I have a zillion mini cupcakes to ice tomorrow morning for a huge birthday party.  I made 2 very large batches of icing.  Same recipe.  French Vanilla buttercream.  First batch good.  Second batch using same ingredients looked fine but appeared a little stiffer than the other batch.  I added a tablespoon of cream and as soon as I did it started looking curdled.  Not grainy looking, just like it seperated or something and really loosened up - I'd say to piping consistency.  I do have the ingredients to make another batch, but I wondered if anyone knew what I did wrong?

Recipe is: and I doubled it.

1 cup butter (room temp)

1 cup all vegetable shortening

8 cups icing sugar

1/2 tsp salt

4 fluid ounces of International Delight Coffee Creamer

2 fluid ounces unwhipped whipping cream

Should I try adding more sugar to it to firm it back up a little?  Would that help with the look of it?  I whipping it for a long time (10 mins).  Didn't help.

I just read another thread from a couple of days ago where someone had a similar problem.  Maybe a bad bag of sugar??????

Oh, and I need to add color to the buttercream which is why I wanted it stiff consistency to start off with. 

wow i never heard of an american type buttercream curdling

even though i guess it's french vanilla flavored?

i don't have any ideas except to say sure i'd do what you said and add more powdered sugar

I know, it's never happened to me either.  The look of is similar to how Swiss Meringue buttercream looks after you add the butter.  Maybe not quite that lumpy.  I'm going to try a little with some more sugar and some color since I have to do several colors anyway. 

i mean did something happen to your cream or creamer or something???

i mean how could it be one batch of icing and not the other if it were the c or c

hmm

I don't know.   I did leave it out while making both batches.  It doesn't take that long to mix up a double batch of this buttercream.  I went back and divided both batches into the amounts needed for the colors I was mixing.  I added just a little powdered sugar to the bad batch colors and stirred it in by hand.  It's better and tastes fine.  Not gritty or anything.  Just not as pretty and smooth as the first batch. 

Oh well.  I'm convinced that there is a cake demon  out there haunting me.  I seem to have the weirdest things happen to me. 

On a brighter note...the birthday is for a 10 year old who requested a cupcake rainbow and a pot of gold.  The pot looks great.

We'll see tomorrow about the cupcakes.  The party is being held at the girls church and is part of a larger celebration taking place at the church.  The mother very generously decided to treat the whole congregation to mini cupcakes. 

well cool! good save

best to you!