I always use salted butter, but on the rare occasion that the store is out and only has unsalted I add a pinch of salt to the shortening and butter as it is creaming and it doesn't affect the texture at all. I like my icing better with the salt. To me it tastes bland without it.
Using salted is a great idea, or a combination of salted/unsalted. It cuts the sweetness of the powdered sugar. Works just fine.
In confectioner's sugar buttercream the salted butter is fine, but in meringue buttercreams salted butter tastes horrible!
Think personal flavor preference plays a large role in which recipes you choose, as there are popular CC MBC recipes that use salted or some salted butter. Although the majority of MBC recipes specify unsalted.
http://www.cakecentral.com/cake_recipe-2426-Italian-Meringue-Buttercream--Shirleys-Method.html
http://www.cakecentral.com/cake_recipe-6927-Very-Vanilla-Swiss-Meringue-Buttercream.html
HTH
Always use salted as well. I think people prefer it. The occasional salt free person will detect it in anything. In the quantities it is found in butter it is merely a flavor enhancer. A stick of butter has about 3/8 tsp salt.
In confectioner's sugar buttercream the salted butter is fine, but in meringue buttercreams salted butter tastes horrible!
i used to used salted butter in smbc all the time and thought it tasted just fine. *then* i tried it with unsalted butter and, wow, it taste *so* much better!
I salt my buttercream rather heavily, to be honest.
I use a variation on the Wilton buttercream, but use a LOT more salt than the recipe calls for. It really cuts the sweetness, and only tastes salty if you're trying to taste it. I find it also emphasizes whatever flavouring I've used.
I get a lot of compliments on how much less sweet my buttercream is compared to most others, and it's because of the salt.
If I'm colouring it, I use a mix of butter and crisco, if I'm leaving it white, all crisco...and always salt.
I ONLY use salted butter in my BC. It gives it more depth and flavor. The addition of an ounce or 2 of softened cream cheese gives it an even deeper butter bite! I want to taste butter in my buttercream...In my opinion it really isn't butter cream unless it has real butter in it and salted butter gives that little something extra that will make people want to eat it like icecream!
I use salted butter in everything and see no difference in taste.
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