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Marshmallow Frosting is one of our favorite easy frostings when we want something sweet, fluffy, and fun for cupcakes. It has that creamy marshmallow flavor from Marshmallow Fluff, plus butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla to make it smooth and pipeable.
We love using this on chocolate cupcakes, vanilla cupcakes, s’mores desserts and birthday treats. It’s simple to mix together, easy to pipe, and gives any dessert that sweet marshmallow finish kids and adults love.
We’ve made this frosting countless times because it is fast, dependable, and uses ingredients we often have on hand. If you love this recipe, be sure to try Chocolate Buttercream Frosting, Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting, Vanilla Buttercream Frosting, and Sugar Cookie Frosting too.
Why you’ll love it + Why it works:
- Only Four Ingredients: This frosting comes together with simple ingredients you may already have in your kitchen.
- Ready in Minutes: It takes just a few minutes to mix up, making it perfect for busy baking days.
- Perfect for Piping: The texture is smooth and fluffy, making it great for decorating cupcakes and cakes.
- Balanced Sweetness: Butter helps balance the sweetness for a frosting that is rich without being overwhelming.
Marshmallow Frosting Ingredients
- Butter (½ cup, room temperature): Creates a rich, creamy base and helps give the frosting structure. Be sure the butter is softened so it mixes smoothly.
- Marshmallow Fluff (7 ounces): Adds the signature marshmallow flavor and creates the light, fluffy texture that makes this frosting so good.
- Powdered Sugar (1 cup): Sweetens the frosting while helping it hold its shape for spreading and piping.
- Vanilla Extract (1 teaspoon): Adds warm flavor and enhances the sweetness of the marshmallow.
How to Make Easy Marshmallow Frosting
COMBINE. Beat butter and powdered sugar until fluffy and well mixed. Mix in fluff and vanilla by hand and mix well.
PIPE. Add to a piping bag and pipe onto cupcakes.
Kristyn’s Recipe Tips
- Let the butter come fully to room temperature for the smoothest frosting.
- Sift the powdered sugar if it has lumps to ensure a silky texture.
- Avoid overmixing after adding the Marshmallow Fluff to help maintain a light, fluffy consistency.
- If the frosting feels too soft for piping, chill it for 15 to 20 minutes before decorating.
Marshmallow Frosting Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter, room temperature
- 7 ounces Marshmallow Fluff
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Beat butter and powdered sugar until fluffy and well mixed.
- Mix in fluff and vanilla by hand and mix well.
- If the frosting feels too soft for piping, chill it for 15 to 20 minutes before decorating.
- Then add frosting to piping bag and pipe onto cupcakes.
Notes
- Let the butter come fully to room temperature for the smoothest frosting.
- Sift the powdered sugar if it has lumps to ensure a silky texture.
- Avoid overmixing after adding the Marshmallow Fluff to help maintain a light, fluffy consistency.
- If the frosting feels too soft for piping, chill it for 15 to 20 minutes before decorating.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe FAQ
Store leftover frosting in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Freeze the frosting in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and stir before using.
Make it in advance and store it 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.
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This recipe was first shared in August, 2012.
Love this icing!
I am glad you do! It’s one of my favorites! Thank you so much!
If I use less powder sugar will the icing still be useable.
I personally haven’t tried, but you can try & taste it, then add more if you want.
I used the marshmellow frosting receipe from another site and it called for TWO cups of confectionary sugar. Consistency was perfect!
Thanks for sharing!
nice
Flavor was nice. But I didn’t read the other comments before trying this recipe. Totally agree with others. The consistency is terrible! Incredibly runny. Even if your kitchen is warm, icing should be fluffy and stable because you will most likely serve your cake/cupcakes in a room temp environment. This icing ran everywhere!
Thanks for the feedback and for giving the recipe a try!
This tastes great but the consistency is NOT frosting consistency. Pretty disappointing since you can’t actually use it as frosting.
Thanks for sharing your feedback. And for giving the recipe a try!
Love your recipes
Love it! Exactly what I needed/imagined for my graham cracker cupcakes. I made them for work tomorrow and one of my coworkers can’t eat dairy, so I used soy-free earth balance, which seems to be working fine (we’ll see how they hold up tomorrow) and tastes great!
I would want folks to know that if you want them to come out looking like the photo, you need to think about temperature. My kitchen was too warm and I didn’t (against my gut instinct) refrigerate the frosting for a bit before piping, so it didn’t hold it’s form and now they’re just blobby clouds instead of pretty soft-serve-ice-cream-looking swirls *shrug* oh well…next time I’ll get it right 😉 Anyway, thanks so much for the recipe. Love your blog!
This is really good. It was a little runny, but I was making it to top a strawberry cheesecake, and it worked like a glaze, which was perfect. Next time I’ll add more powdered sugar if I want to top a cake.
She said to add the fluff by hand but I used my mixer, which was easier. But maybe that’s where it went wrong. I’ll definitely be keeping this in my recipe box.
This was very runny even after adding more powdered sugar. I could not even think about piping. I should have read the comments before trying a new recipe.