If you like strawberries and you like good things, you’ll love this Small-batch Strawberry Frosting. It is sweet, strawberry perfection.
It’s been a while since I posted a small-batch frosting post, but I have a shiny new one for you this week, Small-batch Strawberry Frosting.
If you like strawberries and you like good things, you’ll love this frosting, because it is sweet, strawberry perfection. It’s dreamy on pretty much anything but especially on Vanilla Cupcakes , Small-batch Sugar Cookies , and Small-batch Brownies .
Best of all, this is a completely from-scratch strawberry buttercream frosting that doesn’t use strawberry extract or freeze-dried strawberries, just five ingredients: strawberries, sugar, butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla.
And it is incredibly easy to make.
How to Make Strawberry Frosting with Fresh Strawberries
Like my Vanilla Frosting and most of the other small-batch frostings on the site, this is an American buttercream, which means it’s made with butter and powdered sugar for a very rich and sweet frosting.
To get a strong strawberry flavor without using extracts or ground freeze-dried strawberries, you start with a strawberry puree (just strawberries blended until smooth), which is then reduced on the stove so you get concentrated strawberry flavor without too much liquid that will make a runny frosting.
That cools to room temperature, and then you whip the puree with softened butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla.
You end up with a pretty pink frosting that is rich, creamy, and full of strawberry flavor.
A Note on Blenders
If you have one, I recommend using an immersion blender with a chopper attachment to puree the strawberries for this recipe, because some blenders will have trouble processing the small amount of strawberries needed for a small batch of frosting.
If your blender/food processor is struggling, you can add a couple more strawberries until there is enough volume for the machine to process. Once the strawberries are pureed, measure out the amount needed for the recipe, and you can use the leftover puree in lemonade or discard.
Strawberry Frosting Recipe Notes
- This recipe makes about 3/4 to 1 cup of frosting, enough to pipe on 4-6 cupcakes or spread with a knife on about 8 cookies or lightly frost the top of a 6-inch round cake.
- To make strawberry cream cheese frosting, replace 1 ounce of the butter (2 tablespoons) with 1 ounce of softened cream cheese.
- Looking for more strawberry recipes? Try Lemon Cookies With Strawberry Frosting , Strawberry Sauce , Strawberry Shortcake Sundaes , and Strawberry Milk .
Ingredients
- ▢ 4 medium strawberries hulled, plus more if needed*
- ▢ 1 teaspoon ( 4g ) granulated sugar
- ▢ 4 tablespoons ( 2oz ) unsalted* butter softened
- ▢ 1 cup ( 120g ) powdered sugar sifted
- ▢ 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ▢ Pinch salt
Instructions
- Puree strawberries in a blender or food processor or using the chopper attachment of an immersion blender. Measure out 1/4 cup of pureed strawberries and add to a small pot. Discard the rest.
- Add granulated sugar to the pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until reduced to 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Cool on the counter until completely cool to the touch, stirring occasionally to speed up the process.
- In a medium bowl, beat softened butter until light and fluffy. Add powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon of completely cooled puree, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat for 30 seconds.
- Add 2 more teaspoons of the puree, one at a time, beating well after each. After the final teaspoon, continue to beat until the frosting is light and fluffy. Discard remaining cooked puree.*
- Use strawberry frosting over cookies, cupcakes, or brownies, and enjoy! Frosting will be softer than regular buttercream, but will firm up in the refrigerator.
Notes
This Short Rib Mac and Cheese is fast, easy, and so good.
Okay, you guys know that I like to write posts that solve very dire and important problems like:
I have a sad brown banana rotting on my counter. (Solution: Make Small-batch Banana Muffins )
Or I have too much boring vanilla ice cream. (Solution: Make Oreo Popsicles )
Today’s problem to solve: I have leftover short ribs but not enough for a meal .
The solution: Make Short Rib Mac and Cheese.
That’s right, shred that bit of meat and pile it on top of some creamy, cheesy pasta. It’s gonna be SO GOOD.
And just a heads up, this recipe is NOT going to tell you how to make short ribs (if you want that, I wrote 1700 words on how to make short ribs last week go give it a try!).
This recipe’s strictly for the day after you’ve made short ribs, when you’re trying to stretch those leftovers to make one more meal.
Short Rib Mac and Cheese to the rescue. It’s going to be fast, it’s going to be easy, and not to overhype things or anything, but it’s going to be a cheesy, meaty miracle.
Short Rib Mac and Cheese Recipe Notes
- I used white cheddar and gruyere in this recipe because it sounded good, but replacing those cheeses with regular cheddar works just fine.
- This recipe also works great with leftover pot roast, Carnitas , and Country-style Ribs .
Ingredients
- ▢ 1/2 cup ( 2.5oz ) uncooked macaroni *
- ▢ Shredded meat from leftover short ribs
- ▢ 1 tablespoon ( 14g ) salted butter
- ▢ 1 tablespoon ( 8g ) all-purpose flour
- ▢ 1/2 cup milk any percentage
- ▢ 1/4 cup ( 1oz ) shredded sharp white cheddar*
- ▢ 1/4 cup ( 1oz ) shredded gruyere cheese
- ▢ Pinch of cayenne optional
- ▢ Pinch of nutmeg optional
- ▢ Salt and pepper
Instructions
- In a small pot of generously salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- While your pasta cooks, reheat leftover short rib meat in the microwave. Set aside.
- After warming up the short rib meat, in a small pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and whisk until flour is lightly golden, 30 seconds to 1 minute.
- Slowly whisk in milk, beating out any lumps as they form. Cook, whisking continuously for 2 to 5 minutes, until mixture becomes thick and bubbly.
- Remove from heat and stir in cheese. Add cayenne and nutmeg if desired and plenty of salt and pepper to taste.
- Stir cooked and drained pasta into the cheese sauce and transfer to a bowl. Add shredded short rib meat over the top. Enjoy!
Notes
These Small-batch Lemon Sugar Cookies With Strawberry Frosting have a smooth and subtle lemon flavor and are topped with sweet and tangy homemade strawberry frosting.
Remember that Small-batch Strawberry Frosting I posted a couple of weeks ago? Well, when I was shooting it, I needed a cookie to smother it over for the post photos, so I threw together some lemon sugar cookies to be my frosting models.
Long story short, I ended up liking those cookies so much that I couldn’t not give them their own post. So here we go: Lemon Sugar Cookies With Strawberry Frosting.
A Small-Batch of Lemon Sugar Cookies
These cute little cookies are my super simple Small-batch Frosted Sugar Cookies with a bit of lemon zest baked in, which gives them a bright (but not overwhelming), citrusy flavor.
They’re soft and a little bit cakey, with a texture that almost melts in your mouth. When paired with the tangy strawberry buttercream layered on top, they’re divine.
The recipe will make six good-sized cookies. If that’s too few, you can double the recipe. If it’s too many, these cookies freeze well. Just freeze them on a plate for 20 minutes or until the frosting is frozen solid and transfer to an airtight container or freezer bag.
More Small-batch Cookie Recipes
- Small-batch Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Small-batch Peanut Butter Cookies
- Small-batch Sugar Cookies
- Small-batch Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies
Recipe Notes
- This recipe makes exactly enough frosting to frost the cookies as shown. Don’t make your roses too large or you won’t have enough frosting for all the cookies.
- Like lemon but not strawberries? Use my small-batch Vanilla Frosting or Cream Cheese Frosting , and add a little extra lemon zest in with it.
- For more strawberry recipes, try Strawberry Milk , Strawberry Shortcake Sundaes , and Strawberry Sauce .
Ingredients
Special Equipment
- ▢ Handheld electric mixer optional but helpful
- ▢ Microplane optional but helpful
- ▢ Piping bag optional
- ▢ Large open-star pastry tip optional
Homemade Strawberry Frosting
- ▢ 4 medium strawberries hulled, plus more if needed*
- ▢ 1 teaspoon ( 4g ) granulated sugar
- ▢ 4 tablespoons ( 2oz ) unsalted butter softened
- ▢ 1 cup ( 120g ) powdered sugar sifted
- ▢ 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ▢ Pinch salt
Lemon Sugar Cookies
- ▢ 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (105g ) all-purpose flour measured by weight or using the spoon and sweep method*
- ▢ 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- ▢ 1/4 teaspoon salt
- ▢ 1/3 cup ( 76g ) unsalted butter softened
- ▢ 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (75g ) granulated sugar
- ▢ 1 large egg white
- ▢ 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ▢ 1 teaspoon lemon zest loosely packed
- ▢ 1/3 cup ( 40g ) powdered sugar
Instructions
Start Frosting
- Puree strawberries in a blender or food processor or using the chopper attachment of an immersion blender. Measure out 1/4 cup of puree and add to a small pot. Discard the rest.
- Add granulated sugar to the pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until reduced to 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Cool on the counter until completely cool to the touch while you make your cookies.
Lemon Sugar Cookies
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, cream together softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg white and vanilla extract and beat until well-mixed.
- Add lemon zest and beat until mixed.
- Beat in flour mixture until mixed and a slightly sticky down forms.
- Place powdered sugar in a small bowl and drop heaping (about 1 1/2-ounce) spoonfuls of dough into the powdered sugar. Roll to coat and form the dough into a ball before transferring it to your prepared baking sheet. This should make 6 cookies.
- Use a glass or the palm of your hand to smash the dough to 1/2-inch thick.
- Bake for 9 to 12 minutes, just until the cookies look set and bottom edges are very slightly starting to turn golden. Do not overbake.
- Cool cookies on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Allow to cool completely before frosting.
Finish Strawberry Frosting
- Once your puree and cookies are cool, in a medium bowl, beat softened butter until light and fluffy. Add powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon of completely cooled puree, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat for 30 seconds.
- Add 2 more teaspoons of the puree, one at a time, beating well after each. After the final teaspoon, continue to beat until the frosting is light and fluffy. Discard remaining cooked puree.*
- Use a knife or piping bag fitted with an open-star tip to frost cookies. To make a rose shape, start piping at the center of the cookie and spiral outward. (If piping, don’t go all the way to the edges of the cookies or you will run out of frosting before finishing). Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Small-batch Strawberry Frosting Made With Fresh Strawberries
Ingredients
- 4 medium strawberries hulled, plus more if needed*
- 1 teaspoon ( 4g ) granulated sugar
- 4 tablespoons ( 2oz ) unsalted* butter softened
- 1 cup ( 120g ) powdered sugar sifted
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch salt
Instructions
- Puree strawberries in a blender or food processor or using the chopper attachment of an immersion blender. Measure out 1/4 cup of pureed strawberries and add to a small pot. Discard the rest.
- Add granulated sugar to the pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until reduced to 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Cool on the counter until completely cool to the touch, stirring occasionally to speed up the process.
- In a medium bowl, beat softened butter until light and fluffy. Add powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon of completely cooled puree, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat for 30 seconds.
- Add 2 more teaspoons of the puree, one at a time, beating well after each. After the final teaspoon, continue to beat until the frosting is light and fluffy. Discard remaining cooked puree.*
- Use strawberry frosting over cookies, cupcakes, or brownies, and enjoy! Frosting will be softer than regular buttercream, but will firm up in the refrigerator.
