Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients

1½	cups butter, at room temperature (3 sticks)*
4½	cups powdered sugar
3	Tbsp heavy cream
1½	tsp vanilla extract (use clear if desired)

Directions

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, using the paddle or whisk attachment whip butter on medium high speed (if using whisk attachment whip on high speed) until nearly white and very fluffy, about 7 - 8 minutes, frequently scrapping down the sides of the bowl. Add in powdered sugar, heavy cream and vanilla extract and mix on low speed until blended, then increase speed to medium and beat until very light and fluffy, about 5 - 6 minutes, frequently scraping down the sides of the bowl. Immediately spread over cooled cake or cupcakes. Note: if you want an alternate flavor of frosting, coconut or almond extract would be a great substitute for the vanilla extract, just add it to taste. *I like to break the rules of baking =), I use salted butter. I like how the salt in the butter balances out the sweetness and I don't like to add in salt myself because I feel like it doesn't have a chance to dissolve well enough since it's not heated. If you prefer unsalted then feel free to use that instead, although I'd recommend adding at least one cube salted butter then two unsalted, try it out you may just love it. Sometimes I like to use 3/4 cup salted 3/4 cup unsalted - especially for white cupcakes it just seams to be a good balance for a delicate cupcake. Try to look for a salted butter that has no more than 100mg of salt per 1 Tbsp serving.