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Homemade Marshmallow Frosting recipe – great for cakes and cupcakes! Just a few ingredients including marshmallow fluff, butter, vanilla, & powdered sugar make this icing a hit!
This marshmallow fluff frosting can be used to top vanilla cupcakes, chocolate cupcakes, or any flavor cupcake you like! You could even use it to make s’mores brownies with some crushed up graham crackers.
No hassle, just quick & easy!
For the most recent cupcakes I made, I decided I wanted to use Marshmallow Frosting. I did a few google searches but found only ones that involved egg whites and decided I needed a quick and Easy Marshmallow Frosting.
I had remembered I saw one on Pinterest one day. It was from Just a Pinch. I usually modify all recipes, but this one was already nearly perfect—I just added a little vanilla. 🙂
It only required a small handful of ingredients, and the finished product was so tasty. It’s a really nice texture too—not too thin and “whipped”, but not too dense like some buttercream frostings. I’ve used it on multiple flavors of cupcakes already!!
Just 4 ingredients!
This recipe is so easy because it only uses 4 ingredients (and egg whites is NOT one of them!!):
- butter (make sure it’s at room temperature)
- marshmallow fluff
- powdered sugar
- vanilla extract (extract, not flavoring)
If you’re having a hard time finding the marshmallow fluff, check in the baking isle of your grocery store. The label might also say “jet puffed marshmallow creme”. This works the same! If you still don’t have any luck, Amazon is always on option. 😉
When you’re mixing the ingredients together, make sure the powdered sugar and butter are completely creamed together before adding anything else. There should be no visible clumps of powdered sugar.
Use a rubber spatula to scrape any stray clumps from the side of the bowl, and to mix in the fluff by hand (rather than using a beater/electric hand mixer).
Tips, tricks, and troubleshooting
How much this frosting will cover depends on how you use it. If you’re piping it on, or being really decorative, this recipe makes enough frosting to cover 12 cupcakes. If you are spreading it on with a knife, it will cover several more.
You can use it to frost a cake, however you might need to double the recipe for a 9×13 cake, or for a double layer 8 inch round cake.
I’ve had several readers ask if you can use a kitchen torch to brown this frosting (kind of like a toasted marshmallow). Although I have never tried, one reader said it does work if you use really high heat up close. If you’re too far away, the frosting will melt before it browns.
Make ahead and store? Because this recipe is more of a buttercream type frosting, and doesn’t have egg whites in it, you can easily make it in advance and store in the fridge for several days before using. As long as it is kept cool, it will stay in good condition.
You can even frost your cupcakes a day or two in advance, and keep in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
If your frosting is too runny, you might need to add a bit more powdered sugar to stiffen it up. I wouldn’t add more than a couple tablespoons at a time, and then mix well to see how it affects the consistency.
Areas that are warm or humid might affect the consistency of your frosting as well. Put it in the fridge for a while to see if that does the trick.
This recipe was soooo easy and was so yummy!! It’s definitely a new favorite, and I can’t wait to make it again.
For more delicious frosting recipes, check out:
- Berry Buttercream Frosting
- Chocolate Chip Frosting
- Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting
- Strawberry Frosting
- Cinnamon Roll Icing
Marshmallow Frosting Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter room temperature
- 7 oz Marshmallow Fluff
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Beat butter and powdered sugar until fluffy and well mixed.
- Mix in fluff and vanilla by hand and mix well.
- Add to piping bag and pipe onto cupcakes.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi followed the recipe to a tee and it did not hold the piping it went flat. Tried it again and it did the same. Disappointed in this recipe.
I did a search for marshmallow icing from scratch and was HUGELY disappointed that this used Marshmallow Fluff! Such a shame.
Tastes great — I used 1/2 butter and 1/2 shortening to try to firm it up a bit for piping ghosts — but this was much too soft — just slid and plopped down on top. But — flavor is awesome!!
Wondering…. can toast the marshmallow frosting with a kitchen torch?
You could definitely give it a try. You’ll have to let us know how it turns out if you do!
Taste yummy but did not hold shape when pipe on cupcakes
I noticed my store has Marshmallow Fluff and Marshmallow Creme. Do you know if either would work? We don’t typically buy either, so I’m not sure what the difference is.
Marshmallow creme usually has cream of tarter in it, and the fluff doesn’t. Otherwise, they are pretty much the same. But the fluff is a bit fluffier in texture, so if that option is there, I’d recommend that for this recipe!
Salted or unsalted butter?
I like to use unsalted.
This is a really good recipe. I put it on banana cupcakes with crushed pecans yummy!
Can this frosting be used on a yellow cake
Yes, you could top it on any flavor of cake that you prefer!
Can I sub the butter for shortening to make it shelf stable with the marshmallow fluff in it?
I haven’t tried, so I’m not totally sure how it would turn out. But you could definitely try. You’ll have to let us know how it turns out if you do.