I have had a couple viewers ask about the type of buttercream that I mainly use, so I thought that I would share it with you. I had many buttercream woes leading up to this fantastic find of a buttercream. Either the buttercream was too sweet, too artifical tasting, grainy looking, not thick enough to pipe with, or had some other quality that led me to turn my nose up to it, but once I tried Elizabeth Falkner’s vanilla buttercream from her book Demolition Desserts my buttercream nightmares were over. This, in my opinion, is the perfect buttercream to use on everything from cakes to cupcakes. I love her addition of salt to the recipe, which I think takes away that overly sugary taste, which I am not a fan of. Also her addition of lemon juice aides in this as well. However, I don’t add quite as much lemon juice to my buttercream as she does. This is not the recipe that I use for buttercream roses though, so please don’t try it, instead go to my posting on “A Dozen Rose Cupcakes” and click on the link for Martha Stewart’s swiss meringue buttercream recipe. Anyways, I hope that you enjoy this recipe as much as I have and let me know if you try it and what your opinion is.
Vanilla Buttercream
as adapted from Demolition Desserts
Ingredients:
4 oz. unsalted softened butter
2 1/2 c. or 10 oz. powdered sugar
1/2 t. kosher salt
1 T. plus 1 t. whole milk
1 t. pure vanilla extract
1 t. fresh lemon juice (I put 1/2 t.)
Directions:
In a stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter & salt for about 30 seconds and then add half of the powdered sugar and the milk to the butter and beat again until combined. Scrape down the bowl. Add the rest of the powdered sugar, the vanilla, and the lemon juice and beat until combined. Scrape down the bowl again. Beat on high speed for 5-6 minutes or until the frosting is fluffy. She says that she prefers to use it the same day, but that it can keep in the refrigerator for 3 days if tightly wrapped. I have also left it out at room temperature overnight (if I was going to use it in the morning) and it was just fine. Make sure and stir the buttercream well though before using to get the air bubbles out of the frosting.
Tags: demolition desserts, elizabeth falkner, vanilla buttercream recipe
I made this frosting tonight and… WOW! It was easy to work with and every bit as fabulous as you described! I like the tang the lemon juice adds to the flavor. I used your suggestion and cut back to 1/2 a tsp. of lemon juice. I do not think I have ever had a recipe for buttercream frosting which calls for lemon juice, so it was a refreshing addition. Many thanks for sharing – I do believe this is now my new favorite buttercream frosting recipe!
I am so happy that you liked it as much as I did!!! Thanks for giving it a try!
I haven’t met a buttercream recipe with powdered sugar that I really like yet. But I love the addition of lemon juice to aid in that usual over sweetness.
Your blog is great!
This frosting is incredible! and I love your pink blog!
out of the many, many buttercreams i have made…this is mine & especially my boyfriends favorite! any suggestions for making it a chocolate buttercream??
[...] then frosted the cake in vanilla buttercream and let it set up in the fridge for a couple hours. Next I covered the cake with fondant in two [...]
Melody, Ive said this once and I will say it again! You are the BOMB! I love You and all the great idea’s and tutorials…The buttercream frosting is so IT!!!!!! Thanks so muchXXXXXOOOOO Sheilah
[...] then frosted the cake in vanilla buttercream and let it set up in the fridge for a couple hours. Next I covered the cake with fondant in two [...]
Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe. I just frosted my 4 year old’s birthday cake with it. It is very tasty, and has a great texture. Used 1/2 t of lemon juice as suggested. Perfect!
I always sort of dread having to make buttercream, because it’s generally too sweet and too buttery (in a bad i’m-going-to-have-to-vomit-if-i-eat-even-a-1/4-teaspoon way). However, I cannot think of a more apt way to characterize this recipe than “perfect.” Salt! Who woulda thunk it?
I was looking for a not so sweet buttercream and this recipe is PERFECT! This was actually my first time making my own frosting, and I’m so happy I decided on this recipe. I can’t stand overwhelmingly sweet frosting, so this is an A++.
[...] in this case. I used this recipe from Rachel Allen, which produces a dense, rich cake. Topped with my favourite buttercream recipe (I pumped up the flavour with some extra lemon juice), these made a great treat for the end of the [...]
I hate frosting… So, it stands to reason i never made my own. I have not frosted the loaf cakes i made yet, but licking the beater on this recipe might make me change my mind about frosting. I followed the directions, but swirved and changed lemon to lime (i did not realize i did not have lemon) and added a splash of white rum and almond extract. And a shake of nutmeg. Tastes good, but i am not sure if it got “fluffy” enough… hmmm, maybe more sugar…
MELODY, I must say tonignt is the first time I tried your icing… OH MY GOODNESS! I have never had a a crumb coat go so smooth, so quick and easy. I altered it just a bit because I did not have Kosher Salt (was a bit worried). But, otherwise: THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! I will use this from now on. I wish I had know about your favorite recipe months ago. Keep up the wonderful work!
Kendra
hi,with all the great comments i will have to try your recipe!
but before i try it i will like to know if the buttercream stand well for piping borders on the cake and can i leave the cake on the table for more than 2 hours during my father’s birthday?thanks
I am way behind on this but I just have to say… I AM IN LOVE! This is by far the best buttercream I’ve ever made. It was dense but fluffy, sweet but not shocking. The only tweak I made was a touch more milk and lemon. Definitely my new go-to buttercream!
does this frosting have to be refrigerated because of the milk????
This recipe seems amazing. i will definitely try it. I have a question. Is this buttercream stiff enough for piping cake borders and buttercream roses or no?
Was wondering since everyone is saying that this is so good, can you make borders with this icing???
Hello,
I don’t have kosher salt, could I use regular salt?
GREAT texture and consistency and melts in your mouth! the lemon extract is just special!
thank you so much for sharing! i looked at a few different recipes to make a last minute cake. i chose this one because i had all the ingredients in my cupboard. i used it and everyone who tasted my cake loved it. i’ve even referred one to this website!
i can’t even imagine how any of the other recipes could possibly be any better than this! simple and so delicious!
[...] enough about feet, everything else about the macarons turned out great! For flavors I went with a vanilla butter cream recipe I found online. I altered the recipe slightly by scraping the seeds of a raw vanilla bean into [...]
[...] while the cake was not made from scratch, the vanilla buttercream frosting was! I think this may be my new favorite recipe (courtesy of My Sweet and Saucy). I [...]