liquid which consists of 1)flavorings and 2) a liquid I make by mixing powdered coffee creamer, one cup to one cup hot water. I make this liquid up a few cups at a time and keep it in the fridge till I need it.
argghh!!!!
Ok call me crazy and dumb, but.....no one ever said I was good in math. 
is it one cup of powdered coffee creamer and one cup of hot water mixed
then I add my favoring to it???
Help!!!!
If you read through the whole thread, sharon says she mixes the coffee creamer and water in equal proportions (1 cup each) and stores the extras in the fridge. She does not add all of that creamer mixture to one batch of icing. You should not add the flavoring to the creamer mixture. I believe she states she uses 14 ??? Tbsp of creamer mixture, plus the flavorings on top of that. Just wanted to clarify b/c I wasnt' sure if you understood that by your post.
I read through the whole thread the other day...while at work (shhh!!) I remember seeing other people who used liquid creamer, but now I can't find the posts.
Has anyone used half & half? Heavy whipping cream? I have those 2 on hand already.
What is the consistency of the creamer/water mixture? I don't think the HWC will affect the taste negatively, but not sure about how it would affect the consistency of the final product. Would the extra fat in the HWC change the way it holds color, the way it holds up in the heat, etc??
Also, can I get some suggestions on the ratios of vanilla, butter, & almond extracts? I don't have a favorite BC - just been experimenting. Usually the recipes included that info. So I am struggling with this on Sugarshack's BC.
I have a cake to deliver on Sunday, and don't have time to experiment with flavorings...nor do I want to have to buy more hi-ratio shortening at $6 for a 3 lb bucket for it to be a failure.
And I happen to check and it is 519 miles from me to B&B Cakes. So I think getting some WB is not an option at this point. Unless someone in DFW has some that they want to resell. 
This is such a great thread!!!!
Golfaddict, I always use heavy whipping cream in my buttercream. To me it tastes better than water and everbody seems to like it. It still smoothes our really well. Hope this helps.
What is the consistency of the creamer/water mixture?
When I made it the other day, it was almost like water. Since you can use water or cream either one in most buttercream recipes, I think whatever you use would be fine. Just don't put too much, as it might make the icing too thin.
As for the flavorings, I only used a teaspoon, but lorann oil is very potent, and I had a lot of other chocolate flavorings going in. If you're making just plain buttercream and you're using just extracts I would say one teaspoon of each would probably be fine, but if you're afraid it will be over powering, just do a quarter or a half.. When it's finished if you don't feel it tastes right, you can add more and mix a bit longer.
Hopefully, someone else will be able to help you further.
Holly
I read through the whole thread the other day...while at work (shhh!!) I remember seeing other people who used liquid creamer, but now I can't find the posts.
Has anyone used half & half? Heavy whipping cream? I have those 2 on hand already.
What is the consistency of the creamer/water mixture? I don't think the HWC will affect the taste negatively, but not sure about how it would affect the consistency of the final product. Would the extra fat in the HWC change the way it holds color, the way it holds up in the heat, etc??
If using half & half or heavy whipping cream, you have to be very careful that it doesn't sit out too long, especially in high heat/humidity situations. Even buttercream icings should be kept below 82F degrees. HTH
liquid which consists of 1)flavorings and 2) a liquid I make by mixing powdered coffee creamer, one cup to one cup hot water. I make this liquid up a few cups at a time and keep it in the fridge till I need it.
argghh!!!!
Ok call me crazy and dumb, but.....no one ever said I was good in math. is it one cup of powdered coffee creamer and one cup of hot water mixed
then I add my favoring to it???
Help!!!!
If you read through the whole thread, sharon says she mixes the coffee creamer and water in equal proportions (1 cup each) and stores the extras in the fridge. She does not add all of that creamer mixture to one batch of icing. You should not add the flavoring to the creamer mixture. I believe she states she uses 14 ??? Tbsp of creamer mixture, plus the flavorings on top of that. Just wanted to clarify b/c I wasnt' sure if you understood that by your post.
I just made one cup of the creamer / water mixture and I actually used all of it. I don't know how many tablespoons that is, but I used it all and my end result was pretty thick. Definitely thicker than what I used to use, but I like it. I just added my liquid and flavorings at different intervals and amounts. I was just playing with it as I went. Now, I am nooo expert. I have only made this one time, but I did use a whole cup of liquid to my recipe.
Wow, thank-you for sharing sugarshack! After months your tips are still so helpful to ppl, like me! Love your cakes and hope to be as good as you someday!
luv2cake, I just made this with my recipe and used the creamer water combo instead of the milk and I also used the whole thing. It is thick and sweet. Sweeter than my normal recipe although I use milk when I normally make it. Milk tends to cut the sweetness a lot I find. I haven't frosted anything yet, it's getting late, that I will try tomorrow. Maybe when I get the flavoring this week it will cut down on the sweetness a little more. I like the fact of using the creamer this way I don't have to worry about the heat. I'll have to play with this a little more. The sweetex will probably help too, I'm still using Crisco.
By the time I got around to putting this together the creamer mixture had cooled off a bit. If you add this hot won't it melt the crisco or sweetex?
Does anyone else find this sweet?
Kat
Okay, I just put this on a cupcake and it's wonderful. 
It doesn't taste too sweet at all. It needs more liquid becasue it's still thick, but it is also creamy! Thanks Sugar Shack (Sharon) 
OK, I tried it this weekend...and this is what I did and what I thought.
- 5 cups of hi-ratio shortening (Not Sweetex since I didn't have time to order. It was a repackaged brand from a local cake supply store.)
- 5 lbs of powdered sugar
- 3/4 cup liquid (made 1 cup liquid with 1/2 half & half and 1/2 heavy whipping cream, but only used 3/4 of it)
- 3 tbsp flavoring (made mixture of 4 tbsp vanilla, 2 tbsp butter, & 1 tbsp almond)
First...I have no good explanation why I only used 5 c of shortening except that 5 1/2 seemed like a lot and I didn't want it to feel greasy in the mouth. Should have used 5 1/2 though.
I only used 1/2 cup liquid in the beginning and added the other 1/4 cup at the end since it was still to thick.
Flavorings...I had no clue how much to use since the original recipe was with the WB...which I will be buying VERY soon. (I got a request for a 60th anniversary cake from the MIL of my friend, not until Sept though. So much for my temporary retirement from cakes to finish school.) Back to the BC...so I made more flavoring than what I thought I would need. I think amond is very strong and sometimes overpowering in some BC's. I like the vanilla more, which is why I chose a 4:2:1 ratio of extracts. I have to say that is a pretty good ratio for my taste.
Liquid...I was unsure about how the HWC. So I met in the middle & mixed with half & half. I didn't use the creamer/water mixture because I didn't have any on hand. Instead of measuring each tbsp I just poured in a 1/2 cup in the beginning to cream with the shortening. Then in the end I poured a little more and a little more until I thought it was to a spreadable consistency.
Review...it was the best BC I have tried yet!! It was sweet, and for some reason it did taste sweeter alone than on the cake scraps. Kinda weird how that works, huh. But the folks at the party loved it. It was still too thick when I got to spreading it, but that is my fault. And I still got alot of air bubbles, but I think that is because it was too thick.
Next time...I will use the 5 1/2 cups of shortening and full cup of liquid. The problems I had were because of me and not the recipe though. I think the recipe is GREAT. It took a little bit of time to make since 5 lbs is a lot of PS to pour in. Overall, this is definitely a keeper...if I could just learn to trust the recipe. SORRY I DOUBTED YOU, SUGARSHACK.
By the time I got around to putting this together the creamer mixture had cooled off a bit. If you add this hot won't it melt the crisco or sweetex?
I put my liquid in the microwave to warm it up. It was not quite as hot as coffee but too hot for a baby, and it didn't melt my shortening. But then again, I used hi-ratio and I think it may hold up to things like that better. But even if it does melt Crisco, it would probably cool down pretty faster with all the mixing you are doing. Actually, that may be why I thought it was thinner than what it was. By the time I got to spreading it on, it had probably cooled down a bit and stiffened up. Maybe next time I will try to make it a tad thinner than I think it should be to compensate.
Oh, I almost forgot the technique part...SORRY THIS IS SO LONG. I spread it on with a spatula like normal, smoothed it as much as I could (it was still too thick and had bubbles), let it crust a little while I ran to the store for Viva. When I got back I used the Viva with fondant smoother, then paper with fondant smoother, and it turned out fantabulously. I still had bubbles that were too big and deep to get rid of. BUT the most awesomest thing is I know if it was a little thinner, it would have made a huge difference. (I forgot to use the bench scraper that I bought just for this recipe. It may have made it even better.)
hey guys, checking in as I do not always get email notification of new posts even though i have that option checked. anyway...
I wish I could be more help using extracts but I have always used my wedding bouquet and that is all I know.
as far as the liquid, right now I am using 15-16 total TBS of liquid in the batch; but sometimes that varies with the PS, batch of shortening, humidity etc...
I do use the liquid very hot and I do think it melts the sweetex a little bit, as does the friction of the high speed of the mixer; but I think that is a good thing. However, your icing will feel thinner right after mixing than after it cools off, so be aware of that. I like my icing on the stiff side, so I mix mine a day ahead and let it rip for a good while in the mixer; it is super smooth when done, but also warm and thinnish. I put it in a tupperware and the next day it is just perfect; ready to ice right out of the container, no remixing needed.
I find the icing sweet; but I find all shortening based icing sweet. BUT down here in new orleans that is how folks like it. I think that may vary regionally ; what people prefer.
I am glad most of you are having success and liking it! keep posting your results.
Okay Sharon, I have a question. I am going to try out your recipe for the first time today and I want to get it right.
When you make the liquid with the hot water and creamer, your recipe states that you store the leftovers in the fridge until you need it. It also states that you should use the liquid hot. So when you pull the leftovers from the fridge for the next time, do you heat it up before adding it to the recipe?
By the way, I really appreciate you sharing all this with us. (Hope mine turns out alright!)
sorry I am late responding; I am not getting email notifications as I should
yep; just nuke it!
PS everyone; you can surely sub butter for some of the shortening. I love the taste of it, but I usually do not do that due to the yellow color and our unbearable heat here in N.O. Will also make it softer; so keep that in mind.
Thanks Sharon for confirming my suspicion that it should be thinner right after mixing. I didn't even think about that until I was replying to Kat's post.
Also, I used 2-2lb bags of PS and 1-1 lb box...I am lazy and don't want to measure any more than I have to. Anyway, the boxed PS was lumpy. I didn't notice that the box had specified 10X like the 2 lb bags did. Thought that was interesting.
For all you other lazy Cakeheads...16 tbsp is 1 cup. (This is a great conversion website. http://www.onlineconversion.com/ ) That also confirms mine was too thick since I only used 3/4 cup liquid.
Sharon ~ to put in the fridge overnight? I did and had to add more water the next day - it was crumbly.
Sharon ~ to put in the fridge overnight? I did and had to add more water the next day - it was crumbly.
what was? the creamer mixture liquid?
I don't get that with mine; sometimes there is a little ring of goo along the edge of the container where the top of the liquid was sitting, but I just ignore that; I never have clumps or anything nor have to add more water.
hmmmmm
sharon, Try adding the [email protected] email address to your contacts. I was getting about half of my notifications. The other half were going into my spam folder. If you add the address to your contacts you are telling your spam protection that you know the sender and want their emails. Hope that helps.
what was? the creamer mixture liquid?
Sorry, I meant the finished BC. You said you store and use the next day and it is the perfect consistency. I assume you do not put in the fridge, but wanted to double check.
what was? the creamer mixture liquid?
Sorry, I meant the finished BC. You said you store and use the next day and it is the perfect consistency. I assume you do not put in the fridge, but wanted to double check.
oops sorry; I never fridge it. When I have; I did not get clumps. I cover any leftover BC with plastic wrap, tight over it; and then put tupperware cover on it; to keep it air tight. air hitting it would cause the surface to get crusty I think.
I have frozen it with no problems either but then i do have to rewhip.
to clarify:
I make it and let it sit in tupperware 1-2 days and do not have to rewhip. if it sits several days or is frozen I do rewhip.
sorry for being vague.
Hey there my cha-cha friend Sharon, long time no see, glad you drop in.....I have a HUGE HUGE THANK YOU!!!!!!!! from my sister in Ohio to you for sharing your recipe and tips....(she doesn't have a pc or she would be typing this).
Friday night I talk her through your bc icing recipe for a cake she was doing for a Saturday birthday party. She always used a bc recipe she had used for years....when my other sister was here a few weeks ago, she had eaten some of my daughters birthday cake I made using Sugarshack's recipe (the only one I use and ever will )....she went nuts over the icing, (alone with both my brothers & sister in law). When she went back to Ohio, she told our baby sis about the icing and told her she needed to try it....so she gave me a call and I talk her through everything over the phone.
She was so surprize at the texture, smoothness, creamyness of the icing satting in her bowl. She had her hubby & son taste it, then ask them how does it taste.....they said it taste really good....she them said to them, I need to know how it really taste be truthful with me. her son then said...Mom, it tastes way better then your other bc icing and looks like cool whip it's so smooth, her hubby said it was the best he had ever tasted and was better then the other. She then tasted it and said "Oh My Gosh" sis this icing is great! Yeap another doing the cha-cha (he-he-he). She was very happy with it. When her friends ask if she would make their babys bithday cake, they said make it like you always do......but she whated to try this recipe out due to the party being outside. Her old bc recipe had butter in it and she felt it wouldn't do well in the heat.
Day of party, she tells them that she used a diffrent icing recipe....time has come to sing happy birthday, cut the cake.....a little scare she waits to hear what people are going say when they take their first bite.....first bite eaten and nothing but wonderful raves...."This cake is the bomb", This is the best tasting cake I have ever eaten" This icing is fantastic and so on. She said she felt like a millon and was so happy she had tried this recipe. People even said they would pay a $100 to $125 for cake like that, just for the icing
I spoke to her today, she said that she now has a new bc icing recipe, Sugarshacks BC and will use only hi-ratio shortening from now on. She used a vanilla nut butter flavoring oil, has anyone evr heard of this or tried it? I will have to get her to send me some of that and try it out.....on the list with WB flavoring.
Thanks again Sharon for sharing your recipe & tips from Lisa in Ohio.
God Bless,
Sharon
Oh yea, Sugarshack Sharon,
I don't know if this may be something that could be happening when you're seemingly not getting notified of messages back on your threads, but it could be that you are only notified once if there is a message on there until you check it. If you delete the message without going to check, you won't receive any more notifications. Also you won't receive any more notifications until you use the first notification to go back to the thread. Am I making any sense here at all???
Hi there LadyMike,
Nice to see you joining in on the Sugarshack Cha-Cha line
No, she has the Butavan. I sent her some of it back with my other sister. She said they both were diffrent in taste. I thought that also when she told me about using the vanilla butter nut oil flavor (sorry I had it wrote out wrong in my earlier post)....she said, she thinks the little cake shop where she buys it mixes it up their self. I am guessing what makes the 2 of them diffrent is one has nut/one doesn't and the fact that one is oil/ and the other is emulsion, also depends on how much of vanilla, butter and nut is use in each mixture.
I have used Butavan in my icing a few times, it was ok.... but I love it in my white & yellow cake mixes. I know my taste buds are a little odd
God Bless,
Sharon
Hi Granny Sharon,
I knew you had said that the flavor also had nut flavoring too, but I thought maybe. 
Please let us know what it is if you are able to find out. 
Always looking for some new things to try! BTW, taste buds are not odd; they know what they like. We're just here to figure out what that is! 
(....and I try to figure that out waaaay too much, Cha, Cha, Cha!!! 
)
God Bless You too!
LadyMike
Will do LadyMike, I know my sister said, she thinks the cake shop where she gets it, mixes this oil flavoring up their selfs. She also said she has bought it before at the store (don't which one, but will ask her)....but she didn't like the one from the store....due to the coloring or taste of that one, she said she like the oil one from the cake shop much much better.
khandy830 Welcome To CC!!, you can try to find hi-ratio shortening at a cake shop or cake supply store/shop......you can also order it off line from cake supplies stores.
Some people have order it from intotheoven.com . This place also has sweetex & alpine http://www.cincicakeandcandy.com/search.php?searchFor=sweetex&in=CKDEC&search=Search&start=0 . Also here a link to a CC thread that may be more helpful.... http://forum.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-264563-.html .
You could even see if one of the stores around you will order it for you....thats how I get my hi-ratio ( a little country store orders it for me), but I can only get the alpine hi-ratio...it cost me $28.25 for 50 pounds, thats with tax.....and thats the cost in my area, may be more or less in other areas.
Please, when you get the time, try to read all of this thread....it has all kinds of info, tips and even some pics. It is a great thread with so much info & tips from Sharon (suagrshack) and so many others who have posted, even a few laughs along the way . It is a huge thread, but IMO it was worth my time to read and has been very helpful, and I have got to meet some wonderful CC members.
God Bless,
Sharon
Hi ladies!!
I have a few dumb questions...
I am making my daughters wedding cake...and I am going to try Sugar's Frosting. Sounds Wonderful!! And a thousand Cake Bakers can't be wrong, right? LOL
My questions are... what is SMBC? WHC? And all the common abreviations that pop up all the time.
Is that Baker Code? I have not completed the spy code course of culinary school and was just a bit confused. Do I need to know these things? I have a pencil and paper ready just in case.
This is such a wonderful site. I have learned so much that I have struggled with for years. I could just slap my forehead with my floured hand and say "duh"! when I read of some way to do something that is a time saver or easier or whatever it is that I am reading about.
I just wanted to thank all you wonderful bakers for giving so freely your "secrets".
Ronni
Hello Ronni and Welcome to CC!! Here is a link that will help you out with that...... http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-2926.html
You will also learn, that there are NO dumb questions here at CC, because no question is ever dumb.....questions are the way of learning some new things, tips, recipes, ideas, sharing info and meeting great & wonderful people who are very helpful. So don't ever ever think you have ask a dumb question. Please if you any questions ask away, because someone will be along to help you out.
Good Luck on your daughters wedding cake and please let us know when you have posted a picture of it.
God Bless,
Sharon
Thank you Very Much Sharon!!
Now I can pass the Baker Code Test!!
I tried to figure that out for the last week and gave up...figured out BC and PS but the others were a mystery.
Have a great day and I will let you know how the cake baking and decoration goes.
I am a muralist (and Interior decorator) by trade now and must have hit my head on something to think I can pull off in frosting what I can do in paint. I have prayed for grace and for the panic to subside. So far, the Lord has given me this website so I have to relax, right?
Ronni
Thanks Sharon!!!
You are so handy with the links ;]
I'll definitely come back and read the thread when time permits ;]
After i posted that i did some research and I found a place that I can order Sweetex from ;] YAY!!
I'm off to work ;]
later
♥ Kharyn
Ronni, it would be easy for me to say relaxxxxx, but I have been where you are (just not a wedding cake).....someone saying relax did not help me , but I am going to step out on a limb and say "Ronni RELAXXXX" .
Now when it is time to make the cake, here is little a thing you can do when ever you are feeling over come by panic. It's something I like to call the Sugarshack Cha-Cha Rasie your piping bag in the air, shake your hip to the right then to the left, while saying the words CHA-CHA CHA-CHA-CHA. Now, one or more of the following may happen....
1. Family thinks you have lost it!!!
2. You get a good workout for your hips.
3. You throw a hip out of place (will pray this is not the case)
4. You get into the dance so much, you forget about the piping bag in your hand and icing is now flying all over the place.
5. The cake decorating angels join in the dance and the panic is gone, your relax and the cake comes out great!
As far as your trade, my daughter in law has gone to school for the same thing.....and she has use this in helping her do her cakes. She has done cakes that I won't even try ....and she never did a cake before in her life till a few months ago. So use your trade if you can in doing your cake.
The only other thing I could say is, maybe make some pre trial cakes and decorate them..... and read the forums here to do with cake decorating, some of them have great advice, tips and info that can be of great help......and just keep trying.
Kharyn you are very welcome. So glad to hear you were able to find a place to order the sweetex. I love the hi-ratio shortening way better then using crisco, IMO it does make a huge diffrence....in the texture, taste, feel and clean up.
In RE: being handy with the links....I have to bow to JanH, for she is the Queen at finding links.....she is amazing at it.
God Bless,
Sharon
p.s. I just notice...I don't post replys, I post letters
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