project wedding cake: swiss buttercream
[Previous Project Wedding Cake episodes: An Introduction, Mango Curd, The Cake is Baked]
Oh, hi. Are you still out there? Oh, right, it’s the middle of a holiday weekend and you’re probably a) at the beach, b) sleeping on a hammock in a backyard or c) taking one of those media breaks the kids are so into these days. And believe it or not, I had a few days off too.
Because of my overly-paranoid baking schedule, I was actually able to not work on the wedding cake for a few days. Once I made a big vat-of-curd, I was pretty much done for a few days, on one of them even making dinner. Like, from ingredients you buy at a store. True story!
I made also made a tiny practice batch of Swiss buttercream, frosted it onto an even tinier cake and declared it my new favorite frosting. All of your advice was tremendously helpful in getting me through the oh-my-god-this-isn’t-working-FAIL period after I added the butter to the egg whites and once again ended up with a bowl of curdly soup. But with my laptop on the counter, I read what you all said–in short, “whip, whip, whip!”–and you know what? It worked. In a span of about 2 seconds, this frosting turns from slosh to, well, a mayo consistency which I know sounds revolting but I can assure you is anything but.
This is exactly what I’m using on the wedding cake for several reasons: one, it doesn’t crust the way a pure meringue frosting and some shortcut buttercreams do; two, it manages to taste so much less sweet than most frosting, likely because its structure comes from the egg whites and butter, not just sugar; three, it’s a lovely frosting that can be made so much smoother than most, and pipes really well, and four, it held up really well in an unairconditioned room for more than a day, convincing me that it’s totally ready for its closeup.
… Which is good timing, because the wedding is tomorrow! Today was Fill and Frost Day and I had some seriously well-practiced help come over, but I’ll get into all of that later. For now, I just wanted to get a little update out there and let you know I’m alive and miraculously, no longer freaking out over the magnitude of this project. Heck, I might have even entertained the idea of making a high-altitude wedding cake for friends next spring, but uh, I was also entertaining my second glass of wine at the time, so um, we’ll see about that.
Swiss Buttercream
The recipe comes from wedding cake genius and my unpaid assistant, Torrie.
For a wedding cake (or most of one, depending on the size)
2 cups of egg whites (approx. 12 large)
3 cups sugar
5 cups butter, softened (2 1/2 pounds, 10 sticks)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
For a 9-inch cake (plus filling, or some to spare)
1 cup sugar
4 large egg whites
26 tablespoons butter, softened (3 sticks plus 2 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the tiniest amount, if you’re just practicing (or enough to cover and fill the 4-inch cake pictured)
1/4 cup sugar
1 large egg white
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
Whisk egg whites and sugar together in a big metal bowl over a pot of simmering water. Whisk occasionally until you can’t feel the sugar granules when you rub the mixture between your fingers.
Transfer mixture into the mixer and whip until it turns white and about doubles in size. (Here’s a tip: when you transfer to the mixer, make sure you wipe the condensation off the bottom of the bowl so that no water gets into the egg whites. This can keep them from whipping up properly.)
Add the vanilla.
Finally, add the butter a stick at a time and whip, whip, whip.
Deb note: Do not have a panic attack when this takes a while to come together (though I did every time). One super-large batch took 15 minutes, but it did and will come together. Patience, young Jedis.
Yay! Congrats on conquering your fear of Swiss buttercream!! :-)
Bravo! I’d love to clean those beaters for you. And the bowl. And the cake plate.
That buttercream looks amazing! It looks like the extra time waiting for it to transform from slosh into something wonderful is worth not having to cook the sugar, like with other buttercreams. I’m definitely going to have to try this out. I’m anxiously waiting by my feed reader for the full wedding cake close-up :)
Can’t wait to see the pics from tomorrow! Have fun and enjoy yourself!
You had me at “much less sweet”. I haven’t even tasted it and it is my new favorite frosting, too – jeez, what a great suite of features! Sounds worth the effort and then some.
Good for you! That frosting looks so smooth and yummy! I have never made Swiss buttercream and am ashamed to admit I use canned frosting more often than I make my own. Shame, it is so simple to whip up homemade, I really need to do this more often! Thanks for the pics!
I don’t believe I’ve ever tried swiss buttercream! Egads, how can this be? It looks very creamy and smooth, yummers.
this looks great. i may even try it out on my next cake endeavor. good job!
If you do take on the high altitude cake, definitely get hold of a copy of “Pie in the Sky” by Susan Purdy. I’ve had excellent luck with her recipes and also using her suggested modifications on other recipes since I moved to 7000 feet 2 years ago.
Oh gush that looks so …. yummy… and sturdy… thank God for egg whites! I have to try this sometime. Deb, do you know what the purpose of whisking it over a simmering pot of water? Do you think it’s to kill of all the possible bacteria in the eggs? *Just curious*.
Love. Love. Love your blog.
;)
Oh..thank goodness, it finally worked. I have been checking back every time I get on the computer waiting for this very update. I’ve never made this frosting..I have just used the simple buttercream, the one with the powdered sugar when I’ve needed white icing. I don’t care for it because of the raw cornstarch/sugar flavor so I don’t make it very often. So..now I’ll give this one a whirl..for 15 minutes..sometime when I need white! Thanks for working through this with us on board! Good luck tomorrow, Deb!
I’m sure the whole thing will be a huge success! I took your Whole Lemon Tart to a dinner this evening, (actually2 of them) and they were GONE in about 5 minutes. Everyone loved them!
The little cake already looks like a perfect wedding cake! I am really looking forward to the photos pf the ‘real thing’! And I hereby vow to try out swiss buttercream asap.
Can’t wait to see the whole cake….
When I saw this photo in the Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/06/fashion/weddings/06lobster.html?ref=style) I thought it was your cake! Then I realized that wedding happened in June. But doesn’t that just prove that your cake looks as good, and I bet tastes way better, than some impersonal professional job?
OMG, go Deb! I CAN’T WAIT to see the final product! every new PWC installment is rushed to from the RSS feed!
I am ridiculously invested in the nuptial confections of people I don’t know on the other side of the world.. and I’m not ashamed to admit it! Hope everything goes smoothly, you certainly have a big support team backing you here with virtual cheers :)
and don’t forget to post the results and pics ASAP!!
Yay!!!
you know what? you’ve convinced me to give this another try. maybe not a big batch though. butter IS expensive. did you use unsalted? are you gonna color it? is it white white or kinda yellow-y from the butter?
sorry. i have too many questions. please answer them AFTER this big project of yours. don’t forget the pictures! :) congrats again.
Hi,
I’ve been following this topic from the other side of the world. I’m looking forward to seeing the final results of this project! This buttercream looks amazing, I think I will try to make it very soon! Good luck today!
what temperature is best for the butter in this recipe? my trouble with frosting is always lumpy bits of butter so I wondered what you found worked best here. thanks! am loving this series as I’ve done two wedding cakes and love learning more since both used 5 gallon buckets of cheater frosting from a cake supplier :-)
I agree with Zoe/puku #16 that I am way too involved in this process from far away! I have no intentions of ever undertaking a project like this but love to read Deb’s trials and tribulations and her results from trying readers comments. I think we all pick up a tip or two here whether we actually make the recipe or not! Thanks Deb – keep up the wonderful pics and tips and general life from NY! I’m from upstate and miss my trips to the city. I’m now living (temporarily thank goodness) in rural England where a trip to London makes NYC look downright inexpensive!
Enjoy the wedding. I love NYC weddings, large or small!
Sounds good. I really had super sweet frostings too. Would Cream of Tartar have helped this set? Just a thought.
really?! keeps a day in an unconditioned room? i have to try this, good for my bring to school cupcakes. i’m sure it’s going to be my favourite frosting too later :) good luck on your wedding cake project!
A friend and I went for a long steamy walk Saturday afternoon and (more than once) it was mentioned with excitement “I wonder how Smitten Kitchen is doing with her cake”. This test cake looks fantastic and SO delicious and, no doubt, the real deal got a standing ovation…and then *poof* the big cake plate was empty. Best wishes from Ottawa, Canada.
You are so brave Deb – so, so brave! I honestly don’ think I could take the pressure. I am loving following your progress though – it is fascinating. It’s like you have a midas touch for baking, incredible. Born to bake!
I don’t do so well with those tricky, hold your breath it will turn out ok recipes. I tend to freak out just before the point where it would have worked out just fine. Your cake looks wonderful, it is so nice to find other people in the world who feel the way I do about cake. Thank you!
Deb, I just wanted you to know that your wedding cake plans were so inspiring that my husband and I made a buttermilk cake with mango curd and seven-minute frosting for a birthday this weekend. It was delicious, as I’m sure the mother of all wedding cakes will be – have fun at the festivities, and thanks for a great set of recipes.
OMG! 15 minutes! Thank God for stand mixers!!! My arms are hurting just thinking about spending 15 minutes with a hand mixer. Looking forward to pics of the completed cake. I just have to say I absolutely love your site. Thanks for a great site and great recipes.
Could you use those egg whites from a carton? (Like EggBeaters?) I know it’s a sacrelige to mention them but I’d never use all those egg yolks. PWC has been an enjoyable cliffhanger. Good Luck!
BUTTERCREAM FROSTING – BUTTERCREAM FROSTING! AAAAAAAAAAAH my all time favorite! Great looking practice cake! Now, I CANNOT wait for the real thing as well as a peek INSIDE to see the mango curd and all the layers! Hope the wedding was fun fun fun!
Waiting patiently for your NEXT post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The frosting looks beautiful. Even though my kitchen here at the Jersey Shore never seems to get cooler than 80 degrees, you have made me really, really want to bake a fabulous cake (which will crank up the temp to 95 or so).
Question: How many cups of frosting did the recipe above make? I would like to try it, but I would like to avoid separating 12 (!) eggs to find out.
Thanks.
I am loving your little pieces about this wedding cake, I especially enjoyed the first post where someone posted the “How to eat a cupcake” link. I made my first batch of swiss meringue buttercream and frosted my first ever angel cake with it. (Angel cake are uncommon here in the UK). I can’t wait to see the final results.
I have enjoyed the entire series and look forward to the last episode, the bride and groom cutting the cake.
In the meantime, should the butter for the frosting be cold or room temp? Is it best to cut the butter in smaller pieces or the single stick? and, can this receipe be cut in half for us mere mortals who are not up to tackling a wedding cake?
Congrats on the frosting! Way to get back up on that Swiss buttercream horse after a fall. My mom and I had another thought as to why your previous batch did not work. Any trace of fat (butter, oil, greasy fingers,…) will keep your eggs from whipping up properly. We use half of a cut lemon and run it over the entire inside of the bowl and balloon beater before whipping and that has never failed us. You probably know all of this already, but it might keep you from tears when making the final batch of frosting. Good luck!
I can not wait to see the final product. Everything has looked great so far!
Best of luck, Deb! You are going to do GREAT! Like so many others have said, I am entirely TOO involved emotionally with this blog… : )
Martha Stewart has some swiss buttercream recipes on her website that uses 2 or 4 egg whites, I can’t remember, but it makes enough to frost a double layer 9″ cake. The first time I made swiss buttercream I loved the science experiment aspect of it. It’s cool how a bowl of egg white goo can be transformed into buttercream. You should try making brown sugar buttercream. It is lovely and amazing! I can’t wait to see the pictures of the completed wedding cake! I’m sure it will be beautiful and delicious!
Yes. It’s true. I got to see Smitten’s kitchen. She is awesome, and my god that chocolate cake was divine.
Since Smitten is currently enjoying the wedding festivities I thought I would answer some of your questions.
The butter should be at room temperature. You actually want the icing to be surprisingly soft when you ice the cake.
Ana, the egg whites and sugar get put over a double boiler mostly for the purpose of dissolving the sugar.
Neesha, the buttercream is pretty white (off-white) when you are done whipping it.
Bernie, cream of tatar is unnecessary. The icing sets up really well on its own, especially when refrigerated.
Christine, you can use egg whites in a carton- just make sure they are 100% egg whites.
So after hearing about this Swiss buttercream stuff, I decided I needed to try it out myself. I used the Martha Stewart recipe…and as I was making it, it dawned on me that THIS FROSTING is the magic stuff that comes on the CakeLove cupcakes here in the DC area. I’ve been trying to figure out what was different about Warren’s frosting for the longest time and now I know. I also know how he gets away with charging $3 a cupcake–it’s a lot more stressful to make than normal buttercream. I threw some fresh strawberries into my frosting and now my tiny studio smells amazing. Thanks for the inspiration on this one and glad yours came out so well!
Oh, I’m so glad it worked! It really is a dream to work with, so soft, but holds its shape. Good luck with the wedding!
I’m soooooo looking forward to the grand finale!! Congratulations on all your efforts and delicious, beautiful, elegant, enticing, etc, etc, etc results!!
Do you get the exact exquisite texture for this particular frosting if you use pasteurized egg whites? I completely shy away from uncooked egg in any shape or form since I had gotten seriously ill once from eating raw egg. (And to think of all the cookie dough batter I used to eat as a child!) Finally, can one use powdered egg whites as well? Thanks and thanks for your lovely blog!
Ooops…I just realized that perhaps the cooking of the egg whites and sugar over the water bath kill the bacteria. Once the sugar granules are gone, it’s past 140 degrees, right?
KATE – Warren has a cookbook out now, it gives the recipe for the frosting that they use in the bakery. Its actually Italian Meringue. I saw the book last night at B&N
Congratulations! I have been checking Smitten Kitchen every time I turn on the computer! The recipes are so wonderful and I am definitely going to try the buttercream. I have been a home baker for all my life; now that I am a grandma with little grandDAUGHTERS I am looking forward to some frilly wonderful birthday cakes. You have given me the courage to try the buttercream. I can hardly wait to see your finished product!
Becky, you got it. that’s a good way to know that you’ve reached the right temp to kill whatever bacteria is in the eggs. it’s in a video somewhere.
torrie, thanks for answering the question. :) once the buttercream is done and on the cake, if you refrigerate it, does it harden and then become soft again after thawing? i only ask this because when i attempted this the first time, i had to put some left over frosting in the fridge and it hardened and took a lot of whipping time before it became buttercream-like again.
Congratulations! Looks great! Neesha – it is my experience (pastry chef) that a buttercream will harden in the fridge and then soften beautifully. If you are looking for nice clean slices, do not slice when the frosting is still very hard. Let it soften a bit or the center will collapse. Also – I don’t know if anyone else mentioned this, but always let buttercream come to room temp before re-beating. Otherwise it will curdle.
hi! what does 1 tbsp vanilla mean? is it vanilla bean or sugar or extract?
that buttercream looks so yummy…makes me wanna lick my screen :)
Deb, if you really do end up doing the wedding cake for the high altitude wedding, the thing recommended by several folks over on the BakingCircle is to bake the cake layers ahead of time and take them with you-already baked. No fuss with trying to get the high altitude adjustments to work under pressure of an upcoming wedding.
great!!! so glad you went for the SMB, i refuse to use anything bu that anymore! i finished my first wedding cake yesterday and i was surprised at how NOT stressed i was. i’m sure yours came out beautifully and perfectly wonderful!!! can’t wait to see it!!! :)
what do you have to do to make this chocolate??
OK, this post might belong on the earlier page — I just checked and there are 249 comments!!! No, I haven’t read all of them so don’t know if someone else posted on this subject.
Wedding cakes in ye olden days were fruitcakes, soaked in brandy, covered in white royal icing. No, I wasn’t there, I’m talking 1700’s, 1800’s. Fruitcake was a big deal back then as the ingrediants were costly. No modern day baking soda’s, baking powders. If you wanted lift in a cake you (or more likely your servant) beat eggs until your arms fell off. Remember they didn’t have fridge’s, freezer’s, saran wrap, aluminum foil. Fruit cake could and did store for years. (Think of all the fruitcake re-gifting jokes.) The newly married couple could save a piece of their rum/bandy soaked wedding cake/fruitcake. And it probably tasted way better than a piece of our modern cake saved in the freezer. Also we forget that over the ages, tastes change. Fruitcake was costly then and therefore served only for weddings and Christmas. If something is rare and costly — somehow it tastes better. Think about it.
That’s how saving the top layer of a wedding cake became a tradition. And a tradition that needs updating.
OK, enough food history. (If I’ve erred, please correct me, it’s been a while since I’ve done any food history research.)
I hope THE CAKE and Deb and Alex have had a big sigh of relief and are having a ball! Save me a slice!
Mazol Tov!
i think you might be wrong about your fans, off swinging in hammocks. i’m # 53!
i have had house-guests and various holiday activities all weekend but that still has not stopped me from checking smitten_kitchen as much as possible! i hear the drum roll as i type. please post photos as soon as possible, it is a pleasure to watch your process and enjoy your sweet success over the ether.
with anticipation!
I hope it went well for you today, Deb. I can’t wait to see pictures and hear how it went. Thanks so much for sharing this project with us!
I’ll just have to give that swiss buttercream a go soon! Can’t wait to see the wedding cake. I’m waiting with bated breath!
Congrats! Sounds like everything has come together and the cake should be a hit. I can’t wait to see pics. I’ve been inspired to bake reading all these cake posts. I made a chocolate stout cake this weekend and will be making the topping tonight after the rarebit muffins finish up.
Did you say add the butter a stick at a time? No wonder you are having curdling issues. Try adding it 1 tablespoon at a time, letting it incorporate before adding the next. It might still curdle, but way less than you’ve been experiencing.
Also, make sure the butter is just north of room temperature, firm but cool.
Good luck!
Sue, former dessert caterer
Can’t wait to read about the wedding and how the full cake looked. Great job!
Deb,
I’d love to make the 3-tiered 8-inch chocolate butter cake that you listed in a previous post. Could you give us the recipe for the brandied ganache you mentioned? Thank you so much and can’t wait to see the final pics!
Anna
I had a slice of the chocolate and a slice of the mango and HOLY SCHITT, it was so amazing. The bride & groom actually made Deb stand up during the reception and EVERYONE clapped. She’s such a star and the cake was outstanding. We’d all be so lucky to have her make a wedding cake. Or any cake for that matter. Oh wait, she makes me cake all the time. God damn am I spoiled!
xoxo
Sue — The recipe absolutely works adding the butter one stick at a time.
Everyone — The wedding is over! I’ll get to ALL of those details, but first I must take a much-needed nap on the sofa, the kind that takes two day. But really quick, I have updated the recipe with some smaller quantities and clarification so you can use this even if you’re not making, say, a wedding cake.
Thanks for all the cheers!
ZAKIA: Sigh, I know and yet I’ve missed every book signing in he DC area. I actually went to a baking class with Warren a year ago, but it was for pound cake (no frosting discussed). Though he did mention his cookbook and gave us a few recipes from it. He likes to measure everything on a scale, though, which is too fussy for me. That’s why I always check out Smitten for recipes when I want something I can make in my teeny city kitchen!
ahhhh…Thank you for the scaled down version. I loves to spoil the guys that work for me, but not to the extent of baking a huge Wedding Cake. :) Since I am on vacay this week, this will definitely be the thing I bake next Sunday and take to work next Monday as a “Sorry I deserted you for a week” apology. Yay for Smitten Kitchen!
Looking forward to hearing all the details about how fabulous (and flawless, I’m sure) the wedding cake turned out.
Also, is it weird I had a dream I went to a friend’s house and you were making a wedding cake in their kitchen? Yeah, I thought so too.
Swiss buttercream, oh my goodness, a new frosting to try! I was gone the weekend and came back to posting tonight to see this, so unexpected! And the drama continues….how will the buutercream look on the cake? Will there be different tips used for decorating or simple spread on the cake? And why “Swss” and not “American” to celebrate the 4th weekend? Tune in to the next post for more “As the Wedding Cake is Made”!
http://lifeislikechampagne.blogspot.com/
Deb..so glad the cake was a success…did we dare doubt it would be? Nah..just wedding jitters!
I love swiss meringue buttercream too! Looks like your cake turned out lovely and tasted delicious!
OOh – a combo of my two favorite frostings: 7-minute and buttercream! I must try this soon!
thanks linda! :)
deb get some rest and come back with pictures and stories. thanks for the scaled down recipe.
Congratulations on finishing the cake, I’ve enjoyed reading about it :)
YEA!!! You are done. Now sit back and relax after the cake has been eaten.
I might try that Swiss Buttercream. I have never done one before. I usually just make the Decorator Frosting and that this is super sweet but will hold up to the heat.
Don’t forget to post pics of the finished cake.
Can we use a hand beater and get the same results? as much as I covet the Kitchen Aid it is just not in the budget.
Yum . . this is so outstanding . . . and Kate . . Warren uses a different buttercream . . he actually uses the one that requires a candy thermometer and streaming a simple syrup into the egg white mixture but you are correct . . the taste is similar. I have eaten an entire pink lady . . . so good . . . he just came out with a cookbook . . .it’s awsome . .
well done! I can’t wait to see a picture of the finished cake!
Also, nice to see someone make a real frosting as Fondant is all the rage these days. I’ve always preferred buttercream, but had never made it.
Thank you so much for posting various quantities!
Congratulations! It looks wonderful.
Goodness, I’m sitting here hitting refresh every 20 minutes waiting for the post-wedding update! I may have to make swiss buttercream frosting tonight. Cupcakes anyone?
This looks amazing Deb!!! I can’t wait to see the finished product!!
Mmmm, the wedding cake is coming along swimmingly! The frosting challenge was a tough one, and I’m so glad you took it on, this makes me want to make a batch of cupcakes just so that I can try that frosting!
Thanks for sharing. :)
I think I’m going to make this! Really helpful of you you include the recipe for all 3 quantities, thanks :D [I hope the wedding went well - i'll be hanging off the edge of my seat, waiting for your next post...]
I’m really interested in all these wedding cake-related posts because, well, my family and I might be making my own wedding cake. (Is that just crazy? It’s a very small wedding.)
I’m so glad your frosting turned out OK! I might have to try it, especially because of the “much less sweet” part…mmm!
Deb, I’ve been reading your blog for a while now – lurking you might say :). I decided to post today to let you know that you have inspired me to try the Swiss buttercream frosting. My mother and I will be making my wedding cake in October and I’ve been a bit wary of trying anything new (new to me that is!) for such a huge and nerve wracking project. But, now that you’ve been so kind as to post your trials, tribulations – and successes (congrats, yay!) I think I will try a test batch of the Swiss buttercream frosting (and maybe even a white chocolate version).
Thank you so much for sharing and I look forward to hearing/seeing more about your final results!
Hi Deb,
Swiss Meringue was the right decision… Please advise your readers to cook the sugar/egg white mix over the hot water until it reaches 165 degrees. There is no reason to be nervous about making some older person or pregnant gal sick. Or use pastuerized eggs, then the temp doesn’t matter. By the way, SMB freezes really well. Simply defrost overnight in the fridge, then microwave a few seconds and whip again until smooth.
I have made only 2 scratch cakes in my entire life, but you have nagged me into trying these birthday cakes and curds and swiss creme. thanks
The icing is almost glistening. Amazing!
Looks fantastic. I’ve loved reading up on your progress with this project. I once ended up making 500 profiteroles for a friends wedding, and I know the panic such large scale baking induces. Something that before took five minutes now takes an hour. But it seems like you have it all under control. Believe me, the feeling when you finish is tremendous, though in my case it was quite a while before I made profiteroles again!
Deb, could you give me the recipe for the small 4″ test cake that you have pictured? Sometimes I don’t have enough people around the house to make a big cake. Weeks could go by without a nice slice of cake after dinner. (gasp!) When you get around to it. You’ve had quite a weekend!
I didn’t just bake one cake. It was a recipe for 2 9-inch circles and ended up being about 6 of those 4-inch pans. If you’re looking for the amount of batter, 3/4 cup seems just right for them. (I kept using 1 cup of batter in each, and it kept almost-overflowing but I never learned.)
Cake update coming … soon! Just catching up on my other work today, long overdue.
Thanks Deb! As soon as it cools off a little here in the Bay Area I look forward to doing some baking.
Peeked at your pics on flikr, the cake looks amazing! Beautiful in fact. No doubt it tasted just as good. Congratulations on your success!
OH, WOW! I’m writing this post-cake photo blog, and I have to say, the final product was sooooo beautiful! I am in awe. Your success inspired me to make the small (test) batch of frosting today for my hubby’s birthday cake (which the 13-year-old son made from scratch – he’s perfected our “moist chocolate cake” recipe to a “t”). In any case, I’ve discovered that a) the frosting turned out very well, b) the small measurement recipe just barely, thinly, covers a 13×9″ cake (top only; I left it in the pan), c) I LOVE the taste — very subtle, not overly sweet, smooth… though mines lumpy b/c I added flaked coconut at hubby’s request, d) I read everyone’s posts and suggestions before I made the frosting and e) it was easy (and the test batch didn’t take me 15 minutes of beating with the mixer). Thanks!
Thank you for sharing the recipe with us. I can’t wait to try it. Would this work good for frosting for piped on cupcakes or will they fall when warm?
Deb, I am such a lucky gal! I was looking for peanut butter cookies and was smitten with your recipe/blog and signed up for it JUST IN TIME TO EXPERIENCE THIS WEDDING CAKE SAGA! I can hardly wait to see the end result. And! I can hardly wait to try this icing!
Can you mail me some of that frosting? Forget this silly diet; I want sugar and butter and eggs whipped into a delicious frosting delight.
omg–you are amARZ’IN. you baked this, and then blogged the recipe?? the finished product looks amazing!
I’m just now getting around to re-reading this, and I’m so excited to try another buttercream recipe. I grew up with the American butter-and-powdered-sugar version and recently started using an Italian buttercream. I love that this doesn’t require a candy thermometer: Hurrah! Congratulations on your wedding cake success!
I’m making my own wedding cake, and it is a 3 teir hexagon shape, with 3 different types of cake…Now this buttercream icing that you have posted looks amazing and smooth, I am covering my cakes with a chocolate fondant, now, in my trials over the past few months i have been adding the falvor to the icing i have been using, to match the flavor of the cake, so orange with orange, lemon with lemon and what not, so im sure that this would work the same way with this icing, and not just using vanilla correct? im going to expirement tomorrow when my vacation starts with a smaller batch and see how it tastes :)
This project is so inspiring! I’d like to make this for a baby shower in two weeks. Do you think that the egg whites are cooked enough when you have them on the double broiler? Or am I better off finding a different frosting? Thanks!
Hi Christina — Yes, the egg whites are cooked to a safe point. That said, I know many mothers-to-be are extra paranoid; if yours if of that sort, it might be best to use something else.
Gosh that looks delicious! I’m glad I found this recipe, my Daughter’s birthday is just around the corner and I want to make her cake this year. The last cake I baked was, well, not that great haha.
Not to be a total pain in the ass, but it’s called Swiss MERINGUE buttercream, indicating that it’s a buttercream made with a Swiss meringue base. There are three types of meringue:
Italian meringue: sugar is cooked with water to soft ball stage 235-240 F), then slowly streamed into whipped egg whites – this is the most stable
Swiss meringue: sugar is mixed with egg whites and whipped over a double boiler until 170 F; mixture is then whipped
French meringue: sugar is mixed with egg whites and whipped – this is the least stable
You can make buttercreams with either the Italian or Swiss meringue base, as those are stable enough to maintain their shape and texture at room temperature. However, meringues (like those baked cookie thingies) are commonly made using the French method, as they will be baked and therefore it doesn’t really matter if they hold up at room temperature.
And that is the end of your lesson on meringue :)
I have a bride who saw your recipe and sent it to me. She is interested in a less sweet frosting. I would be so afraid to put raw eggs in a frosting to feed 100 people. I don’t have that much insurance.
The egg whites in this recipe get cooked on the stove. Swiss buttercream is much less sweet than other frostings, and is something of a wedding cake standard.
I’m noticing an increase in questions and emails from people who are making wedding cakes and have run into issues or things that confuse them. I want to reiterate that I am not an wedding cake expert, I only made this one. For better answers to wedding-cake related questions, I’d definitely suggest that people check out Wilton.com’s message boards. Not only has every question been answered more than once by droves of homemade wedding cake pros, the new ones I posed were responded to quickly. Hope that helps!
Hello!
Greetings from Oregon… I just had to write to thank you for the wonderful buttercream recipe! You saved my tail…I too, just made my first wedding cake, and thanks to you for sharing your experience and the recipes, the cakes was a total hit! The swiss buttercream frosting was an ABSOLUTE dream to work with, and I can’t rave enough about it to all my friends. I would love to show you a picture of how the cake turned out-can I email you a picture of it?
Thanks so much…
Just tried out this buttercream recipe. It’s silky smooth and it taste less sweet and it hold up great!! I’m using this for a wedding cake for this coming sat. Wish me luck!!!! =D
Just wanted to say THANK YOU for this recipe! I made a birthday cake with this, as I loathe overly sweet frostings. It’s smooth, pipeable, just lovely to decorate with (and I’ve never decorated a cake before). Totally delicious too, of course. Mine never got “soupy”, but at one point did look kind of curdled, like over-whipped cream. But as you said, it came together in a heartbeat after more mixing.
I ended up using less butter (1 stick of butter for each egg white) and ~30% more sugar since the cake was for kids. But, I made the original version as well and loved that too — just depends on your target audience. Really tasty and beautiful frosting… I don’t know that I can bring myself to use regular buttercream ever again!
Hi! I want to say thank you for inspiring me to try Swiss buttercream at such short notice. I went for italian meringue instead as another site mentioned it held better in hot weather where i am from….Malaysia. But the basics were similar and your advice to ‘whip,whip,whip!’ saved my buttercream! I know, it was crazy stupid to try something on the day itself but i guess i do best under pressure.
Anyway, i love your site and am waiting for pics of this wedding cake you blogged about with Swiss buttercream. Or have i missed it?
Thanks again..you’ve been a gem.
This is the best frosting I’ve ever tasted, by far. I just wanted to say that if you are going to have your cake outside, in the sun, perhaps another recipe might be a better choice. I used this swiss buttercream for my daughter’s birthday cupcakes and they were really beautiful until they spent a little bit of time outside. The frosting just disappeared into the cupcakes!!!
But still, thanks so much for the recipe. I feel so fancy when I make it. Everyone is so impressed!
I have been trying to make some mousseline buttercream for the gingerbread macarons on Tartlette’s blog and have failed twice now. I whipped and whipped but I think whipping for 20 minutes with still a curdled mess seems a bit long. I think I’m going to take a nap then try the mini recipe. I can’t bear to ruin another heap of butter and egg whites (not to mention racking my brain for things to do with the yolks).
I know I am late to the party but I just made Swiss Buttercream for a cake and I am hooked! What an amazing icing! Soooo nice to work with and I’ve worked with quite a few different kinds before. I followed all your tips and it came together beautifully with no drama. However, I did chill it until the next day and then I paniced as it was a rock. When it finally warmed up, I whipped it again – it looked like curdled eggs. With a bit of patience, and high speed whipping, it came together again and was perfect!
i tried this recipe and IT WORKS!! it is amazing! thank you very much!
OMG! The icing is delicious and it’s amazing how all at once it does come together! How well does this icing hold up out of the fridge?
Just came across this recipe and will be using it for my son’s first birthday cake. I’m really looking forward to it, it sounds wonderful. I hate overly sweet frostings and especially dislike those make with powdered sugar, so I was thrilled that google found your recipe that calls for normal sugar.
Many thanks for sharing the smaller size version of the recipe!
I have just used this recipe to ice my friends wedding cake. It is a two tier square mud cake. I made up this recipe and a simple buttercream (with half shortening) and taste tested – this one is so much nicer! Is a very hot day here in Sydney today so hopefully it will hold up! Will send you a photo of the finished products with orchids and all!
Thanks!
I just tested out the tiny batch, and I too have declared this my new favorite frosting. I love the fluffiness and the taste is fantastic. Thanks for the recipe, and your pictures-they helped a lot!!
I’m making my first wedding cake, and your site is a marvelous help. I just made the small batch of buttercream, and WOW! That texture — I can tell how wonderfully smoothly it’s going to spread. And the lovely flavor — mmm. Thank you so much!
Hi, made 1/2 of the 9inch recipe. This is a wonderful recipe. Very smooth and creamy, YUMMY. I do have a question about the recipe for a wedding cake. I am making a three tier wedding cake-14, 10, 6 are the tier sizes, they will be 4inches tall. If I use your recipe for the wedding cake, how man recipes do I need to ice and fill these tiers. This is the problem I have each time I make a wedding cake, not sure how much icing to make for a big cake.
Andy, I would make at least two, if not three, of the largest recipe above. (Especially if you will be filling the cake with it.)
It freezes really well. I actually stretch out a bunch of plastic wrap, pile the buttercream in the middle, fold it up, and then wrap it again.
I freeze it like that, and then when I want to defrost it, I just pop it in the microwave in the plastic wrap, and heat it for 1 minute increments on half power until it is soft (I take it out of the microwave and break it up with my hands periodically).
Then, I just re-whip it.
Good luck!
Dear Deb,
Landed on your site after googling “buttercream how-to.” I am in love with your blog, and as of five finger-fulls ago, in LOVE with your buttercream!! My daughters first birthday cake is going to be the yummiest anyone ever tasted!! Thanks a million!!
Erin
I know this was a long time ago for you but do you remember the cake proportions on which you used this buttercream recipe? I am baking a 3-tiered cake (14×3, 10×3, and 6×3), with 2 layers in each tier and need enough buttercream to fill and frost all of it. Will 1 batch of your wedding cake recipe suffice? Also, did you make it all at once or portion it out? I have a regular-sized kitchenaid stand mixer and it seems too small to make the entire batch at once. Any advise is much appreciated! Thanks!
I don’t remember how many batches of buttercream I made, but I am pretty sure I made two. I did have extra but I much preferred having extra than realizing the day of I had a major need to touch up the cake and only a cup or two of spare frosting! There are many baking resources out on the Web, however, that can advise you about the amount of frosting need per cake size.
I trued to be adventurous and make the Swiss Meringue in the smallest quantity. But I failed miserably when my mixture didn’t double in size and form stiff peaks so I gave up. I don’t know how you managed to make anything of the egg white and sugar – my mixture just kinda splattered itself around the bowl. Could it be the bit of cream of tartar I added?
Do you have the measurements you used to make the four-inch practice cake? Thank you!
No. I think I used the regular recipe and it made 6 of those little cakes. (I have a set of six of them, anyhow, so perfect!)
Oh my goodness Deb, I have been on a search for a good recipe for buttercream after tasting the perfect buttercream on my girlfriend’s baby shower cake. After learning that there are several different kinds, and thanks to your post a few days ago about your layer cake referencing this post – I have found it! I made the regular batch last night and it is just heavenly. Thank you so much!
Okay, I’m DETERMINED to make this frosting :) but I’m on my third unsuccessful attempt and I have a question.. After the sugar dissolves in the whites, and when it’s time to whip the whites, are the whites supposed to stiffen at all? My sugar/whites mixture doubles in size but stays at the equivalent of “ribbon” stage of egg-whip – thick but liquid, no matter how long I whip it. From the looks of your pics it appears the whites are supposed to stiffen, but I’m not sure which of those pics is the whites and which is the finished buttercream.
In each of my attempts, I didn’t experience the curdling; the butter incorporated right in, but the end result was kind of slippery and tasted overly-buttery and just sort of ick. I know I’m doing something wrong here.. haha….
The whites don’t stiffen until the rest of the frosting does — many minutes later. I would say that this frosting is on the slick/buttery side, though, well, not ick to me. I hope that what you’re thinking is a mistake isn’t actually correct, but not to your taste!
I do love the slick/silky texture of this.. FAR superior to storebought frosting. I hope I didn’t offend with the “ick” description; all “icks” are due solely to my buttercream inexperience. :) I also realized I was using salted butter, which was affecting the flavor in a not-so-great way. I have since purchased ridiculous amounts of unsalted butter and am determined to end up with fluffy mounds of yum. Thanks a bunch for being so helpful, Deb!
Wow.. I’ve made several cakes with similar buttercream icing. This is awesome. I’m so happy that I found this site. I made a test cake for my friend Meg’s wedding and it looks amazing. Thanks so much to all of you.
Lisa’s issue could be something as simple as butter brand. I’ve bought some that are really greasy/oily, for some reason. Some have a much stronger flavor base, too. I’m going to be saving this for when I can afford some of the gourmet butter that’s recently appeared at my grocer’s. This, some good (real) Parmesan, and I have a meal fit for…well…me. Fettucine Alfredo and a home-made cake with home-made frosting? Yeah, buddy!!!
Deb, In making the swiss buttercream tonight and assembling the chocolate butter cake, the first batch of buttercream came out perfect. It is wonderful. When I discovered I needed more (for 3 layers), I made another batch and I ended up with a thick sweet butter. The only thing I can think of is that I beat the eggwhite/sugar mixture too long before adding the butter. It is the only thing I did differently. I will get up at the crack of dawn and try again as I have promised this cake for tomorrow. Anyway, thank you – the cake and icing are both wonderful.
I made the swiss buttercream for a chocolate cake I made Easter. It was a box cake but it was a good box cake. My only problem was that I didn’t let the cakes cool enough before frosting so the frosting in between the layers sorta disappeared. But everyone loved the frosting it freezes really well not that I froze it before frosting, I froze the frosted cake. It was yummy but I don’t have piping bags. Oh well guess I should invest in some once again. Thanks for the frosting it worked well. Just kept whipping the hell out of it with my Kitchen Aid.
well, i just made my 3rd attempt at making smbc. the first 2 times it came out perfect, but this time i have only made a lovely soup. what could i have done wrong?the only thing i did differently is that i heated the eggs to 165 degrees. could this have messed it up? i followed the largest recipe. i have a cake due tomorrow, and i have to figure this thing out today.
btw, i LOVE this frosting. its the best i have ever tasted, and is a dream to work with!
Did you keep beating it? Mine was soup, soup, soup, omg I’ve really ruined this, soup and then all of a sudden, it snapped together and it was frosting. Maybe this batch is taking longer. Don’t know about the temperatures, I’ve only made as I described in the recipe.
Okay… it looks like it is coming together. i just left the mixer on and walked away. i thought i was going to die, standing there looking at that huge bowl of soup!!!
thank you so much.
BTW, mine took about 20 minutes to come together.
Yay. Seriously, I did the same thing. I have a gray hair I might as well name after Swiss Buttercream Soup.
I made this big bowl of satin-delectableness yesterday for some birthday cupcakes. (The cake was a classic 1-2-3-4 cake.) Although I loved the texture and ease of decorating, I need help on the flavor. It wasn’t overly sweet, and I ‘m okay with that. But it wasn’t overly buttery, which I assumed would be the pronounced flavor since the powdered sugar was nixed. So I ended up with this extremely creamy, gorgeous frosting in the flavor of “interesting.” Any ideas on how I can ramp up the flavor without affecting the sweetness or texture?
I’ve got a wedding cake to do for a friend’s daughter and really want to use swiss buttercream, however, she wants roses. Can swiss buttercream be piped in roses, leaves, shells ect? I’ll do the ‘fake’ stuff if need be but I’d rather not. I HATE royal icing :P
Of course. I don’t see why not.
I love your site! Thank you so much for all the great recipes and tips!
Do you think this recipe would turn out with some sort of fresh raspberries or raspberry syrup? I made the vanilla buttermilk cake (from you wedding cake recipe) and wanted to fill it with a raspberry lemon curd. I thought tinting this with some raspberry would go nicely.
I’m making my wedding cake for my wedding in August and have been trying almost every frosting recipe I can find in my attempt to get one I really like. I think this is it! Thank you! Not overly sweet, and I can already tell that it won’t dry up like a lot of the “American” buttercreams with powdered sugar. Thank you! This entire section of the blog has been really helpful to me.
I made this and the consistency was amazing. However the taste was like eating a stick of butter, am i missing something?
Hi there! I’m a longtime lurker, but I finally have a question to ask you about your AMAZING recipes. Short version: I have not yet found a buttercream frosting that doesn’t taste like I’m eating lightly sweetened whipped butter. I know they exist, because I’ve TASTED them, but everytime I try? Gross. Am I doing something wrong? Or have a just had cheap, sugary buttercream for my entire life, and have thus become so used to sub-par frosting that my tongue loathes the real thing?
Thanks for your lovely photos and instructions.
Liza — The frosting may simply not be to your taste. It is mildly sweet, and the butter is pronounced.
Hi Deb- will you be providing a chocolate version of this? if so, where can i find it? My mom’s fav is chocolate buttercream…thank you!
I have not made a chocolate version of this to date but many other food bloggers have.
This weekend I made a second batch of this frosting using brown sugar instead of white sugar. The flavor was much richer, but not sweeter – very similar to french vanilla ice cream. It was a big hit with all the tasters. The color was a bit darker, but for my purposes (something tasty), that wasn’t an issue. I think this is a variation I’m going to stick with.
What should I add for chocolate frosting?
As I said above (148) I have not made a chocolate version of this. Check out the link for many recipes from people who have for leads.
Hi, I just finished with the practice and I’m a little concern. Although it come out, for the most part, ok I still have questions. First, what kind(brand) of butter do you recomend to use, because the one I used gives it a rich butter taste. Also, it did not come out as white as I hoped it would (at least like your picture). And last, it is softer than I thought what did I do wrong. Please help, I knwo that this will be a great recipie to use, but I still have to master it. Thank you!
I don’t have a recommended brand of butter. I use anything from store brand to Land O Lakes to Plurga, whatever I have on hand. The richer the butter, the better the butter flavor, so you might want to spring for one of the European brands. The softness may relate to the warmth in your kitchen; it should firm up in the fridge.
You are wonderful! I’ve been meaning to try Swiss buttercream for a while, but never got around to it until just now when I saw your recipe scaled down for the practice run.
I whipped it up in hardly more time than it takes to make whipped cream, and it turned out beautifully! Light and smooth and buttery! I’ve been searching the entire area where we now live, and not a single bakery here uses butter in its buttercream. Whatever it is that they glob onto their dry cakes, it leaves an unpleasant waxy residue on the tongue and tastes horribly grainy and sugary.
I’ve been dreaming of real buttercream like this for a few years now, and you’ve helped me finally get it!
Thanks!
@Katie G. (or Deb, if you happen to know!): When you substituted brown sugar for white sugar, did you use the same amount of brown sugar, or did you increase/decrease?
I love this recipe! I need to make a lemon cake in a few weeks do you have a recomendation on how to make THIS recipe a lemon bettercream?
Sigh. Ok, I made a mini batch of the frosting last night, subbing brown sugar for white (at a 1:1 ratio). It’s AWESOME, and fantastic, and not too sweet and buttery and I LOVE IT. However, I gave some samples out to friends, and they’re saying it’s too buttery. Valid point, taste being subjective and all. But I’m making this cake for a friend (and not for myself) so I’d like to try to lessen the butter flavor. Should I (a) add some powdered sugar, (b) reduce the amount of butter, (c) use half butter, half shortening, (d) some combination of the above or (e) something else I haven’t thought of yet? I’ll definitely be testing a few variations, but as time is limited, any nudges in the right direction would be appreciated!
How does this type of buttercream do for stacked wedding cakes? I have a cake to do for my brother’s wedding next June & it is an outdoor event. The bride is wanting a white chocolate raspberry cake with white chocolate shavings…any ideas if this would work?
Not sure I follow — this buttercream was made for a stacked wedding cake.
I need this frosting on a chocolate cake right now.
That’s all I have to say about that.
I love this buttercream (and this site!)…
for a chocolate variation of this buttercream, I melt and cool approximately 6 ounces of semi sweet chocolate (I use chocolate chips), then whip it in at the end (this would be the amount used for recipe that makes enough for a 9 inch cake)…I’ve also used white chocolate chips as well, divine! or for a toffee falvoured one, melt approx 1/2 cup of toffee bits and cool, then whip in
For a lemon variation, I would use a lemon curd (bought or homemade) and whip approx 3 to 4 tbsp of that in
the variations are endless!
This is a really lovely recipe and my new favorite buttercream! I frosted a bridal shower cake using it a couple of weekends ago, and it is a dream to work with. The crumb coat sets QUICK in the freezer, it frosts smoothly, and pipes REALLY well. All this, PLUS it held up great for an afternoon without refrigeration (and in the fridge for next day leftovers). Now reading through the comments I see it also can be frozen and then whipped up again for use. AMAZING!
Just finished making this recipe- WOW. I don’t have a stand mixer and it was still more than worth my time. I absolutely love that it isn’t as sweet as others I’ve made. Just one more recipe from your blog that will be made regularly at my house! Thanks a bunch for this one!!!
I made the buttercream this weekend and loved it. I have been on a quest for the perfect buttercream for a number of years and this is it!! It held up so well. It tasted light and fluffy. Thank you, I am so happy to find my new go to frosting. Oh and did I mention this was so easy to make too!
Deb!
I made this recipe based on your recommendations and my cake lust looking at your pictures- ok, I technically made Martha’s recipe, because I needed to frost cupcakes, not cakes, and hers is set up for cupcakes, but the proportions of egg to butter to sugar look about the same (Hers was 10 egg whites to 2.5 c sugar to 8 sticks of butter- and it made twice as much as I needed, and almost exceeded my mixer’s capacity). Bottom line — my guests and I experienced frosting nirvana. It was great and got rave reviews!
Here’s a couple of things I noticed: happily, my frosting didn’t “curdle” at all, but I wonder if that’s because I used a copper beating bowl to heat and mix the eggwhite and sugar over a water bath. The copper bowl may have helped stabilize the meringue, or at least, that’s my theory. Also, I tasted the frosting after each addition of butter (and who wouldn’t? It was damn good) and I wonder whether you could use less butter (say, instead of 8 sticks to 10 egg whites in the above recipe, maybe use 7 or even 6 sticks?) and still end up with a great frosting? It might tend more to the meringue side (and hence may lose some of those great properties- i.e. it might crust a bit) but I’d think it’d be worth trying. I mention this because although this is now my new go-to frosting, I think I could do with just a touch less butter. It is somehow cloud-light and still very rich.
Thanks so much for your site, I’ve made a number of your recipes (the pink lady cake, caramel chocolate cracker crack) and they are so good!
I just made my first wedding cake following this icing recipe and it turned out amazing (kept well at room temperature, piped easily, tasted amazing… my only alteration was cutting the butter by a couple of tablespoons) and the entire cake was demolished happily within a few hours! Your posts gave me a lot of confidence to tackle this project and it has turned out to be one of the most awesome things I have ever done so far! Of course my family who has had to put up with my random panicking and loads of dishes might disagree but there’s a cake crumb trifle coming up to satisfy everyone =) Thanks so much!
my mixer’s been on for over 15mins but still curdly soup :-(
I’m hoping it comes around like many of you say it does..
wow.. my frosting actually came together just like mentioned.. yay!! :-)
Thanks so much Deb for a great recipe.
This saved my life, Deb! As did the rest of your wedding cake series! I just made my brother’s wedding cake and it was a hit – featuring this recipe and the same chocolate and vanilla cake recipes you used in yours. Yay you!
Deb! You are amazing. you have me shaking my head and chiding “Oh ye of little faith!” to myself. I’ve been trying to find a good recipe for frosting for the cake I”m making for my MIL’s birthday…a “white cake with white frosting” was her special request. It felt wrong just do the usual box of powdered sugar, stick of butter kind of buttercream.
So I did a test batch of this…I followed the Project Wedding Cake posts with eager interest last year…especially this one, because when I turned 16 I attempted to make SMB for my own birthday cake and it was a curdled embarrassment (that my mom assured me I should serve anyway…the beginning of my lifelong love-hate relationship with cake-making).
But fast forward to my test batch today – you are so right! I was even committing kitchen heresy by using my favorite vegan butter-substitute. Before you send the food police after me…it worked!! It’s delicious (I added just a touch more vanilla). I wish I could post a picture of how pretty my cupcakes (made especially for the test batch frosting) look – with strawberries on top. :) Yummy!
you were so right though – it was a wretched, horrific bowl-full of gloppiness for at least 10 minutes, but, magically at 10 min 2 sec- *POOF* it turned into a silky, lovely buttercream. You rule, lady!
Hope you and that baby are doing well. :) Good luck w/ the rest of your pregnancy and the delivery! :)
Wow, I just made this stuff to frost some cuppy cakes I made for friends. I’ve tried to make Swiss buttercream one other time and it separated and got all slooshy so I tossed it. I was expecting to have to wait a lot time for it to come together with your recipe, but surprisingly once I added the chunks of butter it just whipped up nicely in about 3 minutes with no weird stages. I was very surprised; beginners luck I guess. Anyway, this stuff is great and has a beautiful texture. Thanks so much for sharing the recipe and for the detailed and reassuring instructions.
Hi -I am going to try making a practice batch to tomorrow. Do you think it would whip up if used 3 parts butter: 1 part cream cheese?
Just tried making this today for my birthday cake, and though my batch was never curdled, it never thickened, either. I left the mixer on for a good 20 minutes, and the frosting remained the consistency of cake batter. I’m sure, given all the great reviews here, that your recipe isn’t the problem and that I mis-measured something along the way. I’ll just have to try it again sometime and see if I’m not more successful.
Even if it takes absurdly long (remember, mine took 20-plus minutes too) you gotta keep whipping it and it will come together.
I’ve made this recipe successfully several times, and it’s by far my favourite for every occasion. The only time it’s failed me is when I took a short-cut and used a carton of egg whites, instead of the real thing. So lest ye be tempted – as I was – to save yourself the hassle of separating eggs, be warned! You will most certainly over-beat the eggs in a second, and end up with a chunk-o-butter meringue-flavoured frosting (which was actually still tasty, if you can get over the texture).
It would really be a different recipe, so you will have to try it and let us know how it goes. By the way, there is a Swiss buttercream-style cream cheese frosting recipe in the Sky High cake book I am always gushing over. It sounds like exactly what you are looking for.
OK – Finally had time to try the recipe (exactly as written). I made the practice amount and I am in love! I have a small KitchenAid mixer and set it on the fastest setting and used the whisk attachment. I set my timer for 20 minutes and kept an eye on it. It came together in only 4 minutes!
My son loves my signature chocolate cake (made with black & dutch cocoa), so when he asked if I would make the wedding cake I said … “yes”. YIKES, what was I thinking? I don’t have big ovens – don’t have a big freezer, I will have a houseful of out-of-town guests for the wedding weekend (8/22)
Thankfully the bride only wants a 12 round layer cake – no decorations on it. She is ordering a floral arrangement as a cake-topper.
This is my idea… I will make six 9×13 cakes and the Display cake will be two layers: Bottom layer will be 12 inch round styrofoam and the top layer will be12 inch round real cake.
I will frost the 9×13 cakes to serve to the guests (the will be in the back – the guest won’t see the 9×13 cakes) and I will frost the 2 layer “cake” as the display.
Because of my company and time restraints, do you think it would be possible to frost the cakes (at the reception place) on Thursday morning, refrigerate them then serve the cake on Saturday night?
I would appreciate any input you can give me. :)
It should be okay but the only way to tell for sure will be to make a small cake, frost it, and see how it holds up for a few days. No advice can beat what you’ll learn in a test run; I know it saved me from making a lot of bad choices on this cake!
Deb, do you have any idea how this beautiful-looking buttercream might work with a fairly-low-powered (i.e. cheap!) handheld mixer? I don’t have a stand mixer and I don’t think any of my food processor attachments would really do the job. Normally I disregard equipment instructions if possible and just use what I have, but this just looks as though it really depends on the stand mixer to pull it all together!
Any thoughts would be much appreciated :)
I followed your recipe and instructions and made this beautiful frosting! It is so delicious. I added raspberry jam at the very end with a little red food coloring for extra flavor. Pure heaven. I don’t know how I will ever go back to regular icing again!!
Hi, just made Swiss Buttercream yesterday for the first time. Not this recipe, but very similar, no corn syrup. What does the additon of corn syrup do for it? Also, I had a problem with air bubbles, both after it was frosted and when I used the piping bag. Any suggestions? I used a hand mixer and a stand mixer and liked using the hand mixer better.
Thanks so much for this wonderful recipe. I’ve tried others with corn syrup before and prefer this one so much. To anyone who has problems where the frosting seems to curdle – DON’T toss it. Just put it in the fridge for a few minutes, then resume whipping. I’ve had that problem with a few of the batches I’ve made this summer (it’s hot here in Atlanta), and cooling it a bit helped.
Also, I’ve tried this with cream cheese and it makes a WONDERFUL cream cheese frosting. I hate the ones that are just powdered sugar, cream cheese and butter. I think powdered sugar has a horrible aftertaste. Anyhow, to make it with cream cheese, I use the equal parts of butter and cream cheese. So if you’re duing the 26 tablespoons recipe, use 13 of butter and 13 of cream cheese. You need to make sure your cream cheese is at room temp, and I alternate the cream cheese and butter. It seems to take a bit longer to whip up to a good consistency, but it does get there. It’s SO much better than the standard cream cheese frosting – no where near as sweet!
This recipe sounds like just what I’ve been looking for! I’m definately going to try it out soon. Thanks for sharing!
The cake is so so yummy …. however i had trouble ‘w2hipping’ the frosting. it was also a little to buttery for my taste. thanks again!
learned something new about this fantastic, perfect, no-fail, idiot-proof recipe… i just made two big batches – one mocha and one lemon – and learned that the SOFTER the butter the faster it comes together. The mocha batch didn’t separate or anything… came together in about 3 minutes!! the butter for that batch was so soft it would barely stay on the spoon… the lemon batch, also came together quickly, but it did separate a little bit. The butter was still firm…
could possibly have something to do with the humidity too… it’s a hot, sweaty 30C in our kitchen, maybe higher…
regardless, it turned out perfect as always.
thanks for such a fool-proof and delicious recipe.
Is did the amount of frosting you made for the wedding cake fit in your kitchen aid bowl?
No, I made several batches.
Hi Deb! I’ve been avoiding this recipe for ages; just looked way too panic-inducing for an obsessive like me. However, I made a test recipe for my son’s 2nd birthday cake (Very Hungry Caterpillar cupcake train!) and it was just like you said, soup soup soup soup oh my gosh it isn’t going to– hey, it’s gorgeous!
I made 3/4ths of the 9-inch size, and it was not quite enough for piping onto 20 cupcakes. Next time I’d use the whole amount.
Cheers!
Wow… just made this. Yes, it is quite buttery but really, really good. I hope I didn’t do something wrong, because it came together beautifully right from the start. I used 3/4 c. white sugar and 1/4 c. brown. Tomorrow I’m putting it on your white cake (which baked up beautifully!), filled with passionfruit curd (which also worked like a charm). So all this success probably means I’m going to drop the cake on the floor once I get it all put together…
Thanks so much for taking the time to document this so very thoroughly — it’s been so helpful. I’m going to attempt to make a wedding cake in November and seeing someone else’s experience has been invaluable.
I just made this using my cheap-o Kitchen Aid handheld mixer, and it came together wonderfully. It came together in about 8 minutes after I added all the butter. I kept beating it until I hit 15 minutes, because I couldn’t believe it actually came together so quickly.
I am in a cake making class at my local community college, and the instructor said you can’t make swiss meringue buttercream without a stand mixer. I didn’t believe it (what did they do in the olden days?!), and we just proved her wrong! Yeah, my arm is a little sore, but it was worth it! This icing is delish!
I need to make this for my granddaughter’s Birthday cake. BIG party. Cake will be 3 odd shaped tiers high, out of 1/4 sheet layers. I need to color this icing in about five different colors. What do you recommend using to color this particular icing without changing the consistency?
Well, this recipe gave me the promised panic attack. I made a small batch to cover a three-layer 6-inch cake used as a cutting cake at a wedding and it took about 15 minutes before it came together. I seriously almost dumped it at the 13-minute mark, but something (all the encouraging comments here) made me press on! It worked really well in the end. My only note is to use the fake vanilla extract that’s clear if you want a very white frosting. The good stuff turned the frosting to a lovely ivory, but that might not matter depending on what you’re using it for.
So I just had a late-night “I’m going to bake a wedding cake” moment (yes, I thought I could do this in an hour or so) and made this AMAZING frosting and wanted to say thank you – 1) for the fantastic recipe and 2) for telling me not to freak out when it took longer than expected! Mine took about 20mins to look like real frosting but it was well worth the wait.
Is your sister eloping again, Lauren?! :)
This stuff is FANTASTIC! Finally, an icing that I won’t scrape off of the cake. I have now made this 4 times and it is perfect each and every time. Thanks!
Haha oh goodness… Jocelyn does love eloping! No, this was actually the result of me clicking “Surprise Me” over and over looking for a fun project. Of course I was feeling overly ambitious and went for a mini wedding cake! The frosting was fantastic, by the way. A very big hit with everyone!
i love this frosting. so good and simple.
I tried the frosting. Too buttery for my and my friends’ taste. My husband like it, but said it was pretty buttery and might not suite the taste of others. It turned out great as far as consistency, but was a yellow color. I followed the recipe to do a 9” round to a T. Perhaps a preference thing.
so a few nights ago i tried this icing. it was comical to say the least. my husband walked in after 30 minutes of blending the eggwhite and sugar mixture and couldn’t believe i was still mixing….nothing was happening…i still had the tiny amount of soupyness in the bowl i had begun with. i got fed up and just threw the butter in and instantly it came together! albeit a little buttery for me so i put in some cinnamon and allspice and my husband came back and tried to eat the whole thing…..i think it was an incidental success….
Wow! I have visited the heavenly Smitten Kitchen a few times and I am inspired! Like most here, I love to cook, bake, and provide lovely yumminess for my friends and all loved ones…but my lifestyle doesn’t provide much occasion. I recently moved in with my boyfriend and currently have a kitchen that is sparsely equipped(we’re working on it–he’s a super minimalist and we live in NYC so cooking in happens a few times a week at best.). In the interest of making a cake that is both celebratory and scrumptious, AND keeping it just big enough for two, do you have any idea of how much I would need to reduce the recipe to actually make just the 4 inch cake that is pictured here with the Swiss buttercream? I am making the frosting tonight–sooo excited! Many thanks for the inspiration…
Hi,
Thanks for sharing the recipe, I’ve tried the buttercream recipe and love it. I also finds it easier to work with as compared to Italian Meringue Buttercream. Thanks again!
I have been on a seemingly never ending quest for THE perfect buttercream. I am happy to say that after making a tiny batch using your scaled down recipe above the search is over!!!!! Such an easy frosting (well, a larger batch would be much easier – my stand mixer is too big to effectively do anything with such a small amount of frosting) that will certainly be my “go to” frosting recipe.
Thank you for sharing your messes, successes, stories and recipes. Your blog is a joy to read!
Just a quick question about the buttercream – I tried & failed with this recipe (and I think I know why) but I just wanted to ask – when you say “stick” of butter, what is the weight? All your recipes translate fine from ounces into grams for us using Metric, but 1 “stick” of butter for me is 250grams or 8.8 ounces – and I think I may have gone over-board on the butter because of this.
A stick is 4 ounces.
Thanks, Deb! :0)
PERFECT! I came across this post about a year ago, after reading most of your entire blog (probably following a link from TthePioneerWoman, but I honestly don’t remember) and bookmarked you. Unfortunately my laptop was stolen last summer and I hadn’t saved my bookmarks – then of course I just got to busy with real life stuff to try & find most of my hobby blogs… ANYWAY, today I recieved a request from a friend for several dozen cupcakes for a baby shower and, being my first actual “order” I knew this was the frosting recipe I wanted to try (none of my “shortcut” buttercream recipes are good enough to sell). But of course I had no idea where I had found it. So, I googled “buttercream cake blog” and HERE IT IS!!!!!! Sry for the novel, but I thought you might find it interesting. I can’t wait to try it. Thank you! ~Kristi
OMG! this is the best frosting I have ever tasted! Not too sweet and not heavy like most buttercreams. It did look funny halfway through the whip process, but came together like a dream. It really wasn’t hard to make at all. Awesome, awesome stuff!
Thanks!