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.
Actually, I don’t have enough vanilla and I would like the frosting to be colored anyways, so I’m adding green (lime) jello. this will not only give flavor to sub. for the missing vanilla but it will stabilize. Then i’m gonna throw these in the fridge overnight 🙂 Ya!…So excited!
How much gelatin/ jello powder did you use? Wanting to make a nigh before! Thanks!
You don’t use any, just the things called for in the recipe!
I think if you add gelatin powder , whisk it with a little water and then incorporate before egg whites are done it will stay stabilized and you could refrigerate prepared cakes, cupcakes, cookies and it will be fine for at least till the next day 😉
This looks so fun 😀 BTW, gelatin added this way to whipping cream is where I got the idea, that’s how you make stabilized w. cream, add that gelatin powder 😉
I like the idea, but did you try it for this recipe? Was it good?
Will the frosting be good if I make an decorate today and serve tomorrow?
You are better off making it the day of… the weather can make it a bit weird!
Can I use dark corn syrup if that’s all I have?
Hmmm… I think it might make the icing not as stark white but it would still make an icing. It might be tan though!
How many
cups of icing does the recipe make?
I just made this and didn’t have not want to use corn syrup so I mixed a cup of sugar and 1/4cup of hot water then heated it up like the directions!! Looks exactly like it should!!
Can I add food coloring to make this black?? Will it mess with the consistency do you think?
Black is such a nightmare to make, I think it would be really hard. But the ingredients are pretty cheap (besides the food color…) you might try it if you are feeling brave!
Can u use reg corn syrup , will it just discolor the icing?
I just use normal corn syrup…
This sounds great! Would Organic Cane sugar work just as well as white sugar?
Yep! I’ve done it lots. It may turn out a little less white though since some of the organic sugars are a bit more brown in color. Not a big deal though.
Which is Better to use the paddle attachment or the wire whisk?
The wire whisk for sure! I’m glad you asked 🙂
I tried making this icing and I’m not sure what I did wrong. The icing came out very liquid not at all poofy and light. Did I under mix or overmix? Is it possible to overmix this.
Under mixed I bet. And egg whites can’t handle any type of grease. The few times I’ve made it and it was too runny was because my bowl or beaters weren’t clean enough.
Does this recipe spread nicely? Like for frosting a cake?
Yes! We put it on cake all the time. Just spread it on the cake right after you make it because it doesn’t spread well once it sits!