Easy and Extra Fluffy White Cloud Frosting
on Feb 01, 2012, Updated Aug 21, 2024
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My mom’s Easy and Extra Fluffy Frosting is a light, bright and not-too-sweet topping to douse on cupcakes and cakes of all varieties. This is a recipe that you will use over and over again. The perfect addition to top cupcakes and cakes of all kinds!
People often ask me what this icing tastes like because it’s slightly different from your typical icing. It has a light flavor and isn’t overly sweet. The texture is super puffy and fluffy; it will remind you of an extra-light marshmallow cream spread. It’s also crazy and unusual that this icing recipe is made without butter or powdered sugar. It’s so unique!
My mom would often make this icing recipe, and she’d top a chocolate sheet cake or chocolate cupcakes with it. My favorite part was that she’d let us do the honor of loading the cake up with sprinkles. It’s one of my favorite memories growing up!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Made without butter or powdered sugar
- So light and fluffy like a super-puffy marshmallow cream
- Great icing for any flavor of cake or dessert
Recipe Ingredients
- Egg whites – at room temperature
- Salt
- Sugar – regular granulated sugar
- Light corn syrup – for the beautiful glossy sheen
- Vanilla extract – this is the main flavor, so use the best quality you can
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Easy and Extra Fluffy Icing
- Beat egg whites and salt on high speed with a mixer until foamy.
- Slowly add the sugar, and beat the mixture until soft peaks form.
- Bring the corn syrup just to a boil over medium heat.
- Slowly pour the corn syrup into the egg mixture with mixer on high, beating until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes.
- Add the vanilla, mix once more, and frost a cake!
Recipe FAQs
The words frosting and icing are sometimes used interchangeably, but they differ in texture, appearance, and ingredients. Frosting is typically made with a cream cheese or butter base, while icing is usually made with egg whites and sugar. The difference in ingredients is why Icing has a lighter, thinner texture than frosting.
This icing is perfectly white because there is no butter in it! If your favorite vanilla buttercream icing has a yellow tint, you can use a very small drop of violet food coloring to counteract the yellowish tint.
Yes, this recipe doubles well. One batch is enough to frost 12 cupcakes, so doubling will frost 24 cupcakes.
Yes! This extra fluffy icing is the perfect topping for cupcakes. Pipe the icing onto the cupcakes or frost your cake right away because once the icing sets up, it’s hard to spread and doesn’t pipe well.
Expert Tips
- Use a stand mixer. Because you add a lot of the ingredients as you’re mixing, it’s way, way easier to use a stand mixer rather than a hand mixer.
- Make sure your bowl and utensils are clean. Egg whites do NOT handle grease well, and the consistency won’t end up great if there’s butter or oil on any of your materials.
- Slowly add the sugar and corn syrup. When it’s time to pour the sugar into the mixer bowl, do it very slowly to allow everything to incorporate well and form the best soft peaks. Same goes for when you add the hot corn syrup!
- Use it immediately. If you don’t, it sort of de-fluffs and loses its great shape and fullness. Also, add your sprinkles or other decorations right away because they stick best right after icing!
How to Store White Cloud Icing
Warning: This frosting must be used right away! Because this is SUCH a light frosting, it sort of loses its consistency over time if you don’t use it right away. I’d recommend icing whatever cake or cupcakes you’ve made, and then either eating or tossing leftovers if you have any. But it’s so good, you won’t want to toss it. Get out a spoon, friend!
What to Put White Cloud Icing On
This icing is a dreamy addition to so many things. Pile it high on chocolate cupcakes, like the pictures here, or really any cupcake that vanilla-flavored frosting tastes good on.
You can also put it on any other favorite cakes or favorite desserts, including homemade angel food cake, coconut cake, or even a cookie cake.
The one way I wouldn’t use this amazing icing is by putting it between the sections of layer cake. It’s too light of an icing to support the weight of layers.
More Icing & Frosting Recipes to Consider
Frosting Recipes
Caramel Cake Frosting
Frosting Recipes
Peanut Butter Frosting
Frosting Recipes
Chantilly Cream
Frosting Recipes
Cream Cheese Frosting
Extra Fluffy Frosting
Ingredients
- 2 egg whites, at room temperature
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup light corn syrup
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Use a stand mixer. It will change your life. You can make this using a hand mixer, but it just takes time. In a clean bowl (any grease on your bowl or utensils will ruin the icing — egg whites hate grease!), beat the egg whites and salt on high speed until foamy.
- With the mixer still running, slowly add the sugar. Beat mixture until soft peaks form. When pulling the mixer out of the white mixture, you should get a little point that bends over.
- Bring the corn syrup to a boil over medium heat in a small saucepan. When the corn syrup comes to a boil, remove from heat.
- Slowly pour the hot corn syrup into the egg mixture while your mixer is mixing on high. Beat the mixture until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes. Add the vanilla, and mix to combine.
- Use right away.
Video
Notes
- Use the frosting right away and eat any leftovers, as it doesn’t store well.
- You can leave a cake that has been iced with this icing uncovered, since any type of plastic wrap on it will be a mess.
- Add the sprinkles as soon as you are done spreading the icing. A thin crust will form, and the sprinkles won’t stick if you wait too long.
- This recipe doubles well.
- This is enough to frost 18 cupcakes or the outside of one layered cake. This is not a great icing to fill a layer cake. The cake kind of smashes it into nothing, and you don’t have a nice layer in the middle anymore.
This looks incredible! Question, can you color this? If it’s better than buttercream I have a b day party I need to make a cake for and I ask excited to try it out!
Yes! I just add a few drops of liquid food coloring at the same time I add the vanilla in the recipe. You’ll love it! It’s a lot of fun.
Mine ended up without any flavor at all. I followed the recipe exactly, and it looks perfect, but has no taste! Any suggestions?
I say bump the vanilla up to a tablespoon and see if that better suits you. It won’t hurt the recipe.
Can you use this on a Cake that won’t be eaten till the following day??
I just tried it! Ive never been that successful getting my egg whites to coopporate but this time it worked! Mine did come out with kind of a liqure flavor. Does t. stand for tablespoon? I also used Mccormick imitation vanilla extract instead of pure VE so maybe that was it. Either way its still delicious! Is there a chocolate version of this?
Dayna! I’m so glad it worked. A small t is normally a teaspoon (I’ll change it to tsp. so it’s more clear) and a big T is a tablespoon. So you probably did have a bit too much of a good thing going on there 🙂 Honestly, I forget to add the vanilla half the time and it is still good! I have no idea how you could do this in chocolate… but I’ll play with it! Thanks so much for the comment. M.
Don’t you worry about eating raw egg whites? It could make you very sick.
Barb- Hey! I’ve had people ask this questions… I’m pretty sure that by adding the boiling corn syrup that you are bringing them up to heat enough. I’m don’t really know that that is the case, but I’ve been eating this icing very regularly my whole life with no problems. And my mom got it out of some cookbook from her wedding, so it’s not something we worry about! It’s up to you though. Good luck!
As long as the eggs/whites are pasteurized there is no danger. I drink egg whites in my smoothies and coffee for added protein.
Thanks for the tip!
I have made this Martha calls it 7 minute frosting it is no competition for butter cream
Hi Im just wondering about the sugar, do you use a icing sugar (ground powder) or caster sugar (fine granurls). Thanks 🙂
Just white granulated sugar 🙂 It doesn’t even need to be the super fine kind. Thanks!
My mother use to make this frosting with cream of tartar. I loved it creamy but not after it crusts over. She whipped it up over a double boiler.
Did you put the icing on with a piping bag? Or did you just spoon it on?
I piped it on… love that smooth look!
How many days does it keep? Justin case there are left overs
It doesn’t keep well at all… in fact you need to put it on the cake/cupcakes as soon as you use it… while it is still warm it is easy to get on but if you stir it or mess with it too much once it cools then the kind of deflates and falls apart.
Hi 😀 This looks yummy! I’m having a baby shower for a friend after our evening church service. If I frost the cupcakes right before church will it hold up for the baby shower like 2 1/2 hrs later? Oh and I shouldn’t worry about like not cooking the eggs right? because they cook from the temp of the stuff you boil right? 😀 Don’t want anyone to get sick:D Thanks so much for the recipe!! 😀 Found you through pinterest!
This holds up really really well. I’ve made things the night before and it works great. The icing gets a bit of a shell or sorts and pretty much seals itself off from air. You are good to go. And adding that boiling corn syrup is hot enough 🙂 Let me know how it goes! Don’t forget the sprinkles…
I’m making it again!! The first time for the baby shower was awesome! The cupcakes looked so yummy and cute!! I love this and is now my go to recipe!! You were right!:-) thank you!
It’s easy and cheaper than buttercream, plus we love it! It’s totally a go-to for me and I’m SO glad you liked it. That icing with any sprinkles is just perfect.
Will that recipe cover 12 or 24 cupcakes??
If you are going heavy on the frosting like the pictures above, then just 12 (but it doubles easily). If you are doing a lot less per cupcake, then you could get more like 18-24 out of it. It’s pretty cheap to make (especially compared to butter-creams), so I normally double it and let the kids eat any leftovers 🙂
Might as well double it… and forget the kids, I am going to eat the leftovers!