Do you have a birthday or other special event coming up? If so, you need a delicious cake to serve as the main star of your event.
Cake batters may be flavored with a variety of tastes, including chocolate, coconut, vanilla, and strawberry.
However, you can also create bold, unique flavors in your frosting. The icing is what really makes a cake come to life.
Regardless of flavor or theme, frosting can elevate a simple base. The majority of frosting contains powdered sugar because it holds up better than normal granulated sugar.
But, learning how to create frosting without powdered sugar is essential if you don’t like powdered sugar, can’t consume it, or don’t enjoy it.
Making cake icing without powdered sugar is simple. All you have to do is change a few key elements.
Best of all, these substitutions work well for much more than just cake. This frosting is suitable for cookies, cakes, cupcakes, and even muffins (delicious!). Let’s start baking!
How to Make Frosting Without Powdered Sugar? (Step by Step)
As previously said, preparing frosting without powdered sugar is simple. Additionally, it merely only a few steps.
To make frosting without powdered sugar, the first thing you have to do is gather up all of your ingredients. This includes the following:
- Milk or another vegan alternative, if applicable
- Either brown or granulated white sugar
- Flour
- Vanilla extract
- Butter
- Salt
Now that you have your supplies, here’s how to create powdered sugar-free frosting:
- Combine milk, sugar, flour, and a pinch of salt into a pot over medium heat. Stir until the mixture is thickened.
- Remove from heat and place icing in the refrigerator to chill. This should take no more than 20-30 minutes.
- Add room-temperature butter to a separate bowl and beat until smooth and creamy.
- Next, add vanilla essence to the mixing bowl. Then, add the cooled milk mixture to the bowl.
- Whip until fluffy.
- Serve and enjoy.
Ensure to let your cake cool completely before putting ice; else, it will melt off.
What Can I Use Instead of Powdered Sugar for Frosting?
Quite a few things! When it comes to a frosting recipe without powdered sugar, there are four common substitutes you can use that will pair perfectly with your cake.
Best Powdered Sugar Substitutes:
1. Coconut Sugar:
Coconut sugar, also known as coconut palm sugar, is a form of sugar derived from the sap of a palm tree. Because of how this coconut is harvested, many falsely believe that it’s a healthier alternative to regular cane sugar.
They do, however, have very comparable calorie counts. However, it has been linked to lower blood sugar spikes.
If you don’t like coconut, don’t worry since it tastes similar to brown sugar. Others believe that it also has a toasted taste. In any recipe, use this in lieu of powdered sugar.
2. Hot Cocoa Mix:
This 1:1 substitution is ideal for any chocolate-based recipes that would normally call for powdered sugar.
Since hot cocoa mix tastes more sweet than chocolatey, it’s a wonderful (and simple) substitute for powdered sugar in chocolate frosting.
3. Dry Milk Powder:
You may make dry milk powder by removing all of the water from a glass of milk.
Dry milk powder has a longer shelf life than typical gallons of milk since it contains no liquid, so you may store it in your kitchen cupboard until you’re ready to bake.
To use as a substitute for powdered sugar, combine one cup of dry milk powder and one cup of cornstarch.
4. Granulated Sugar:
Granulated sugar is coarser than powdered sugar, which is soft. Because of this difference inconsistency, you have to be precise when using granulated sugar to substitute powdered ones.
The easiest method to achieve this is to measure the amount of sugar. In this case, swap one cup of powdered sugar for four ounces of granulated sugar.
Can I Use White Sugar Instead of Powdered Sugar for Frosting?
You certainly can. However, it shouldn’t be heavily relied upon as the best alternative.
White sugar dissolves more readily than traditional powdered sugar (also known as granulated sugar).
But that doesn’t mean you can’t obtain it as well. You’d have to mill the granular sugar until it was the consistency of powdered sugar. This may be accomplished by gently crushing it in a blender or food processor.
Making Icing From Scratch Without Powdered Sugar?
Here’s how to create homemade vanilla icing without powdered sugar:
- Whisk 2 tablespoons of flour, 1 cup of milk, and a pinch of salt together in a saucepan. Stir constantly over medium heat until thickened.
- Take from the heat and set aside to cool. Make sure your icing batter reaches room temperature.
- In a separate bowl, combine ¾ cup of sugar and a stick of butter until everything is creamy. Blend in the chilled milk mixture until it is fluffy.
- Next, add your vanilla extract. If you don’t have vanilla extract, swap it out for almond extract or honey.
- Serve and enjoy!
Tips to Make Frosting Without Powdered Sugar?
Considering how common homemade celebratory cakes are, knowing how to make icing without powdered sugar. Here are a few professional pointers to remember:
- If your icing is a touch runny, add a teaspoon of melted butter to make it fluffier.
- If you use brown sugar as a replacement, your frosting may get gritty.
- If you want a thicker frosting, add additional sugar until the desired consistency is reached.
How to Use Frosting in:
As mentioned earlier in this article, a frosting recipe without powdered sugar isn’t just limited to cakes. It is applicable to all baked goods, including muffins, cakes, doughnuts, and brownies.
Here are some creative ways to utilize frosting in desserts:
- Cake Icing is best utilized as a cake decoration. However, you can get creative and add layers of frosting inside your cake for a special treat.
- Cookies : If you’re looking for a unique way to utilize frosting for cookies, try making a dip to dunk them in. This is ideal for a late-night snack. Also, the youngsters will like it. Of course, typical frosting may be used on top of the biscuit. Our favorite way to eat it is with gingerbread or snickerdoodles.
- Cupcakes Icing, like cakes, is best utilized as a topping on cupcakes. To boost your game, consider adding a little food coloring to various cupcakes. Not only will this look nice at events, but you can match various colors with different tastes, such as pink icing with strawberry-flavored cupcakes.
- Brownies A thick coating of chocolate frosting on top of your brownie transforms it into an entirely new dish. Best of all, you can customize your frosting by adding in candy pieces, nuts, and even cake or cookie crumbles.
- Muffins : If you’re looking to make your muffins a little sweeter, try drizzling a little bit of icing on them. This goes well with chocolate chip and blueberry muffins and a nice cup of coffee.
Cream Cheese Frosting Without Powdered Sugar
Cream cheese frosting is a common addition to a variety of baked items.
This kind of frosting lives up to its name and has a similar flavor to regular cream cheese. It won’t, however, taste like what you’d spread on your morning bagel.
Cream cheese frosting comes in a variety of tastes, which is due to the cream cheese itself (which makes it our secret ingredient).
If you don’t have any, you may simply substitute mascarpone or plain greek yogurt.
Ingredients
- 10 oz, full fat brick cream cheese
- 2 oz butter, room temperature
- pinch of salt
- 2 to 4 tbsp honey
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 to 2 tbsp milk
- 1 to 2 tbsp corn starch
Instructions
- In a mixing dish, combine room temperature cream cheese and butter. Blend on high with a hand mixer. After well blended, add a touch of salt and your choice sweetener.
- Mix in a spoonful of cornstarch with the other ingredients. If you want a thicker icing, use extra cornstarch (not totaling more than 2 tablespoons). If you wish to thin down the frosting, add a little milk until it reaches the consistency you want.
- Add immediately to your favorite dessert or use as a dipping sauce.