The Best Way To Thicken Frosting Without Adding More Sugar

When you're making frosting at home, you'll likely run into some issues every now and then. A common one is having a batch that's too runny. If your frosting is too thin, you run the risk of it affecting the final product. An ideal frosting is thick and sturdy, making it perfect for fusing layers of cake together, piping intricate patterns onto your desserts, and providing a smooth finish. Structure is the name of the game when it comes to frosting. If you want a thinner frosting, consider icing instead — there really is a difference between the two!

When it comes to tips on thickening runny frosting, one of our favorite strategies is to use cornstarch; it can bulk up your frosting without making it overly sweet in the process. A powerhouse in the kitchen, cornstarch is a thickening agent that's commonly used in sauces, soups, fruit fillings, and more. In this case, you can add some to your thin batch of frosting, stir, and check to see if it's to your preferred consistency. You want to start small here, so just about one teaspoon at a time should do the trick. Keep in mind that this is for when you're making your own frosting. In general, store-bought frosting will have the right consistency from the beginning, although you can still upgrade the canned version by whipping it up, adding flavor extracts, or adding some toasty mix-ins like nuts or coconut flakes.

If you don't have cornstarch on hand, there are other ways that you can thicken your frosting. Before you add anything, you may want to consider that some of your ingredients (such as butter) may have been too warm when you were first mixing everything together. This could easily make you think your frosting is too thin, so pop it in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to see if chilling it fixes the issue. If it doesn't, you can grab extra powdered sugar and start slowly adding that to your frosting. Add about one tablespoon at a time before stirring and testing it. Keep in mind that adding sugar will add more sweetness to the overall batch, so moving in small increments is best. Similar to powdered sugar, you can add more cocoa powder if you're making a chocolate frosting.

You can also consider some thicker ingredients, such as softened cream cheese or peanut butter. If using the former, start with just about ½ ounce per cup of frosting — keep this amount low if you're making a buttercream frosting. If you're making a cream cheese frosting, the amount won't affect the flavor that much. When it comes to peanut butter, you'll want to consider how the flavor will affect your final product. If it's all systems go, add just about a tablespoon or two, check for consistency, and add more as needed.