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You are here: Home / Recipes and Cooking Tips / Crisco Frosting

Crisco Frosting

October 9, 2015 by Alea Milham 57 Comments

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Easy Crisco frosting recipe
how to make Crisco frosting

Here is our classic white Crisco Frosting recipe, which is sometimes referred to as Vanilla Crisco Frosting.

Classic White Crisco frosting on top of cupcakes

Did you know you can make frosting with Crisco? It may sound weird, but it is true. Crisco frosting was quite popular in the 1960s and 1970s. It was an easy way to make icing when you didn’t have any butter available.

What may surprise you is how widely Crisco frosting is still used in bakeries. My Grandma called this Wedding Cake Frosting because it is often used on wedding cakes.

Why make frosting with Crisco?

Some people prefer the flavor and texture of Crisco frosting. One of my husband’s cousins requests Crisco frosting on his birthday cake each year.

Shortening is dairy-free, so some people choose to make Crisco frosting because they are allergic to dairy.

Crisco is a firm solid at room temperature, whereas butter is soft at room temperature. Some people use frosting made with Crisco because it is more heat-resistant than buttercream frosting, so it holds up better on warmer days.

Even if you prefer buttercream frosting, Crisco is shelf-stable, so you can make frosting with it instead of running to the store when you run out of butter on your baking day.

Since Crisco and powdered sugar are white, you can get a Classic White Frosting if you also use clear vanilla extract, which is an ideal canvas for decorating cakes and will produce crisp colored icing when you add food coloring.

Homemade cupcakes topped with Crisco frosting.

In the picture above, I made cupcakes from my Vanilla Depression Cake recipe and topped them with Crisco frosting because we were out of butter and milk.

Does Crisco Frosting taste good?

You have probably eaten Crisco frosting and not even realized it. This frosting recipe is very similar to the frosting that Bakeries use on cakes and sugar cookies. It is fluffy, holds its shape when piped on cookies and cakes, and has a delicious vanilla flavor.

Does Crisco Frosting need to be refrigerated?

Crisco frosting does not need to be refrigerated, so feel free to make your cake the night before your party. If you have leftover frosting, put it in a lidded container and store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.

How to Make Crisco Frosting

You make Crisco frosting the same way that you make buttercream frosting, you beat the shortening until it is fluffy. Then mix in the vanilla and salt. Finally, you alternate adding the powdered sugar and the liquid, while continuously beating the mixture.

Crisco Frosting Recipe

You can double the recipe to frost a layer cake if you want to have thick layers of frosting between each layer of cake.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup Crisco
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup water, milk, or dairy-free milk substitute

Directions:

1. Place the Crisco, vanilla, and salt in a medium bowl. Beat with a mixer on high speed until light and fluffy.

2. Switch the mixer to low speed and alternate adding the powdered sugar and the liquid until the ingredients are completely blended.

3. Beat on high speed until the frosting is smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes.

4. Use it to decorate 18 cupcakes, a 13×9 cake, or a batch of sugar cookies.

Store unused frosting in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 3 months. Allow it to come to room temperature before you use it to frost other baked goods.

How to make Crisco frosting.

Printable Recipe for Crisco Frosting

How to make Crisco frosting.
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5 from 11 votes

Crisco Frosting Recipe

This Crisco frosting tastes like bakery frosting and can be used to decorate cakes and cookies.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword Crisco Frosting
Prep Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Servings 18
Calories 156kcal
Author Alea Milham

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup Crisco
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup water milk, or dairy-free milk substitute

Instructions

  • Place the Crisco, vanilla, and salt in a medium bowl. Beat with a mixer on high speed until light and fluffy.
  • Switch the mixer to low speed and alternate adding the powdered sugar and the liquid until the ingredients are completely blended.
  • Beat on high speed until the frosting is smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes.

Nutrition

Calories: 156kcal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 17mg | Sugar: 26g | Iron: 1mg

More Dairy-Free Frosting Recipes

Chocolate Crisco Frosting Recipe

Fluffy Dairy-Free Chocolate Frosting

 Fluffy Dairy-Free Vanilla Frosting

How to Make Royal Icing

Dairy-Free “Butter Cream” Frosting

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About Alea Milham

Alea Milham is the owner of Premeditated Leftovers and the author of Prep-Ahead Meals from Scatch. She shares her tips for saving money and time while reducing waste in her home. Her favorite hobby, gardening, is a frugal source of organic produce for her recipes. She believes it is possible to live fully and eat well while spending less.

Comments

  1. NANCY says

    September 14, 2023 at 6:02 am

    5 stars
    I have used this frosting for 40 years with no complaints, easy to decorate and great in hot weather.

    Reply
  2. Alison says

    September 13, 2023 at 7:47 am

    Can this frosting be frozen?

    Reply
    • Alea Milham says

      September 13, 2023 at 2:16 pm

      Yes, it can.

      Reply
    • Alea Milham says

      September 13, 2023 at 2:17 pm

      Yes, it can be frozen.

      Reply
  3. Kim steis says

    September 8, 2023 at 10:25 pm

    My Crisco frosting is a cup of butter soft a half a cup of Crisco a cup of sugar a teaspoon of vanilla and a half a cup of warm milk and it’s delicious you have to beat it a lot to make sure the sugar all dissolves in the frosting and it’s not gritty.

    Add butter sugar Crisco beat on high for several minutes then add the vanilla I like to get my milk a little bit warm and then I just add it in to the mixture one tablespoon at a time if the milk is too hot it will ruin the frosting.

    Reply
  4. Julie says

    August 15, 2023 at 1:42 pm

    5 stars
    I made it my son and husband said that was very good 💯💯💯💯💯

    Reply
  5. Athen says

    August 15, 2023 at 8:17 am

    5 stars
    We love this recipe & often use it on cookie cakes! The one thing I will say is it isn’t a pretty white color, its more cream colored! BUT SO YUMMY and pipes well!

    Reply
  6. Max says

    June 18, 2023 at 3:47 pm

    5 stars
    😋 Yummy 😋

    Reply
  7. Tracy says

    June 15, 2023 at 10:31 pm

    How well does it pipe onto cupcakes? I want to start selling cupcakes at Farmer’s Markets and I need a shortening frosting that will hold its shape, taste great and not melt easy in the heat

    Reply
    • Cathy Blankenship says

      July 19, 2023 at 9:32 am

      5 stars
      I have used Crisco buttercream for many years on wedding, special occasion cakes. The only thing I do is add a little salt and use Creme Bouquet flavoring by Magic Line. I also blend the sugar and shortening BEFORE ADDING THE MILK. You can also up the Crisco to 3/4 Cup.

      Reply
  8. Vanessa says

    June 11, 2023 at 6:28 am

    How much does the recipe make and can the already decorated cake be frozen?

    Reply
  9. Roberta says

    April 8, 2023 at 1:17 pm

    I use regular fine sugar. How can you get rid of the grittiness ??

    Reply
    • Alea Milham says

      April 8, 2023 at 2:00 pm

      If you want to use granulated sugar, you need to put it in a blender first and blend it until it is powdered sugar.

      Reply
      • Katherine says

        June 2, 2023 at 7:05 pm

        Also add just a little bit of cornstarch to it to help firm the buttercream up

        Reply
  10. Kate says

    October 13, 2022 at 5:29 pm

    When I was growing up, mom and grandma made crisco frosting and used clear almond flavoring. Now our go-to frosting is buttercream, but mom still frosts her Christmas cookies with this and all the grandkids love it!

    Reply
  11. Chris says

    August 9, 2022 at 7:24 pm

    How many cups of frosting does this make?

    Reply
    • Lisa says

      June 1, 2023 at 10:06 pm

      How do u cut down on the sweetness?

      Reply
      • Cathy Blankenship says

        July 19, 2023 at 9:34 am

        5 stars
        Add some salt….1/2 tsp

        Reply
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Welcome. I'm Alea!

On Premeditated Leftovers I share simple recipes made with whole foods, practical shopping tips, time saving techniques, and meal planning strategies. I also share tips for minimizing food waste, so more of the food that is purchased ends up on the table.

While volunteering as a budget counselor, I realized that food is the element of most people’s budgets where they have the greatest control. I set out to develop low-cost recipes from scratch to prove it’s possible to create delicious meals on a limited budget. Eating well while spending less is about more than just creating recipes using inexpensive ingredients; it’s about creatively combining ingredients so you don’t feel deprived and are inspired to stick to your budget.

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