Life is short, eat Dessert Butter Boards first. This board is a new idea for the latest Tik-Tok viral sensation, butter boards, and is made with buttercream frosting! Serve with a variety of dippers for a fun dessert spread at your next party!
Have you been on the internet the past couple weeks? If so, you've probably seen an article or video about butter boards. Fellow food blogger Justine Doiron at Justine Snacks created this now viral TikTok video back on September 15th. As I'm writing this ten days later, the video has over 8 million views!
Will these boards become the latest charcuterie trend? I find that a little extreme. I personally don't want to give up all that delicious cheese and meat, but they are a fun new idea.
Doiron credits the original idea to Chef Joshua McFadden and his herbed butter recipe found in his cookbook, Six Seasons: A New Way with Vegetables, as the original creator of the butter board. Whoever created this idea, I commend you.
I'm hopping on the bandwagon with a variation of this latest trend that still uses butter, but this time the butter is used to make a sweet buttercream frosting that's spread on the board!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Fun - As if we needed an excuse to enjoy butter spread on a board, the concept of this recipe is just simply fun. Something you'd eat everyday, probably not, but a perfect party treat for kids and adults alike.
- Versatile - The flavors, colors, toppings and dippers can all be customized to your liking or theme.
- Quick & easy - This dessert board comes together in 10 minutes or less and doesn't require any fancy ingredients to create a pretty dessert centerpiece.
Ingredient Notes
The frosting used on this board is a small-batch recipe of a buttercream I love using on birthday cakes I make for my kiddos. Here's what you'll need for it:
- Butter - I prefer to use unsalted so I'm able to control the amount of salt added. If you choose to use salted butter, just omit the salt in the recipe. Room temperature butter is key to a smooth frosting. I like to take the butter out of the fridge at least an hour before starting.
- Powdered sugar - A.k.a. confectioners sugar. Granulated won't work here.
- Salt - The addition of salt helps cut the sweetness of the frosting just enough.
- Heavy cream - Adds just enough liquid to give the frosting it's spreadable consistency.
- Vanilla extract - To make a lovely vanilla-flavored frosting.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Make the frosting. - Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, beat softened butter on high speed for 2 minutes until pale and fluffy. Add salt.
Add powdered sugar half a cup at a time (to avoid a sugar cloud erupting all over you), beating well after each addition. The frosting will be dry and clumpy at this point, but don't fear, cream solves everything.
Add heavy cream one tablespoon at a time. You will need anywhere between 1 and 2 tablespoons for a nice spreadable consistency.
Step 2: Spread. - Find a nice platter, tray, or wooden board to display your butter board on.
If using a wooden board that isn't sealed, place a piece of parchment down to prevent the board from staining. It makes clean-up a breeze too!
A small offset spatula works great for spreading the frosting on the board, but the back of a spoon would also work. Spread the frosting across the board, creating some nice "waves" throughout.
Step 3: Top. - Sprinkle the frosting evenly with your choice of sprinkles and mini chocolate chips. I have list of topping variations further down in this post!
Step 4: Dip. - In a separate bowl or platter, lay out your dippers for display and enjoyment.
The board I use is the perfect size for this amount of frosting, but if you have a larger board you can leave some room for your dippers on the board instead of on the side.
Recipe Variations
The best thing about this latest butter board trend is how the concept is so simple, yet completely customizable. For this sweet butter board, you can customize pretty much everything to adapt to your preference or theme.
Frosting - Switch up the flavors of your buttercream to chocolate, peanut butter or even strawberry. You could also add food coloring to the vanilla frosting to make it any color you'd like.
Toppings - Top your buttercream board other toppings such as white or butterscotch chocolate chips, mini chocolate candies, crushed cookie crumbs and any kind of sprinkles your heart desires.
Dippers - What could be bad dipped in buttercream? Okay that's a little extreme but some other dipper ideas include pound cake, pretzel sticks or fresh fruit!
FAQ
To save some time, you can make the frosting ahead of time and keep it in the fridge until you're ready to use it. Just be sure to take it out about 30 minutes before assembling the board.
An assembled board can also be kept in the refrigerator for a couple hours before serving. I would recommend keeping an assembled board cold to keep everything looking nice. Remove the board from the fridge 30 minutes before serving.
There are old-fashioned recipes for buttercream that use shortening or margarine instead of butter. I have not tested them to know their quality, but there are plenty of recipes out there for this. You want to end up with just over a cup of frosting so you may only need half a batch or so depending on the recipe.
You can cover any leftovers with plastic wrap and keep refrigerated for 2-3 days. Extra buttercream can be refrigerated for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container and in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Other Dessert Recipes You'll Love
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Dessert Butter Board
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter 1 stick, softened
- pinch of salt
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1-2 tbsp. heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- mini chocolate chips for topping
- sprinkles for topping
Dipper Ideas
- animal crackers
- vanilla wafers
- graham crackers
Instructions
- Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, beat softened butter on high speed for 2 minutes until pale and fluffy. Add salt.½ cup unsalted butter, pinch of salt
- Add powdered sugar half a cup at a time, beating well after each addition.2 cups powdered sugar
- Add heavy cream one tablespoon at a time. You will need anywhere between 1 and 2 tablespoons for a nice spreadable consistency. Add vanilla.1-2 tbsp. heavy cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Using an offset spatula or the back of a spoon, spread the frosting across the board or platter.
- Sprinkle the top with mini chocolate chips and sprinkles.
- Serve with dippers.
Notes
- Customize your frosting by using different flavors or food coloring to create a different color.
- Other topping ideas include white or butterscotch chips, mini chocolate candies, crushed cookie crumbs and any kind of sprinkle you desire.
- Other dipper ideas include pound cake bites, pretzels sticks or fresh fruit.
Heather says
We love this frosting recipe!