AuthorStacy SaundersCategoryDifficultyBeginner

A light vanilla frosting that is low histamine & dairy free

Yields1 Serving
Prep Time8 minsTotal Time8 mins
 5 tbsp Dairy free butter (I use smart balance) slightly soft*
 3 cups Powdered sugar
 1 tsp Vanilla (optional)
 1 dash Salt
 2 tbsp Cold water
Histamine Level: 1
 Rated a 1 due to vanilla. Also rated a 1 due to the Smart Balance, which has pea protein and sunflower lecithin
1

* Update: Having the dairy free butter be the right temperature really makes a difference in this recipe. If it's too soft, it gets too wet and separates. If it's too cold it doesn't blend well. You want it to be slightly soft, where you can push into it with a spatula and it sticks in the butter, but is really soft around the edges.

2

In a medium size bowl combine dairy free butter, salt, & vanilla, beat with a hand mixer for 10 seconds.

3

Add powdered sugar & 1 TB water. Beat until well combined. If it is too dry, add another tbsp of water. If it is too wet, add some more powdered sugar.

Sometimes it separates if you beat it too long, because the df butter gets too warm. If it does, try adding more powdered sugar. I have not mastered this yet 😆

Olive oil frosting option
4

To make olive oil frosting:

Substitute 3T +2 1/4 tsp extra light tasting olive oil for the dairy free margarine.
Increase water by 1-2T.

Notes
5

This frosting freezes and thaws well. I like to freeze it in an ice cube tray so that it's in individual serving sizes. I cover the tray with saran wrap so it stays fresh. I scrape out a cube with a knife when I want to have a cinnamon roll, cupcake, monkey bread, or a sugar cookie.

I've also frozen it in sandwich bags. Take the bag out and let it thaw in the fridge for a couple hours or in the counter for a half hour. Then cut one of the corners of the plastic bag, and voilà, you have a frosting piping bag!

This is the frosting recipe I use for cupcakes, cinnamon rolls, sugar cookies, and cake. I also use it for glaze by thinning it with a little bit of water. 

While it isn't the most incredible recipe, because it tends to separate, I love the taste. Plus it works for our low histamine, gluten free, and dairy free diet!

Adapted from my mom's recipe. 

Ingredients

 5 tbsp Dairy free butter (I use smart balance) slightly soft*
 3 cups Powdered sugar
 1 tsp Vanilla (optional)
 1 dash Salt
 2 tbsp Cold water
Histamine Level: 1
 Rated a 1 due to vanilla. Also rated a 1 due to the Smart Balance, which has pea protein and sunflower lecithin

Directions

1

* Update: Having the dairy free butter be the right temperature really makes a difference in this recipe. If it's too soft, it gets too wet and separates. If it's too cold it doesn't blend well. You want it to be slightly soft, where you can push into it with a spatula and it sticks in the butter, but is really soft around the edges.

2

In a medium size bowl combine dairy free butter, salt, & vanilla, beat with a hand mixer for 10 seconds.

3

Add powdered sugar & 1 TB water. Beat until well combined. If it is too dry, add another tbsp of water. If it is too wet, add some more powdered sugar.

Sometimes it separates if you beat it too long, because the df butter gets too warm. If it does, try adding more powdered sugar. I have not mastered this yet 😆

Olive oil frosting option
4

To make olive oil frosting:

Substitute 3T +2 1/4 tsp extra light tasting olive oil for the dairy free margarine.
Increase water by 1-2T.

Notes
5

This frosting freezes and thaws well. I like to freeze it in an ice cube tray so that it's in individual serving sizes. I cover the tray with saran wrap so it stays fresh. I scrape out a cube with a knife when I want to have a cinnamon roll, cupcake, monkey bread, or a sugar cookie.

I've also frozen it in sandwich bags. Take the bag out and let it thaw in the fridge for a couple hours or in the counter for a half hour. Then cut one of the corners of the plastic bag, and voilà, you have a frosting piping bag!

Notes

Low Histamine Dairy Free Frosting-updated
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7 Comments

  1. Susan April 24, 2021 at 9:12 am

    Hi, Stacy,
    I have tried one of your recipes and am excited by what I have found on your site! Thank you!!! I saw you mentioned the case of vanilla extract: if you buy it alcohol-free (Amazon), it should not be problematic for your baby.
    I have Mast Cell Activation Syndrome with Salicylate Intolerance, so my diet is VERY limited. Most of what I can eat from the histamine diet list, I cannot eat from the salicylate list. Fortunately there are meds (Cromolyn) which decrease the histamine output considerably after about four weeks and reaching the 4-ampoules-a-day point. We are very lucky to have excellent insurance, or I would not be taking this relatively new $660 for about-16-days drug, once I get to the 6-ampoules-a-day, if I can tolerate that dosage. I cannot find exactly when it went on the market, but my best guess is that there should be a more affordable generic version in about 8 years! I also take DAO capsule supplements (to help with my lack of sufficient production of that digestive enzyme) which I found on Amazon: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07CJ2QYNM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1. (BTW, when one uses the Amazon Smile site, $$ is donated to the national SPCA with each order. )
    I have made your beet & carrot pizza sauce and will make a GF low histamine dough (a version I modified from sarah bakes g free .com [remove spaces]) tonight and try a pizza with your sauce + fresh buffalo mozzarella (no A1 protein) pizza. Because xanthan gum & all corn products are on the histamine list, and I personally cannot tolerate any of the nightshade group, even the white potatoes, I took one of Sarah’s flour mixes for breads and am using psyllium husk powder to replace the xanthan gum [as devised by America’s Test Kitchen]. In recipes calling for xanthan gum, use twice as much psyllium husk powder to replace it. By the way, if you haven’t already found it, the most complete list of foods and the degree of the histamine “content,” is on a Swiss Site, but keep in mind there will be a pause before it loads the amazingly long list of foods and chemicals to avoid: https://www.mastzellaktivierung.info/downloads/foodlist/21_FoodList_EN_alphabetic_withCateg.pdf
    It was on this site that I discovered that there was one kind of onion I could tolerate just fine: the stark white one with a white thin papery peel! All other types are very painful for me to digest. Also, for some reason, I do not tolerate cane sugar, nor molasses, nor brown sugar which seem to always be made from cane sugar as well. (I once told my husband, when he was constipated, to eat a tablespoon of molasses as eating it in any food always sent me to the bathroom within 30 minutes (long before I knew of my food issues.) So, I buy the inexpensive sugar, which is simply labelled “sugar” but which means it is derived from beets. Fortunately, one can also find powdered sugar made from beet sugar, also labelled “sugar” on the package. Between the histamines and salicylate groups, I can only eat agave syrup….. no honey, no maple syrup. The next best thing to replace the consistency of honey is the British-made “Golden Syrup” but unfortunately it is made with cane sugar. There is also golden syrup in the Nairns Oat Grahams I enjoy, but I don’t think I have too bad a reaction to them (and I don’t have to make them!).
    Have copied your vanilla icing and will make at some point when I bake for our 6 grandchildren and want to eat some. The worst symptom I experience from the histamine intolerance (as I have grown used to the abdominal discomfort over the years), is a symptom only one site mentions: overwhelming anxious hunger all day long. No matter what I ate, nor how much, when I got “the hungries,” often within 30 minutes of finishing my meal, I felt such anxiety and a need for food, which I imagine substance-abuse people must experience, which never allowed me to lose weight, it was so intense. It is not the sensation one normally feels when one is a couple of hours late getting a meal. Finally, I am eating 3 normal (though repetitive) meals a day with some Nairns oat grahams (Wegman’s has the best price if there is one in your area) as a snack, … and losing about 1-2 lbs a week.
    Since everything has to be very fresh to avoid the creation of histamines, especially the proteins, I have to do a lot of daily cooking, so it will be awhile before I get to try some of your other excellent recipes, but I am grateful to you! Forgive all of the food advice if you are already aware. I get carried away with my need to share.
    Best of luck to you and your adorable baby, and thank you for your recipes,
    Susan Haberly

    Reply
    1. Stacy Saunders May 3, 2021 at 9:49 pm

      Hi Susan!

      I so appreciate you sharing all of these ideas and resources. It’s so helpful to hear from other people dealing with similar things and the more resources we have the better off we are. Thank you for taking the time to do that!

      I hadn’t heard of the symptom of overwhelming anxious hunger, that sounds intense! I am glad you are finding things to help you with your healing journey. It’s tough when you layer low histamine with another restriction like salicylate. Good luck with all of your cooking adventures!

      Reply
  2. rizqah November 25, 2021 at 12:40 am

    Can coconut oil be used as a substitute for olive oil

    Reply
  3. Charissa De Jesus December 7, 2021 at 9:09 am

    I personally love the Country Crock plant butters. I used to use Smart Balance but have found the flavor of Country Crock to be much more like butter. It also doesn’t separate when melted and therefore acts more like butter in baked goods. Make sure you watch out for the Avocado oil based one because avocados are reactive for some. I use olive oil and almond oil varieties and have loved them!

    Reply
    1. Stacy Saunders December 7, 2021 at 11:28 am

      oh thank you SO much for the recommendation! I haven’t heard of that before but I just looked it up, the plant butter sticks with olive oil look great! The other plant spreadable butters they sell are made with soybean oil, which we personally can’t use right now, but I’m excited to try the sticks 🙂

      Reply
  4. Anna Catherine Riling June 19, 2024 at 1:31 pm

    I made this and the carrot cake for a friend with a low histamine diet. I had to double the frosting recipe to frost 2 x 9-inch rounds. Also I used a stand mixer and had zero problems with separating. It might be better than a hand mixer.

    Reply

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