thank you Jan, would adding dried egg white powder help?
Powdered (dried) egg whites are a component of meringue powder - so no it's not necessary to use them.
Crusting is the result of evaporation on the outermost layer of American b/c frosting.
A good crusting recipe must have a greater proportion of powdered sugar than fat. The liquid used also makes a difference; for example, cream would cause less crusting than water.
Are you looking for a non-dairy crusting American b/c recipe:
http://www.wilton.com/recipe/Buttercream-Icing
(Use all shortening and either water or corn syrup to thin.)
http://www.cakecentral.com/cake_recipe-2375-Brite-White-Buttercream-Icing.html
(You can use 10x powdered sugar, and omit the Brite White if you can't find it.)
Everything you ever wanted to know about hi-ratio shortening:
http://forum.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-219731.html
I know of no suitable non-dairy substitutes for eggs or milk when making frosting.
FYI, the non-dairy label is very misleading since products contain milk derivative:
http://forum.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-592777-.html
HTH
wilton's meringue powder does not have any dairy as far as i know.
i make a dairy free buttercream which crusts beautifully.
here is the recipe
3 cups shortening
1/2 t. salt
4lbs powdered sugar sifted
1 cup water
2 tsp vanilla or other flavorings
beat shortening and salt until smooth about a minute.
add 2 lbs p. sugar, water and vanilla. mix. slowly add the rest of powdered sugar. scrape down bowl. mix for another 30 seconds or so.
good luck!
btw, i was having some problem with this recipe using the new crisco so i added a few T of cornstarch and wilton meringue powder.
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