How to Improve Store-Bought Frosting with One Simple Trick

Sometimes, baking calls for shortcuts, and these can often be found in the baking aisle at your local supermarket. There’s no harm in simplifying things – life gets busy! While it’s easy to elevate a boxed cake mix, store-bought frosting can be trickier. Fortunately, there are many ways to make it better, like mixing in peanut butter or adding freshly whipped cream, but one technique stands out above the rest. Our favorite method can take any canned frosting from good to great in less than five minutes.

How to Enhance Store-Bought Frosting

Our go-to quick hack not only enhances the flavor of store-bought frosting, but it also improves its texture and appearance. With this simple shortcut, canned frosting can even pass for homemade. We won’t spill the secret if you don’t! The best part is that this trick works with any frosting flavor, and it uses something you likely already have in your kitchen. Here’s how to make store-bought frosting taste better:

Whip the frosting

Pour a tub of store-bought frosting, at room temperature, into a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Use the whisk attachment and start whipping, gradually increasing speed as the frosting begins to fluff up. In just three minutes, the frosting will double in size, and the added air pockets create a lighter texture, eliminating the typical stickiness. From here, you can spread it on cake layers or decorate the cake’s exterior. Only you will know your frosting came from a container! If you wish to modify the flavor, pause the whipping after one minute and mix in some additional ingredients.

Store-Bought Frosting Add-Ins

Store-bought frosting is typically quite sweet, but you can easily change the flavor or color. Add a few drops of vanilla extract to intensify the vanilla taste in vanilla frosting, or mix in food coloring to give it a nice hue. If you want a fun twist, stir in some sprinkles for a homemade funfetti effect. For a richer taste with less sweetness, add cubes of room-temperature butter or cream cheese to create a decadent, homemade flavor. To add a fruity note, mix in teaspoons of jam or fruit preserves, or blend dehydrated fruit (like strawberries) in a food processor before folding it into the frosting. Citrus zest is another great way to add tang, while a squeeze of citrus juice can balance out the frosting’s sweetness. From cold brew to Campari or even leftover pie filling, you can create any flavor you desire with just a few teaspoons of your chosen liquid.

Store-Bought Frosting Tips

Only whip the frosting right before you plan to use it. If you whip it and then chill it, it will become too stiff to spread. If you whip it and leave it at room temperature, it may deflate, making your efforts (however quick) useless.

For two frosting flavors, take half of your frosting, whip it, then use it on your cake or cupcakes. After that, use the second half of the frosting to create a different whipped flavor.