Hello everyone,

With the hot days of summer approaching, what is the best cake/cupcake frosting that will hold up under the summer heat (unlike buttercream) that also tastes great. Anyone have a great recipe that you use during the hot summer days? I greatly appreciate any help you can provide. Thank you so much!

I personally have not tried it, but everyone on here swears by Indydebi's recipe for being able to stand up to HOT HOT days and a cake being in the outdoor weather.. HTH..

I always use Indydebi's buttercream recipe. It will hold up to 100 degree temps and 98% humidity without any problems. I made a three tiered birthday cake last weekend and it sat outdoors (in the conditions mentioned) and held up beautifully .

If you DO make this recipe try these two tips when making....beat your shortening (I prefer crisco) for at least 15 minutes BEFORE adding any other ingredients. Mine looks like sour cream when I'm finished with it.. SIFT your powdered sugar and warm your milk before adding. I've made it without doing any of these things and it was still great. I just get a smoother, creamier icing by taking these extra steps.

Thank you both! I will definitely give the recipe a try!

I use sugarshacks - works perfectly in the heat/humidity. (she is from Louisiana!) I just did an outdoor wedding - 95 degrees...it holds perfectly!

indy's is grest too, I have used both - I just always have the ingredients here for sugarshacks.

Thank you for the info on sugarshack. I will check it out also!

I just did a wedding cake last weekend using sugarshack's recipe - the only one I ever use now.

The 4:30pm reception was held in an un-air-conditioned building, the heat index was 101*, and it must have been at LEAST 98* inside...the icing held up perfectly .

HTH!

For those of you that use Sugarshack's recipe - do you use all shortening or a combo of shortening/butter? Do you use hi-ratio shortening?

I use her recipe also, but had a horrific issue yesterday when delivering the cake - icing on the back slide down so badly, it caused a 1/2" crack in the top of the layer! Talk about mortified!!!

I sent her an email and she suggested that it was probably the butter reacting in the heat (I use 3 cups shortening to 2 cups butter). I'm so afraid of the 'waxy' texture/taste of using all shortening, but if it will save 30 minutes of 'emergency repair' on site, I'm willing to try anything!

I use all sweetex when making Sugarshacks buttercream. Butter doesn't work in south Georgia or any hot and humid climate. I have heard of people using some Crisco in place of some of the Sweetex to cut down on cost and because of availability.

I agree, Butter + Heat = Disaster!!

I use it exactly as sugarshack suggests....all 100% sweetex. NEVER a problem, no ucky mouthfeel. Perfect everytime.

99% of people choose this icing over IMBC in my tastings.

Sugarshack's bc recipe is by FAR my favorite! I use 100% hi ratio shortening, and the creamy texture is awesome! I took a 4-layer cake (two cakes torted into 2 each)to a picnic last weekend, and both the filling and the outside frosting was Sugarshacks's bc recipe. It was extremely hot and humd, and the cake was WONDERFUL!. No layers slid anywhere, and the icing held up beautifully.

I have a 4-tier buttercream wedding cake coming up in early August, which is the hottest time of the year where I live. It is going to be a late afternoon/early evening reception, so the cake is going to be sitting outside in their backyard (out of direct sunlight, but still outside) for 3-4 hours. I'm so nervous about this cake with buttercream icing. I normally use a cream cheese crusting BC with 1/3 cream cheese, 1/3 butter, and 1/3 high-ratio shortening.

Would I still be okay to do this cake in Sharon's all high-ratio icing for the exterior icing in the summer heat? Also, for the filling, I'm wondering about using my cream cheese BC. Will it just melt inside the cake and cause stability issues? This is my first full summer doing wedding cakes and is my only cake in August that is outdoors and buttercream, so I'm very nervous about it.

Thanks all! I absolutely love SugarShack's recipe and after exchanging messages with her last night, I'd decided to go 'all in' on the Sweetex. It's good to hear so many of you have the same experience with the flavor and stability. I've never used Sweetex, so I didn't realize what a difference it made versus regular shortening.

Btw - while I've always admired Sharon, the time she spent trying to help me (late) last night made me fall in love with her all over again!

I obviously have a long way to go toward perfecting her art, as my granddaughter (Audra) pointed out: I was watching her sheet cakes DVD with Audra the other day when she suddenly said, 'that girl's really good, Nana - WAY better than you!'. I'll keep on practicing...

[quote="NanaFixIt"]

Btw - while I've always admired Sharon, the time she spent trying to help me (late) last night made me fall in love with her all over again!

She is always so helpful and so pleasant. I appreciate that she takes the time to help like she does as well.

aw thanks Nana and Robin! I love the caring community here... we are all in this wacky world together!

Keep me posted Nana!