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed the frosting, Heather! Thank you for commenting. 🙂
Tina
Has anyone ever had their frosting ‘break’? I have done everything from adding more conf sugar to adding more milk…nothing. I used creamy jif & butter, wth?!?!?!
Sam
Oh no! I’m sorry to hear this, Tina! I was going to ask what kind of peanut butter you used but classic Jif should be fine… By chance did the butter get too warm I’ve never had this happen with this recipe 🙁
Lakshmi
Amazing frosting! Thanks for sharing this recipe. I ran out of sugar so used probably around 2 cups, but turned out great nevertheless!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed it! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Laine Jacob
Amazing. I almost ran out of peanut butter. I substituted in 1/3 cup philadelphia (tub) for the p.b. and skipped the milk. Delicious
. Thanks for the jumping off recipe.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that it turned out well with your substitutions and you enjoyed the frosting, Laine! Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Carolyn Creasy
I made a third of this recipe to frost a triple chocolate Bundt cake. Delicious! Thank you.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed it and that it paired perfectly with your bundt cake, Carolyn. Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Lora
Can I use buttermilk instead of cream?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Lora! This recipe does not call for cream. If you are looking to replace the milk with buttermilk, I think that should be fine. 🙂
Glenda
I use heavy cream and beat on high for about 5 min and it just melts in your mouth.
Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for sharing, Glenda! 🙂
Erin
Enjoyed this frosting on brownies. Very light! Thanks for the recipe!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed the frosting and that it paired perfectly on top of your brownies, Erin! Thank you for commenting. 🙂
MC
I put this on top of my banana nut bread muffins and the accolades are continuous – I tell everyone I got the recipe from your webpage. Thank you for sharing.
Sugar Spun Run
Now that is a wonderful pairing, MC! Thank you so much for sharing and for trying my recipe. I am so glad you enjoyed it. A special thanks for sharing my site with others, I greatly appreciate it. 🙂
Kristina
Funny that you mentioned using this to frost a cake and then covering it with chocolate ganache because that was my plan and that’s what made me choose this recipe! I followed the directions exactly and used it to frost a 4-layer chocolate cake. Then I drizzled chocolate ganache over the top and let it drip down the sides. It was beautiful and delicious! The consistency of this frosting was perfect. Thank you!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed it and your cake came out beautiful, Kristina! Thanks for trying my recipe! 🙂
Mary Beth
This is the best! It was so light and delicious. It turned a box devil’s food cake into an incredible cake. I’ve made several PB frostings, and this was by far the best! I’m saving this recipe and using it from now on. Thank you!!
Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much, Mary Beth! I am so glad that you enjoyed the frosting. Thanks for keeping my recipe for future use. Enjoy! 🙂