Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Buttercream
Decorating By Jackie Updated 26 May 2016 , 8:00pm by gfbaby
All what my fellow decorators said was true and i agree but its hard for guys to be cake decorators in the bahamas I have good friends who teased me put they loved the cakes at the end of the day and thats what matters i also use this product
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I have only made buttercream a handful of times but I was wondering about freezing.
I tried searching this forum thread and didn't find many answers.
How long can you freeze buttercream?
Can you keep just butter, no shortening buttercream at room temp?
What is the best way to store? Glass air-tight container? Ziplock bag?
Should I thaw at room temp or in fridge?
Does it have to be completely thawed before whipping?
This is my recipe that I have used:
4 cups (460 grams) confectioners sugar (icing or powdered sugar), sifted
1 cup (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 tablespoons milk or light cream
Thanks so much!
i wouldlove to see some techniques and ideas on decorating with buttercream and how to's. im new to this and would love to know how everyone else gets those gorgeous cakes with using all buttercream.
Has anyone tried French Buttercream? I have made it, but was wondering how it holds up vs. regular buttercream? I have a wedding cake that I would like to use it for but it is in July and I'm not sure how it will hold in the heat, any sugestions? Katie
I want to offer some help to those of you that are just now reading this.
There is a lot of valuable information within this topic and it has taken me two days to read through all 35 pages. As I read, I copied and pasted any valuable information I thought I could use.
I would like to share it with others so it won't take you two days to find what you're looking for. (I apologize for not naming the people who posted, I just copied the information)
Here goes......
Viva Method:
The best tip I learned about buttercream icing was how to ice and smooth. Using the icing tip to place icing on the cake, then using a long smoothing spatula to even the icing out. After letting it sit for about 10-15 minutes, I then use VIVA paper towels to smooth the icing out. I get great results with this, even if I have to patch and repair when I am setting up a wedding cake.
http://cakecentral.com/articles/71/how-to-create-faux-fondant-the-paper-smoothing-towel-method-viva
Roller Melvira method:
http://cakecentral.com/articles/126/quick-easy-smooth-icing-using-a-roller-melvira-method
Upside Down Icing Method:
http://cakecentral.com/articles/69/upside-down-icing-technique-for-perfectly-smooth-icing
The best tips:
1. Use water instead of milk (stays fresh longer).
2. Do not beat too fast or too long, will add air bubbles.
3. Cover mixer with damp towel while mixing to eliminate powder clouds in the air.
4. Add light corn syrup at the end of mixing to create an icing that glides onto the cake (I add 1/4 cup to a 6 cup batch).
5. Allow icing to crust over at least 15 - 30 minutes then use parchment paper and your warm hand to smooth the cake.
6. putting a few drops of vinger in your buttercream will help it from cracking when you have to move and already crusted cake.
7. Sturdy plywood board or foam board to support a cake will prevent cracking when transporting cakes. The heavier the cake the more support.
8. add colored piping gel when I color my buttercream. I usually need a little extra color, but the piping gel keeps the consistancy from thinning, and it also helps my buttercream from cracking when I pipe letters or make roses and leaves.
9. freezing roses helps prevent damage when transferring to a cake.
10. dont sift the powdered sugar, just knead it in the bag really good. I've never had a lump problem this way.
11.I just recently discovered that you can flavor a basic butter cream recipe with snow cone syrup. The lemon is clear, however, the apple, cherry, and grape are colored. But the colors are really great for kids and they love the flavor. To make it you just cut the liquid out, be it oils, liquid flavor, or water/milk.
12. Just a quick note for making anything with cocoa powder (cakes or frostings)... if you dissolve the cocoa in boiling water, it gives whatever you are making a much richer chocolate flavor. Just boil some water and measure out the amount called for in your recipe. Mix in the cocoa thoroughly and let it cool to room temperature- then just follow the recipe as directed!
13. To cut the sweetness, I add cornstarch to my icing. Not only does it help cut the sweetness, it also helps with humidity.
14.when trying to get deep reds, using a combination of powdered and paste coloring works great. Less thinning of icing and less taste of coloring.
15. Start with chocolate icing if making black icing. also, adding a tbsp of wilton meringue powder to the icing will help to stabilize it and prevent bleeding.
16. Try making the butter cream then adding the ganache and beating it. Fluffy and wonderful.
17. There is so many coffee creamer flavors that you can easly and quickly add so many exctiing flavors to you buttercream.
18.You can also use Dreamwhip powder if you have it available in your country. One of my instructors said flour helps with the humidity.
19. Use paddle attachment to avoid air bubbles. This is for KA users. Handheld mixer users, just beat on low.
Recipes:
When I make buttercream, I always add about a 1/4tsp of kosher salt to the liquid I'm using (usually water and vanilla) and let it dissolve completely, about 3-4 oz of good white chocolate and un-salted sweet cream butter(tends to be very light, not yellow).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ok Here is my recipe for icing:
1 Cup Hi Ratio Shortening
4 TBL White Icing Base
7 cups 6x Powder Sugar
1/2 cup water
1 tsp or to taste what ever flavor you want. You can use extracts or louann flavored oils but use less of the oil flavoring because it is strong. I use my own flavoring mixture that gives me a unique great tasting icing.
2 drops vinegar- This keeps any icing from cracking or stress lines.
You can also add 1 stick of softened butter (I use white butter) to this recipe for buttercream or an 8 oz of creamcheese for a cream cheese icing that crusts. This icing will hold better than crisco in heat and takes less shortening to make because hi ratio does not break down like crisco. You use 1/3 less alpine per cup of crisco for your recipes. Taste wise this is not gritty nor shortening tasting at all. The shelf life is very long and does not need to be refridgerated. Just re-whip before use if it has sat for a few days and it is ready to go. It is important that you use 6 x Sugar. This is a commercial grade and really makes a difference in your icing texture and consistency.
Forgot to add if you want a little less sweet icing I add 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon fine salt to the recipe.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1/2 lb of white crisco shortening (equals 1 cup )
1 tsp clear vanilla
1 kilo of icing sugar (approx 71/2 cups)
2/3 cups water
1/3 cup allpurpose flour
Mix for exactly 1 1/2 min no longer on med speed.
Helpful videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6r8MYHYz00&feature=channel_page
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLcCbN2I4xI&feature=channel_page
Please note, I copied these to make this, anything that say "I" , "my", I can not take credit for. Although I do use some of these methods, I am still learning and I am thankful for all the experts out there that make learning possible.
A lot of users have asked how long BC lasts. I have heard, 2 weeks in an airtight container in the refrigerator. I have heard you CAN freeze it and there are several users that freeze colors in advance to have it available.
I can not locate the site that I read this but I found something that stated all the sugar acts as a preservative so BC does not have to be refrigerated but if it's out in the heat and it contains butter, your decorations may suffer since the melting point of butter is 9095 °F, which is much lower than the shortening types, which lasts up to 117°F and 119°F.
I have not tested this theory, since I don't want anyone getting sick off of something I created.
AIR BUBBLES: i have figured it out completely yet, but , to me, it appears that if you are coolling your cake in the freezer and the icing has been refridgerated too, when the cake starts sitting out at room temp it may be creating those bubbles. I use a toothpick to pop them and they deflate just like a balloon but I have always had a concern that if I drop off a cake, will a bubble form, hadnt had that happen yet, but i think it has something to do with the temp of the cake, the icing and the room temp.
AIR BUBBLES: i have figured it out completely yet, but , to me, it appears that if you are coolling your cake in the freezer and the icing has been refridgerated too, when the cake starts sitting out at room temp it may be creating those bubbles. I use a toothpick to pop them and they deflate just like a balloon but I have always had a concern that if I drop off a cake, will a bubble form, hadnt had that happen yet, but i think it has something to do with the temp of the cake, the icing and the room temp.
AIR BUBBLES: i have figured it out completely yet, but , to me, it appears that if you are coolling your cake in the freezer and the icing has been refridgerated too, when the cake starts sitting out at room temp it may be creating those bubbles. I use a toothpick to pop them and they deflate just like a balloon but I have always had a concern that if I drop off a cake, will a bubble form, hadnt had that happen yet, but i think it has something to do with the temp of the cake, the icing and the room temp.
AIR BUBBLES: i have figured it out completely yet, but , to me, it appears that if you are coolling your cake in the freezer and the icing has been refridgerated too, when the cake starts sitting out at room temp it may be creating those bubbles. I use a toothpick to pop them and they deflate just like a balloon but I have always had a concern that if I drop off a cake, will a bubble form, hadnt had that happen yet, but i think it has something to do with the temp of the cake, the icing and the room temp.
Montanakate I have the same interest as you...how to get all the air bubbles out of my buttercream. Am I over-whipping it or do I need to add more liquid?
I just started exploring this site...wow- there is a LOT of information...with two little ones around, I can barely get through reading all this stuff...just posted on the forum about something else. I see the viva towel method is great for smooth icing.
Question about frosting- I have used the crisco/wilton buttercream frosting recipe, but don't like the shortening taste. I have tried butter only buttercream recipes, but it is SO sweet. Cream cheese icings IME don't crust easily, hence, no smooth finish.
Does anyone have a icing recipe which is not tooo sweet, does not use shortening and is actually edible
Also, is there a limit of questions that can be asked on here (b/c I have MANY!!!
Thanks
Hello to everyone out there,
I made my daughters puppydog Bcake with the Indydebi, buttercream(Shortening/Butter) w the
DREAMWHIP powder added to it and we had a SNOWSTORM had to cancel here party 
Can I freeze the cake with dreamwhip in the icing or do I have to make a new one. HELP please
I've been reading through this topic and see that a few of you are having issues with air bubbles in your buttercream? I have never and I mean never gotten air bubbles in my buttercream frostings and I have been making it forever. To me the only way you create bubbles is that the frosting is too soft and the mixer too high. The incorporation of too much air will always give you bubbles. Other than that I don't have a clue. Hope I said something worth wild! lol
"pattycake pattycake bakers man bake me a cake as fast as you can'
How about a section on how to use different icing bases, and a section on PS99 (high ratio shortening) 
I just started exploring this site...wow- there is a LOT of information...with two little ones around, I can barely get through reading all this stuff...just posted on the forum about something else. I see the viva towel method is great for smooth icing.
Question about frosting- I have used the crisco/wilton buttercream frosting recipe, but don't like the shortening taste. I have tried butter only buttercream recipes, but it is SO sweet. Cream cheese icings IME don't crust easily, hence, no smooth finish.
Does anyone have a icing recipe which is not tooo sweet, does not use shortening and is actually edible
Also, is there a limit of questions that can be asked on here
(b/c I have MANY!!!Thanks
Hi cookiemamma1221,
What I do to take away the sharp sweetness is add a bit of salt, mix it in have a little taste and continue until I am satisfied with the taste Good luck!
My favorite Buttercream recipe is the white chocolat recipe from Wilton... Thought some people find it too sweet or it might not be white enought for a wedding cake, it is the only one I don't find leave a taste of vegetable greace in the mouth
I tried this buttercream recipe the other day and it had a grainy texture and taste. Can anyone help?
8 cups of powder sugar, 1 cup shortening...I used original Crisco, 1 tsp clear vanilla extract 3/4 cup milk. It was also super sweet. I have put it in the fridge in a tupperware container with lid thinking, do I throw it out and start again using a different recipe....I don't like waste! Also can I freeze it?
For Italian buttercream you can actually use a ratio of 2:1 sugar to egg whites, 3:1butter to sugar, and 3:1 sugar to water. And for every white you used add a 1/8 tsp of cream of Tartar. But if you wanted to make a Swiss buttercream then change the butter to sugar ratio from 3:1 to 2:1 instead.
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