This high ratio frosting recipe is a great option to have in your recipe file of favorites! It is light, fluffy, and has a wonderful flavor.

If you are unfamiliar with high ratio shortening, it is a popular choice because it contains emulsifiers which allow it to absorb more sugar and liquid than regular shortening.

You'll love the creamy consistency that high ratio shortening lends to this frosting, and there is no greasy aftertaste. There are many different brands of high ratio frosting, but Sweetex is what we use most often.

Table of Contents

Advantages of Shortening Based Frostings

Probably the biggest advantage of shortening based frostings is that they hold up nicely in warmer weather. Although it isn't heat proof (no frosting is), shortening-based frostings hold up much better in warm conditions than butter based frostings.

Another bonus to shortening based frostings is the white color. Butter-based frostings have a slight yellow tint, and if natural vanilla flavoring is used rather than clear vanilla, it is more of an ivory shade. If a stark white frosting is what your design (or customer) calls for, this frosting is a great choice.

More Extracts may be Needed in shortening-Based Frostings...

Due to the absence of butter in this recipe, we have to rely more heavily on extracts to make this frosting flavorful. There is a lot of wiggle room here and so don't hesitate to do a little experimenting! We hope that you enjoy the recipe!

Have Gritty Buttercream? It Could be Your Powdered Sugar...

** We've had great results with Domino's confectioners sugar and US Sugar (we buy ours from Costco). Some brands of confectioners sugar don't work as well with buttercream frosting recipes.

If a package doesn't say pure cane sugar, it contains beet sugar which is more likely to give you a grainy outcome. In addition to that, we've noticed that even some brands that say "Pure Cane Sugar" will give a grainy consistency.

One example is Dixie Crystals (although it used to work great for us a few years ago.) Something has changed...it's a mystery. Anyway, this recipe should not be grainy, and so if it is, experiment with a different brand of confectioners sugar.

High Ratio Frosting

This easy high ratio frosting pipes perfectly and is a good choice for higher temperatures as it is more heat resistant than butter-based frosting.

Ingredients

*This Recipe makes a lot of frosting. It can be halved!
2 cups (386 g) high ratio shortening (We use Sweetex and CK brands)
2 Tablespoons (24 g) clear vanilla extract
½ teaspoon (2 g) butter flavoring
½ teaspoon (2 g) lemon or almond flavoring
4 lbs. (1820 g) confectioners’ sugar
1 cup (238 g) or more if needed - milk or heavy cream (you get a softer crust using heavy cream)
½ to 1 teaspoon (2g to 4g ) salt ( I use popcorn salt because of its fine grain or let your regular salt dissolve in the milk) This will cut the sweetness.

Instructions

Cream the shortening and flavorings .
Add the confectioners’ sugar and cream, mixing slowing and gradually increasing speed .
Mix approx. 8 min. until creamy and smooth, DURING THE LAST 2 TO 3 MINUTES OF MIXING SLOW DOWN THE SPEED TO VERY SLOW THIS WILL ELIMINATE MOST OF THE AIR BUBBLES THAT OCCUR.
If you are still seeing what looks like bubbles that have burst (small holes) in your buttercream, continue to add milk a teaspoon at a time until most of them disappear.
This is still sweet though the salt cuts some of the sweetness.

Makes approximately 11 ½ cups

Notes

***We slightly altered this recipe from our previous version, which had 2 lbs (910g) confectioner’s sugar. We still really like the previous version, but it has a much lighter and softer consistency and while it crusted, it didn’t crust quite as firm. Using the Viva paper towel method of smoothing is easier with the updated version.

191 Comments

Hi again, I forgot to mention Target brand vegetable shortening has 2.5 g of trans fat. It is 0.5 g less the the CK product. For those who lives in Georgia, you can get HRS from Cake Art but they sell out pretty fast and they don't carry a lot. Therefore you might want to place an order if needed. Hope this helps.

This is my first time working with HRS shortening, and the problem I seem to be having when trying to make flowers is that is to soft. Can I just add powdered sugar to stiffen it up some?? Or are there any other tips you can give me to help? Thanks So Much! Love you site!!

Nevermind, I answered my own question, you mention above that you can alter the consistency by adding powdered sugar. Thanks!

I am super excited I tried this. Thank you thank you for posting the perfect buttercream recipe! I've been using Wilton and other buttercream recipes for years, but they always left something to be desired. I'll never go back to using regular shortening again!

Hi April, I'm happy that you like the recipe. Thank you for posting.

I am curious because I have to make some cakes without dairy in them, have you ever tried any other kind of milk like almond milk or soy or coconut milk?

Hi Savannah, I haven't tried that yet but have read that using unsweetened almond milk will give a good result. Let us know if you give it a try.

Hello..... is this frosting okay out on a hot day, because of the cream? meaning a wedding cake.. thanks

Hi Eva, as far as frostings go, this one which is made with high ratio shortening is going to handle heat better than most. The shortening has a higher melting point than butter, and so butter-based buttercreams won't last as long. --

That said, in very hot conditions, it can still melt, especially in direct sunlight.

How will it turn out if I used Regular Crisco Shortening??

Another question........... will this recipe be enough for a sheet cake 2 layers for filling and for the outside? Thanks ladies!!!

Hi Yaneri--I don't think that we've tried this "high ratio" recipe with anything but high ratio shortening. If using Crisco, you may have better luck with the "Fluffy Vanilla Buttercream" recipe (substituting the butter for Crisco). ---If you do try this high ratio recipe, just know that you will not need as much liquid. Recipes containing high ratio shortening call for higher amounts of liquid than "regular" shortening or butter recipes. --

Also, I'm not sure what size sheet cake you are making, but Wilton's Party Serving Chart has a section for various sheet cake sizes and includes a column for frosting amounts. I'll link below~