Help Please - Sugar Shack's Buttercream Frosting

Decorating By dessert1st Updated 9 Feb 2017 , 7:11pm by claryd

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dessert1st Posted 2 Apr 2008 , 11:00am
post #1 of 18

I just made my first batch of Sugar Shack's Buttercream frosting and although it tastes wonderful, it is VERY full of air. I wanted so bad for it to turn out right, I put my laptop in the kitchen and played her video (on youtube) over and over as I was making it - pitiful huh?! icon_smile.gif

I have a 6qt. Kitchen Aid mixer, so I increased the shortening to 6 cups and added extra powdered sugar and flavoring. The bowl was very full and when I turned the speed up to 5 the frosting was over the paddle. The bowl was full enough that the plastic spatter shield was sitting in frosting at the rim of the bowl.

My questions are, can I "fix" it, or do I need to make another batch? I am making a full sheet cake for a friend's bridal shower in two days. Will my frosting "deflate" as it sits in the fridge and be OK by then? Has anyone else made it in a 6qt? Do I need more than 6 cups of shortening?

Thanks for any help you can give me.

17 replies
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wgoat5 Posted 2 Apr 2008 , 11:08am
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wow..sounds like you did everything... did you let it run and run and run till it was smooth?

I almost let mine run for 8 minutes and it turned out smooth as silk..

Make sure you are using the paddle and not the whisk (which you said you used the paddle)

But really let it run some more and just be really patient.

HTH's


Christi

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dessert1st Posted 2 Apr 2008 , 11:32am
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As many times as I restarted her video (if I missed a word or something) I am pretty sure that I mixed mine long enough. Is there such a thing as too long?

The only thing that I wasn't able to do was scrape the sides of the bowl while it was mixing. The paddle moves way too fast and gets so close to the side of the bowl there's no room for a spatula or scraper. I tried it one time, and was sure I'd have bits of silicone in my frosting if I did it any more.

Would stopping the mixer to scrape the sides make it airy? I'm talking very airy!

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wgoat5 Posted 2 Apr 2008 , 11:38am
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No scraping the sides shouldn't make it airy.. wow I don't really know what it could of been... Did you use hi ratio shortening ? I know crisco can cause problems if that is what you used..

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dessert1st Posted 2 Apr 2008 , 11:54am
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I was afraid to use Crisco because of the 0 Trans Fats, so I used W*M which still has them. I read here that someone else had used it with good luck. I was trying to buy Sweetex locally through a distributor and all they could get me was the 50 lb tub. By the time they got back to me with that bad news, it was too late to order the smaller tubs on-line. icon_sad.gif

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wgoat5 Posted 2 Apr 2008 , 12:19pm
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Well I hope someone else can answer your questions.. I am soo sorry that I wasn't able to help you but I am sure another more seasoned decorator will help ... They are great! icon_smile.gif


Sending you good BC vibes icon_biggrin.gif

have a wonderful day icon_smile.gif

Christi

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yh9080 Posted 2 Apr 2008 , 12:34pm
post #7 of 18

What kind of shortening did you use - regular or hi-ratio? I've found that when using regular shortening, it doesn't need to mixed as long. Otherwise, it will be full of air.

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MissyTex Posted 2 Apr 2008 , 12:45pm
post #8 of 18

I also have a 6 qt. and probably make it the same way you did. I get air in mine, too. Sometimes I put it (about half of it) in another bowl, in large spoonfuls/spatulafuls and smoosh the air out. I just kind of mash each spoonful against the side of the bowl, then add another, and so on. I donât stir it too vigorously so as not to add more air. I donât know if itâs just my imagination, but it does seem to make it much smoother. See if that works for you!

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wjmonte Posted 2 Apr 2008 , 2:30pm
post #9 of 18

Here's my measurements for Sharon's buttercream, I have a 6 qt kitchenaid and NEVER EVER get air in my icing!!!

I use a scale to meaure 3 lbs of hi ratio shortening ( i use sweetex)
I buy Sam's PS in the 7 lb bag and take out 2 cups to have 6.5 lbs of sugar
I use 7 tbsp of wedding bouquet
and 11 tbsps of coffee mate liquid.

Cream shortening and liquids till very creamy on first speed.
add half ps mix till incorporated
add rest of sugar, once it is all mixed together, say 30 seconds, turn speed up one notch and mix for 10 minutes.
I have the spatter shield on when i am putting in the ps, but I take it off to scrape the top sides of the bowl, i do not put my spatula INTO the bowl, only the first 2 inches or so. I scrape when I first turn up the speed and again when there's about 2 minutes of time left.

I have a bowl of icing from 2 weeks ago on the counter, its covered with 2 sheets of saran and 2 sheets of foil. It looks exactly the same as when I first mixed it. AND IT DOES not need to go in the fridge.

Another thing I wait about an hour for the icing to cool down before using it, the friction from the mixing plus the hot liquids makes your icing soft. waiting gives you the firmness Sharon describes that you need to work with.

HTHS,
lemme know if you have questions!!

Wendy

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dessert1st Posted 2 Apr 2008 , 10:26pm
post #10 of 18

Thank you all !! I will try it again after I use this batch. Last night as I transferred it into storage containers I was slamming the bottom of the container onto the counter hoping that some of the air would rise up through the frosting and escape (much like some do with their cake batter). My husband came into the kitchen and laughed at my "technique". I think he was also relieved that I wasn't frustrated to the point of distruction. I gave a whole new meaning to "beating" my frosting. icon_biggrin.gif
Christi, I am so thankful that you were on here this morning. You gave me peace of mind knowing that you were anxious to help... thanks for the good vibes.
Missy, I was going to try the spoon technique next. I thought it was worth a shoot.
Wendy, you are right the frosting is warm when you are done with it. It did firm up quite a bit after being refrigerated over night.

It doesn't look airy right now, I guess I'll find out tomorrow when I use it. Any other tips or ideas anyone? I will be ordering some Sweetex this evening!

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sugarshack Posted 3 Apr 2008 , 5:16am
post #11 of 18

air usually means one of 3 things or a combo of them:

1) not enough volume in the mixer
2) not quite enough liquid
3) crappy shortening

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CarolAnn Posted 3 Apr 2008 , 5:32am
post #12 of 18

If you have air you could try stirring it down. It's what I always do with my bc after I mix it for a long time. I made Sharrons bc a while back and it was the smoothest I've ever made. Boy it filled up my 5 qt bowl to the max, and I was soo impressed with the process AND the icing. I only use Crisco and it worked just fine. (never had one problem with it) I didn't use the coffee mate or wedding bouquet emulsion, but it was wonderful with cream and creme bouquet. YUM!

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shantel575 Posted 3 Apr 2008 , 5:47am
post #13 of 18
Quote:
Originally Posted by dessert1st

I was afraid to use Crisco because of the 0 Trans Fats, so I used W*M which still has them. I read here that someone else had used it with good luck. I was trying to buy Sweetex locally through a distributor and all they could get me was the 50 lb tub. By the time they got back to me with that bad news, it was too late to order the smaller tubs on-line. icon_sad.gif




Be careful with W*M shortening icon_smile.gif It did have trans fat but they recently changed it and now it does not... but some of the old cans are still on shelves so check the labels everytime you pick up a can! Even if they were bought at the same time. All of a sudden I had some horrible batches a couple of weeks ago so something told me to check and sure enough, the newer cans I had purchased said "0 trans fat" on the ingredients. They snuck it in on us without a warning! icon_confused.gif So just letting you know about that so you can double check the labels on the cans. I had to switch to another store brand (Kroger) and it is working very nicely!

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dessert1st Posted 3 Apr 2008 , 11:02am
post #14 of 18

Thanks again for the all the advice. I am going to increase the crisco to the measurements listed above for the 6qt just to make sure the bowl is full enough.

I tried adding a small amount of extra liquid toward the end because I read that in one of Sharon's previous posts, and I do think that the consistency seems to be right.

I will definately make my next batch with Sweetex, even though the W*M brand I used did have trans fat. I'm going to try the other just to see what the difference is.

Boy it sure tastes good (even if it has air)! It's almost time to decorate that cake so I'll see what happens.

Thanks again!

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claryd Posted 6 Feb 2017 , 7:17pm
post #15 of 18

I know this is an older post but such rich information! 

 Thank you, wjmonte, for posting your recipe for your 6 qt mixer. I have a question for modifying your recipe. (Anyone can answer though!) I like butter and cream cheese in my frosting (I find it less sweet). You mentioned 3 lbs. of  Sweetex. Can I do 1 lb butter, 1 lb Sweetex, 1 lb cream cheese with 6.5 lbs PS and same amount of liquid? Would this change in the recipe still produce a crust, does anyone know? 

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kakeladi Posted 6 Feb 2017 , 11:33pm
post #16 of 18

I have never made such a recipe but I bet it would work just fine.

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claryd Posted 7 Feb 2017 , 12:25am
post #17 of 18

Thanks so much!!!! Ooooohh! If you ever want to try something new, it's macsmom's recipe:

1 lb butter, 1/2 C Sweetex, 16 ozs cream cheese, 3 lbs PS, 1 T vanilla, 1/2 t salt. 

Super yum! I haven't found anything else I like as well. I just have a lot of air bubbles when I make mine and in looking for a solution here stumbled across this recipe. Hence, my question. Thanks again!!

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claryd Posted 9 Feb 2017 , 7:11pm
post #18 of 18

Oh man!! I just realized that the above recipe is not Macsmom's.  flushed I am so sorry! The original creator is Kathy Finholt from Iowa. (Her original recipe calls for 3.5 C PS, which will make a very stiff frosting. ) I apologize for not giving correct credit. 

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