Mint Frosting is buttercream made with butter, powdered sugar, mint extract, and green food coloring, ready in less than 10 minutes!
Frosting is incredibly easy to make right in your own kitchen, and we always finish our cakes off with Cream Cheese Frosting, Rich Chocolate Frosting, and Chocolate Ganache.
MINT FROSTING
Mint Frosting is creamy, sweet, minty, and a fun green color that’s PERFECT for St. Patrick’s Day! This is my basic go-to buttercream frosting recipe made with butter, powdered sugar, and a splash of milk. But this time we’ve added green food coloring, and instead of vanilla extract this recipe uses mint.
This frosting goes perfectly on chocolate cake or cupcakes, or even on brownies. You can also make a mint version of my cream cheese frosting. If you like this mint frosting, check out my other mint desserts, Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies, Mint Chocolate Chip Blondies, and Mint Chocolate Covered Oreos!
HOW LONG DOES MINT FROSTING LAST?
Mint Frosting will last in the refrigerator for about a week. Store it in an airtight container to prevent it from drying out.
CAN YOU FREEZE MINT FROSTING?
Mint frosting is perfect for making ahead and freezing for later. It will last in the freezer for about 3 months. You can also decorate your cake or cupcakes with the frosting, then freeze the whole dessert. If you’re doing it this way, freeze the frosted cupcake for about an hour, then wrap them in plastic wrap and tinfoil and return to the freezer.
HOW TO THICKEN MINT FROSTING
If your mint frosting isn’t thick enough, you can add powdered sugar a little bit at a time until it thickens. Usually when frosting doesn’t turn out the right consistency, it was over-mixed, or the ingredients weren’t measured correctly.
Or, the frosting has been out on the counter for too long and it’s too warm. Usually, I’ll add a few more tablespoons of powdered sugar, or a tablespoon of corn starch, then refrigerate the frosting until it cools.
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CAKE AND CUPCAKE RECIPES TO TRY WITH MINT FROSTING
- Oreo Cake
- Classic Yellow Cake
- Easy Chocolate Cake
- M&M Stuffed Easy Vanilla Cupcakes
- Salted Dark Chocolate Cupcakes
TIPS FOR MAKING MINT FROSTING
- Add a cup of mini chocolate chips, shaved or chopped chocolate bars, or crushed Andes mints right before you’re done mixing to make a mint chocolate chip frosting!
- You can add other food coloring or flavors to make different variations of this recipe. Try orange flavor with orange color, or lemon extract with yellow color!
- This recipe calls for milk but you can also use heavy cream or half and half, just like regular buttercream frosting.
- I always use unsalted butter because I like to control the amount of salt in my recipe, but I have seen recipes calling for salted butter, if that’s what you have on hand.
- If you’re using this frosting on cupcakes, try to make sure the cupcakes and the frosting are the same temperature to prevent crumbs. I recommend doing this anytime you use buttercream.
- Use a cupcake tin with my Easy Chocolate Cake recipe to make chocolate cupcakes.
- If your frosting is turning out lumpy, try beating the butter first, then adding the confectioner’s sugar and the rest of the ingredients. This helps give buttercream frosting a more creamy texture.
- Use this mint frosting on my fudge brownies for a mint chocolate brownie.
- You can leave the food coloring out of this recipe entirely and add a teaspoon of vanilla extract for a vanilla mint buttercream frosting.
- Add ¼ cup of cocoa powder (or dark chocolate cocoa powder) in place of ¼ cup of the sugar to make this a mint chocolate buttercream frosting, which goes perfectly with chocolate cupcakes!
- If you want more mint, add a few drops of mint flavor at a time, being careful not to add too much.
- If your mint frosting is too sweet, add a splash of lemon juice, or a pinch of salt to balance the flavor.
- Take your butter out of the refrigerator about 30-40 minutes before you plan on making this frosting, to give it a chance to come to room temperature.
- Try making chocolate cupcakes with mint frosting, topped with a fresh mint leaf or mint candy for decoration. Or instead of mint, try decorating with green sprinkles or mini chocolate chips!
Ingredients
- 6 cups powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter , softened
- 1 teaspoon mint extract
- 4-6 drops green food coloring
- 1/4 cup milk , additional in necessary
Instructions
- To your stand mixer add the powdered sugar, butter and mint extract on medium speed until light and fluffy then add in the milk 1 tablespoon at a time until the frosting can be spread easily with a spatula.
- Add in the color until it reaches the color green you like one drop at a time while on medium speed.
Loved this frosting. Will be using again and again! Thank you for sharing!
Tastes great and the consistency is perfect for decorating. Excellent recipe!
I just want to know which kind of mint you use. Peppermint or spearmint?
Peppermint
Does almond milk work.
i realley liked dah yum yum icing. *5
Can you use peppermint flavor instead of mint w/green coloring for St. Patrick’s Day dessert?
This recipe is the best frosting recipe I have tasted! Thanks for making this recipe!
Are you sure this is right? Your sugar/butter recipe as written is 9:1. (2/3 cup butter to 6 cups sugar.) Most other recipes I’m seeing online are more like 3:1. Are you sure the butter shouldn’t be two cups to six cups of sugar? Or 2/3 cup of butter to 2 cups sugar?
Thank you for letting me know. I adjusted the recipe card after retesting it. Make sure to adjust the milk, if necessary.
Could you have meant 1 2/3 cups butter? I had to add way more butter. Turned out great tho, Thanks!
Thanks for the feedback. I’ve adjusted the butter but if you find it too thick, you may need to add more milk.
Do you think this would go well with a chocolate cake Sabrina?
Yum!!
I made this exactly as written. Absolutely the best frosting ever! So delicious, with just the right amount of mint flavor.
Thanks for coming back to let me know, Karie. So glad you loved it.
Does this make enough frosting for a standard 8 or 9 inch double layer cake?
Yes 🙂
This is perfect and would be so cute on chocolate cupcakes to have grasshopper! Nothing I love like a good mint chocolate combo
Such a cute idea!
Best Mint Frosting EVER!!!! Can’t wait to make some St. Patrick’s Day desserts!
So glad you love it, Jennifer!
Minty frosting … delish!
Thanks, Becky!
This is going to be perfect for the cupcakes I need to make for my son’s St. Patrick’s class party. Thanks!
Definitely! Hope all the kids love them!
Mint is the best! This will be perfect for st patty’s day too!
Oh, definitely!