A Thing or Two about Buttercream

There are a lot of buttercream recipes, some call for just shortening, some are all butter, some are a mixture of butter and shortening.  I prefer the all butter version, but there are times when butter buttercream can fail you.

If you are icing your cake in humid, warm or hot temperatures, pure butter buttercream can definitely give you problems.  Even if you manage to get your cake decorated in the perfect temperature, transporting it can be a problem as well.  This is why most bakers put shortening in their buttercreams. The melting point of shortening is roughly 10 – 20 degrees higher than butter.  Much more stable.

For this roses cake, I followed the basic Butter recipe but added a few more tablespoons of icing sugar to make it stiffer and since I didn’t have to transport this cake, simply refrigerating it was good enough. For roses, use a 1M tip.

The Basic Butter Buttercream

1 cup salted butter, softened

4 cups fresh confectioners sugar (icing sugar)

4 teaspoons vanilla (clear if you want very white icing)

6 tablespoons milk or cream

(makes about 5 cups of frosting)

Butter and Shortening Buttercream

1/2 cup salted butter, softened

1/2 cup shortening

4 cups fresh confectioners sugar (icing sugar)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract (clear if you prefer)

2 tablespoons milk

(makes about 3 cups of frosting)

Citrus Buttercream

(follow either of the above recipes)

substitute lemon or orange juice for the milk

omit vanilla

Stir in 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel or 2 teaspoons grated orange peel

Shortening Buttercream

2 cups shortening

8 cups confectioners sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons clear imitation vanilla extract

6 fluid ounces heavy cream

(makes about 5-1/2 cups of frosting)

Instructions

In large bowl, cream shortening and/or butter with electric mixer. Add vanilla. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth until ready to use.
For best results, keep icing bowl in refrigerator when not in use. Refrigerated in an airtight container, this icing can be stored 2 weeks. Rewhip before using.

Enjoy !