hey guys! i have a question. when i made SMBC for a cake last thursday, i had some leftovers so i kept it in the fridge. now when i took out it's... weeping. it has this liquid that is just oozing out of it. i don't know what it could possibly be.

when i was making the meringue i added coffee granules to it so the coffee would melt without adding any water in fear of this happening but now without adding any water i was able to remove at least half a cup of coffee-colored liquid (i didn't taste it it was too scary for me). i couldn't get all of it out but i decided to whip it and it still came together very well, still fluffy and creamy. i was even able to pipe with it.

can anyone tell me what that liquid is and where it's coming from? i noticed when i was frosting the cake on thursday too that it had beads of liquid oozing out but only a little.

btw, here's the cake i made, first time frosting an entire cake with SMBC and first time with chocolate transfers. i'm embarrassed at sharing this cake with you but i'm semi-proud of it LOL i think it almost made my mama cry (happy tears!)



and here's a pic of the cupcakes i made with the SMBC just tonight



this is my third time making SMBC and the first time i've ever encountered this liquid. i am not gonna let anyone eat these cupcakes now. LOL hope to hear from you guys. sorry if this is too long.

Hmmm, I've been making SMBC for about 2 years now and I've never had that to happen. It must have something to do with the coffee granules. Or how did you bring it back to room temp? Just let it sit out, etc?

actually when i took it out of the fridge it wasn't really that hard, but the liquid was already present, not in a pool but kinda like droplets on top of it, when i spooned some of the icing back, there were more droplets and i ended up just standing the container on its side and letting it drip for like 10 minutes. it won't stop.

Post the recipe you are using, so we can help you figure it out.

Theresa

i used the same one i used before except added coffee.

1 cup sugar
4 large egg whites
26 tablespoons butter, softened (3 sticks plus 2 tablespoons)


i doubled this btw and therefore had way too much leftover. i added a teaspoon of granulated coffee while the egg whites and sugar were on the double broiler.

ETA

btw i subbed 1/3 of the butter with shortening. i have crisco. i used the same amount before.

I had this heppen when I added cofee granules to my SMBC too. I did it after it was made and they melted overnight and made it look gross.. it wasn't bad or anything and when I whipped it back up it was fine. Now I just add coffee to it. You add liquid with the vanilla and fruite purees and what not. SMBC can actually hold quite a bit of liquid before going too soft on you. When you add the coffee it doesn't do that separation thing, but the liquid wasn't anything to worry about.

oh! so if i made the coffee instead of adding the granules this won't happen? (just to clarify)

So far it hasn't happened for me. I add strong coffee that has cooled to rm temp. I have left it for days with no separation. I usually do a mocha version.. a weaker version of my chocolate SMBC with coffee added and some espresso grounds thrown in. It's really good.

and that's actually coffee grinds.. not instant coffee.

Oh.. and if all you have is instant.. just re-consititute it before you add it in.

thanks jkalman! will remember that when i make coffee SMBC again. it tasted like coffee ice cream, which i love!

btw, do you fold in chocolate bits in your SMBC? of course it won't be smooth but i thought it would be a nice addition to the texture you know, creamy and soft then crunchy.

I never have.. I don't even like chocolate chip ice cream .. but if you like chunks I am sure it'd be wonderful. Try mixing in some crushed oreos.. it's really good with chocolate cake.

OHHHHHHHHH!!!!!! oreos!!!!!! okay...yeah it sounds fantastic it would look really good too.

Thanks EVERYONE for this thread! I have been wanting to make smbc for quite awhile but was....scared.... so thank you for all this great information! I am going to make it this weekend for my in-laws' 63rd wedding anniversary!

I did it! I made SMBC this afternoon and it came out well. It had the right texture, went through all the stages, and was easier than I expected. I made the small version of the recipe and had plenty to ice 24 cupcakes with some left over. I followed the recipe exactly, including the 2 tbsp of vanilla and found that was too much vanilla for me. I have a question about flavoring the SMBC- what are your favorite flavorings and conbinations- and of course the amounts used , please!

This icing is AWESOME!!!

lateley my SMBC is not working out. it never gets full and fluffy.
sometimes its during the cooking/whipping stage that it never gets full.
other times its after i add the butter it "deflates" but never gets its body back.

any ideas on why this could be happening.

when you add the butter, is it too cold or too warm? i have noticed that temperature is a HUGE deal when making SMBC.

thanks for bumping the thread btw!

i also have a question, have you guys tried adding peanut butter to SMBC? what about cream cheese? how much?

i'm gonna make a chocolate peanut butter cake for my birthday and I really wanna use SMBC and not a PS frosting.

TIA!

I would like to know that too for white chocolate.

zakia6.. you might have some grease in your bowls. Grease will interfere with the meringue reaching it's fullest.. also, if it's too warm it can take a LONG time to get the right consistency. Try letting it sit at room temp for a while and try whipping it up again. If it was fluffy before you added the butter it should be fine.

For adding cream cheese I just do it to taste, but one 8oz brick in the 5 egg version is good. Whip the cream cheese that is at room temp and then fold in teh SMBC by hand. If you whip it in teh mixer it can separate and it won't come back from my experience. Peanut butter you can just mix some in on low.

White chocolate I'd say 6 oz for a 5 egg batch would be good.

Thanks Jeanne! Can't wait to try it that way!

I love this stuff! I just made it the other night and added caramel to it--out of this world! Everyone who tried it really liked it. I have also made Toba Garrett's French vanilla buttercream, which is my 11 year old daughter's favorite, and is similar to the SMBC, IMO. I do not know if I will ever go back to regular buttercream!

jkalman - you are so nice!! Thanks for all the help you give. I've also switched to SMBC from buttercream. I love it!!

Thank you so much for your kind words.. I am happy that you like it so much. It's all I use too.

thanks jkalman! and i love your new avatar! it's so pink, which is my favorite color.

am glad this thread has been bumped up. I wanna see more converts! *evil grin*

LOL.. thanks for the props on my avatar.. that flower was a pain in the heiney to make.

jkalman - can I ask where your nearby cake supplier is - I'm in northern MA and the only thing around here are Michael's or AC Moore
Looking for more variety and really don't want to have to order online all the time. I plan on making this SMBC real soon - thanks for sharing!

I don't know if I'd say it has a HUGE variety, but I go t a place called Eaton's in Hooksett, NH. It's 20 minutes from me. I still tend to do most of my shopping on-line. They don't have a big inventory and are pretty much like an expanded cake section at Michael's. They have some gumpaste cutters but they are all from Creative Cutters and they have VERY few tools other than the wilton stuff. They have some dusts and americolor gels and loads of candy making stuff because they make candy there. I wish we had something better.

I tend to wait until I need a bunch of stuff and order it from global sugar art.. what I wouldn't give to live 20 minutes from Alan and his wonderous store.