Ok ladies!
Need your help!

For the last 6 months I have been racking my brain to get the best icing for the cakes that I want to start making. I took a Wilton course in November and the icing that you make there is NOT the icing that I taste on the cakes at the grocery store or the professional bakeries. Since taking that class, I have been trying all different recipes to try and duplicate this icing and I cannot seem to do it.
If this has been a thread before, I apologize I must have missed it.

Can anyone help me with this?

The icing crisis is in full effect with me!! I also have been in search of a nice, stable, not too sweet icing to use in summer time that both the kids and the adults like.....I treid Sugarshack, which was a mess to make but worth it since it was such a dream to work with. But you can't make a smaller batch since part of the genius in this is literally filling your KA creating a vaccum that doesn't add air.

The only problem? No one liked it....I'm not sure if it was the kitchen bouquet or what but everyone said it was too sweet. Which was a total bummer because it was smooth as silk and crusted very well.

So now I am going to try IndyDeb's, which calls for some dream whip. I have a good icing recipe and it tastes great but it hideous for smoothing....and it barely crusts so using impression mats isn't an option and I just bought 4.

I want to try a true buttercream using egg whites and a syrup but I keep hearing that it tastes like a stick-a-butter. *sigh*

I will try Indydeb's recipe this weekend and hopefully my problems will be solved!

P.S. Wilton's recipe is disgusting.....great for making roses but truly grody to frost a cake.

Have either of you tried Rich's Bettercreme? I like working with recipes like the Sugarshack, but my family only likes Rich's brand (many grocery store bakeries use this).

[quote="CakeDiva73"]

The only problem? No one liked it....I'm not sure if it was the kitchen bouquet or what but everyone said it was too sweet. Which was a total bummer because it was smooth as silk and crusted very well.


Hey CakeDiva...try adding salt to the SS recipe. I added some the second time I made it, and it was much better IMHO. I think I added 1/2t of popcorn salt. Hope that helps!

Try the Whimsical Bakehouse House Buttercream..I believe the recipe is posted here...It is a Bakery soft icing that is not too sweet.The drawback..it uses alot of shortening and some feel it is too greasy on the palette.My customers love it!! I wouldn't change recipes if you paid me..they want the greasy bakery soft whipped icing!!! Here is the recipe...



Whimsical Bake House Buttercream


In Mixer bowl, stir together:

6 Cups Confectioners' Sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Using whip attachment, add and whip on low speed:

1 cup boiling water (3/4 cup on hot days)

Whip until smooth and is cool.

Add and whip until smooth again:

2 -3/4 cup Hi-Ratio or regular vegetable crisco shortening
6 ounces (1 1/2 sticks) butter; slightly chilled and cut into 1" pieces

Turn up mixer to medium-high. Whip until double in volume and is light and fluffy. About 10-20 minutes. Recipe will almost fill a 5-quart mixer bowl when done.

Makes 9 1/2 cups

I love the decorator's buttercream that is here in the recipe section.
http://www.cakecentral.com/cake_recipe-2356-Decorators-Buttercream.html

I love sugarshack's dvd but didn't want to switch recipes. I just took my favorite recipe and saw how full my mixer was or was NOT. I upped my recipe by half [so I use 1.5 lbs of butter] and it was PERFECT! Smooth as can be! I was so excited my sister and husband had to see what the fuss was all about!

So maybe you need to try some recipes and scale them back to achieve the taste you are seeking. Then you can figure out how much to make to FILL your mixer and get that beautiful smooth texture!

Oh the decorator's buttercream crusts nicely too!

I'm with the others.....I couldn't stand the Wilton class buttercream! It was really nasty! So, after trying several on this site, I found buttercream dream to be the yummiest! Everyone raves about the flavor, and it doesn't leave a greasy film in your mouth. Here's the link

http://www.cakecentral.com/cake_recipe-2123-0-Buttercream-Dream.html

Happy taste testing!

I just did the BC dream for father's day and it was good and crusted very well.

What people need to understand is that Wilton has created a buttercream for the class that is stable enough to work with it for 2 hours. Something you cant do with other icings cause the butter melts and then you are working with a liquid..

After the class is done and you get your techniques then you can start using anything that contains butter in the buttercream..
Edna

I have tried the Rich Buttercream and it works nice, but I would not over mix it cause you won't have that smooth effect texture to it. If I buy the vanilla Rich Buttercream I add some strawberry preserved fruit and it turns out real good and tastey. You can use it for your filling as well as for frosting a 9X2 inch round cake pan. I use two 9x2 round cake pans. I came across the picture of the cake while looking through pictures. I'll try to post it if I can remember which contain I have found the pictures in.

I love rich as a whipped base buttercream but the problem is that it doesnt crust..

here's the recipe that i use. its really yummy and crusts well.

www.recipezaar.com/95416

I got a different recipe from the Whimsical Bake House website. Haven't tried it yet but I plan to.

In a small saucepan, bring to a boil:

1/2 cup water
2 1/4 cups sugar (granulated)
Use a clean pastry brush and cold water to wash down any sugar crystals that form on the sides of the pan as the water heats. When the sugar comes to a boil set a timer for 7 minutes, and let boil.

After 5 minutes, in the bowl of an electric mixer, begin to whip at high speed:

1 cup egg whites (about 12 large egg whites)
Whip until stiff. They should be done when the timer goes off.

With the mixer on high speed, slowly beat the sugar syrup into the egg whites, pouring the syrup to the side of the bowl to avoid the whip.

Continue to beat until the bowl is cool to the touch, about 10 minutes. Slowly add:

1 1/2 pounds (6 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature, cut into 1-inch pieces
When the buttercream begins to jump out of the bowl reduce the speed low.

Mix in at low speed:

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Beat until light and fluffy. At some points the mixture might look curdled. Just keep beating; it will become smooth again.