Does Everyone Use Butter In Their Buttercream?

Decorating By The_Sugar_Fairy Updated 31 Mar 2017 , 11:43pm by jchuck

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The_Sugar_Fairy Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:13am
post #1 of 117

Hi all! Does everyone use butter in their buttercream? I was taught in my Wilton class to use clear butter flavouring so that my icing will stay white. Doesn't butter make the icing a pale yellow? Please let me know. Thanks!

116 replies
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prterrell Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:21am
post #2 of 117

IMHO, the Wilton class icing is NOT buttercream. REAL buttercream contains butter. The BEST buttercreams are the European style meringue-based buttercreams, such as IMBC and SMBC.

Yes, the butter does cause the buttercream to be slightly off-white, but NOT pale yellow. If a cake is done all in the buttercream it will look white, not snow-white, but white. This slight off-white cast does not interfere with coloring with gel paste food colorings.

I like to use as much natural ingredients in my cooking as possible. The Wilton class icing is almost all artifical, chemically engineered stuff. Yuck! Who wants to eat that?

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ddaigle Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:27am
post #3 of 117

I used to, but now I use a recipe without butter and add a tsp. of butter flavoring. I can't tell the difference in taste, and I have cut my cost.

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Ro40 Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:28am
post #4 of 117

I use half butter and half shortening. I even use real vanilla, Not Clear, and it still comes out white. I've never had a customer complain that their frosting is not white enough.

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icer101 Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:35am
post #5 of 117

hi, i teach wilton at michaels and at a community college. i ask the studetns to make the class buttercream to work in class with. with the shortening , it is more stable. i tell them to use butter and shortening or all butter with the powder sugar .etc. if they want to on their cakes. but to use a crusting buttercream while taking the class. then , when they learn more.. and can handle making the rose good. then try other buttercreams. whether it is the buttercream dream recipe on this site or wherever they find one they like.. most students can,t hardly handle the class buttercream at first to do borders, roses ,etc.. i tell them about imbc, smbc . fmbc, etc. but to wait until they get thru class. lots of people don,t like imbc, smbc,etc. they say, it is like eating butter .. i tell them to try lots of recipes. i like the wbh imbc. it is the best i have ever made. i ask them not to use cans of store bought icing. they are not good tasting nor do they crust.. i want them to learn how to smooth crusting buttercream.. i tell them about cake central also. i even ask them not to buy and try to work with the cans and bucket of the wilton icing in the cake aisle. it is sticky.. i tried all this , so i could be honest with them all. but a few do come in with it , and they can,t make a thing. it is so sticky.

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whisperingmadcow Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:38am
post #6 of 117

In a pinch I have used 1/2 butter 1/2 shortening in the wilton buttercream. It doesn't really affect the color so much. It did have a better feel (less gritty) when eating it, but I found that it didn't work as well for decorating. If you want you can use the butter in the frosting and all shorting for flowers and such. That will at least cut some of it out!

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tjrobin31 Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:41am
post #7 of 117

i use the whipped cream buttercream recipe i found here on cc, it doesn't use any butter, but i find that the people i make cakes for like it better than regular buttercream (which i used to use all the time)becuz it is not as sweet. and it is not nearly as exspensive to make. but since i usually only do cakes for family and friends, i imagine i could use either and they wouldn't complain.

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__Jamie__ Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:45am
post #8 of 117
Quote:
Originally Posted by prterrell

IMHO, the Wilton class icing is NOT buttercream. REAL buttercream contains butter. The BEST buttercreams are the European style meringue-based buttercreams, such as IMBC and SMBC.

Yes, the butter does cause the buttercream to be slightly off-white, but NOT pale yellow. If a cake is done all in the buttercream it will look white, not snow-white, but white. This slight off-white cast does not interfere with coloring with gel paste food colorings.

I like to use as much natural ingredients in my cooking as possible. The Wilton class icing is almost all artifical, chemically engineered stuff. Yuck! Who wants to eat that?




Yep...took the words right outta my mouth!

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mommyle Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:46am
post #9 of 117

I only use butter. YUMMO!!!! Unless it's just for dummies and decorating the cake board. Then I actually tell people that it is decorator icing and made with shortening, and that they can eat it if they want, but....

Oh, and please forgive my tag-line and booger-guy. You have to read the most controversial thread ever.

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kelbear Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:50am
post #10 of 117

I use half butter half shortening and then after it is mixed together i then take violet colouring and put in a teeeny tiny bit (just a little tip of a toothpick) in and it whitens the icing to a much whiter looking icing.

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HeatherBecker Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:50am
post #11 of 117

I use real butter in my bc. I may be a little more picky....but when I have gone to a wedding that used only shortening, I can tell. I don't like the taste, so much so that I scrape off the icing and just eat the cake. When there is real butter cream, I don't do that.

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cdavis Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:53am
post #12 of 117

[quote="mommyle"]I only use butter. YUMMO!!!! Unless it's just for dummies and decorating the cake board. Then I actually tell people that it is decorator icing and made with shortening, and that they can eat it if they want, but....

Oh, and please forgive my tag-line and booger-guy. You have to read the most controversial thread ever.[/quote]

Okay, I'll bite, which thread is the most controversial ever?

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panchanewjersey Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:55am
post #13 of 117

Yes, it taste better. I actually use 1/2 & 1/2 of shortening if I'm frosting a cake. But if I'm using it for cupcakes just butter (sweet cream butter).

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ddaigle Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 1:56am
post #14 of 117

Does the whipped cream buttercream crust? Is it stiff enough to make roses and pipe stuff?

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auntmamie Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 2:00am
post #15 of 117

I use the wilton class recipe, but also use half butter, half shortening. I don't have a problem with any yellowing - but I have found that the older the butter, the more ivory the icing is. Thankfully, I live really close to the Cabot butter plant, and what's in the grocery store here is normally less than a week old.

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__Jamie__ Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 2:15am
post #16 of 117

Anybody ever....make their own butter?? icon_biggrin.gif

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PinkZiab Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 2:30am
post #17 of 117

In my opinion, if an icing recipes doesn't have butter in it, then it has no business being called BUTTERCREAM. I make meringue based buttercream 99.9% of the time, with all butter, and on the rare occasion I make American/PS buttercream, I use butter with some hi-ratio shortening (my recipe is roughly 5 parts butter to one part shortening). I also use 100% pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste (depending on the application. So I simply do not make a pure white buttercream, and I tell my customers that that's just how it is. I decorate mostly in all fondant anyway, so it's not an issue. But even on those rare buttercream jobs I do (as well as on cupcakes), the off-white of REAL butter and vanilla buttercream hasn't been a problem for my customers.

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__Jamie__ Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 2:38am
post #18 of 117

I even have a disclaimer on my info sheet for brides at tastings. My icings will not ever be bright pure white. But no one has ever complained, after they hear the reasons why, and the color isn't that far off from white anyways.

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Kiddiekakes Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 2:50am
post #19 of 117

I use margarine in my icing WBH recipe simply for the cost factor! I have made the recipe both ways and have had family and friend's tell me if there is a difference in taste ...most say no..Now I realize nothing compares to real butter but at nearly $4.00 a pound and I make alot of icing batches per week...It is too expensive.A 6kg tub of margarine is $7.99 and wil make about 15 batches.

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prterrell Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 3:02am
post #20 of 117
Quote:
Originally Posted by __Jamie__

Anybody ever....make their own butter?? icon_biggrin.gif




Once I had som heavy cream left over and had no plans for it, so I popped it in my food processor and let it whiz away. It was actually kind of fun watching the little globs of butter form. Then I strained it, squeezed it in a cheese cloth and tasted it. It was kind of dissappointing! It improved after I'd mixed in some salt, but still wasn't as good as a nice stick of Land O'Lakes! Go figure!

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PinkZiab Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 3:21am
post #21 of 117
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kiddiekakes

I use margarine in my icing WBH recipe simply for the cost factor! I have made the recipe both ways and have had family and friend's tell me if there is a difference in taste ...most say no..Now I realize nothing compares to real butter but at nearly $4.00 a pound and I make alot of icing batches per week...It is too expensive.A 6kg tub of margarine is $7.99 and wil make about 15 batches.




You're right, nothing compares to real butter, especially in something like buttercream where the flavor is so prominent. I'm sure your buttercream tastes fine, but I would never sacrifice the quality of my products to save money. This is why you adjust your prices to pass the extra cost onto your customer.

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SeriousCakes Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 3:25am
post #22 of 117

I think mine turns out pretty white, I use 2 parts butter to one part crisco:
http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=gallery&file=displayimage&pid=1258118

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Deb_ Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 3:33am
post #23 of 117

I also use Serious_cakes recipe. I beat the bajonees (my word) out of that butter until it's almost white.

I also agree if it ain't got butter it ain't BUTTERcream icon_biggrin.gif

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Idreamofcakes Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 4:29am
post #24 of 117

I use real butter for everything, we don't have margerine in our home any longer. When I found out that our bodies cannot break down margerine and digest it because it is made with plastic we decided we didn't want our family eating it anymore. Besides it gave us a good reason to buy real butter without feeling guilty for spending the extra money on it icon_wink.gif
So for my BUTTERcream frosting I only use butter and I just beat the bejeebers out of it until it is almost pure white. Never had a problem with the coloring either. I have read several times before that different brands of butter yield different shades of white or yellow. I always use the butter from Costco, but I have heard land O lakes is supposed to be excellent for getting it white.

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Wendl Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 4:50am
post #25 of 117

Cheers to all the BUTTER in Buttercream peeps! icon_smile.gif I can't stand the flavor (however faint - I am very sensitive about flavor profiles - I can't stand artificial sweeteners, either - no matter how 'sugar-like' they are - I can tell, and I practically get ill) of shortening in *cough* 'butter'-cream... Bleaaachh!
I get my unsalted butter and soften it and make the magic happen...which reminds me...let me pull my Dk Choc BC recipe to post - was real busy w/cakes, friends, work and forgot.
Wendl

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paddlegirl14 Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 4:58am
post #26 of 117
Quote:
Originally Posted by dkelly

I also agree if it ain't got butter it ain't BUTTERcream icon_biggrin.gif




Me too. Nothing but butter, in my cakes, cookies and buttercream! thumbs_up.gif

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playingwithsugar Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 5:06am
post #27 of 117

Jamie - you can make your own butter in your KA or food processor, but to tell you the truth, it's more work than it's worth. The reason being that when your butter is done, you still have to press the liquid out of it.

And some creams, especially highly pasteurized ones, often do not whip enough to make butter with.

Theresa icon_smile.gif

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Jakap2 Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 5:22am
post #28 of 117
Quote:
Originally Posted by cdavis

Quote:
Originally Posted by mommyle



Oh, and please forgive my tag-line and booger-guy. You have to read the most controversial thread ever.



Okay, I'll bite, which thread is the most controversial ever?




The one that's called "the most controversial thread ever", very funny. If you didn't laugh for a while, this one will make you laugh, guaranteed thumbs_up.gif .

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__Jamie__ Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 6:25am
post #29 of 117
Quote:
Originally Posted by playingwithsugar

Jamie - you can make your own butter in your KA or food processor, but to tell you the truth, it's more work than it's worth. The reason being that when your butter is done, you still have to press the liquid out of it.

And some creams, especially highly pasteurized ones, often do not whip enough to make butter with.

Theresa icon_smile.gif




A couple of years ago, I was volunteering in a soup kitchen here in town. They pretty much rely on donations for their day to day meal service. Anways, someone donated like 10 crates of heavy whipping cream. We made pies, whipped cream, you name it. Got down to like 3 crates of cream left. Big huge Hobart before me. Gigantimous whisk attachment. Bucket o' salt....I went for it.

Needless to say, it did not turn out like the butter I thought it would be. But, it was fun!

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mellee Posted 27 Mar 2009 , 10:23am
post #30 of 117

Jamie, I used to make my own butter all the time. I still do on occasion but I am old and lazy now. icon_biggrin.gif I use nonpasteurized, nonhomogenized heavy cream straight from the farm from a cow that was milked just a few hours earlier. Yeah, I can hear the sighs and moans now. Nonpasteurized! Good heavens! Been drinking it for eons and somehow never died. icon_smile.gif Anyhow, the heavy cream straight from the farm is soooooooooo much thicker and richer than anything I have seen in a store. It whips into heavenly cream very fast and into butter almost as quickly. Nothing in the world tastes as wonderful!

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