Italian Buttercream

Oct 3

MAKES

4 cups / 946 mL

(enough to generously frost (including piping and decor) 12 cupcakes, a 9x13 inch / 23x33 cm sheet cake, or a 2 or 3 layer 8 or 9 inch / 20 or 23 cm cake)

TAKES

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes
Total: 30 minutes

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✻ ABOUT THIS RECIPE

Italian Buttercream is made with Italian meringue, where a sugar syrup is cooked to the “soft ball” stage, then added to the whipping egg whites. The warm syrup heats the egg whites to safe-to-eat temperature, and helps to stabilize the mixture as it wipes to a light, fluffy consistency. Of the more classic buttercreams, this is my most used variety - I tend to opt for it as a filling and frosting layer cakes, and it’s great for piping. I think it’s sometimes viewed as more difficult because it involves cooking the sugar. But if you have a reliable thermometer, it’s truly a fairly simple process, and the stability has always been worth it for me! I also think it’s worth noting that there are so many types of buttercreams - they all have slightly different consistencies, pros, and cons. Be sure to check out the Korean Buttercream variation below (see Note).

INGREDIENTS

180 g / 5 large egg whites

1 g / ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

350 g / 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar

170 g / ¾ cup water

454 g / 1 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature

10 g / 2 teaspoons vanilla extract or 4 g / 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

3 g / ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt

Every Type of Buttercream:

METHOD

1. Whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar together in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. (Or, if you want to use a hand mixer, whisk them together in a large, heat-safe bowl.)

2. Combine the sugar and water in a medium pot and place over medium heat. Stir the mixture gently until it begins to simmer to help the sugar dissolve - once it begins to bubble at the edges, stop stirring. If any sugar syrup or visible sugar crystals were washed up on the side of the pot during stirring, wash them away with a pastry brush dipped into water.

3. Attach a candy thermometer to the pot, or insert a probe thermometer into the syrup to monitor the temperature as it cooks. You can also use a standard thermometer and check the temperature, but be very careful - the pot, syrup, and steam emitting from it are all very hot!

Continue to cook the mixture until it reads about 230°F / 110°C on a thermometer. When the mixture comes to temperature, start to whip the egg whites - starting at low speed, and gradually raising to medium-high speed. The goal is for the mixture to reach soft peaks by the time the syrup reaches the final temperature of 240°F / 115°C.

5. With the mixer running, immediately add the hot sugar syrup to the mixer in a slow, steady stream.

6. Continue to whip on high speed until the mixture reaches stiff peaks, and the bowl no longer feels noticeably warm to the touch. The meringue should be smooth and glossy, not clumpy or dry.

7. Then, with the mixer running on medium-high speed, gradually add the soft butter in about 14 g / 1 tablespoon chunks. Continue adding and mixing until all of the butter is incorporated and the buttercream is light and smooth. If the buttercream looks curdled or separated, continue whipping - it should come together!

8. Add the vanilla and salt and mix well to combine. If desired, mix with a paddle attachment or spatula slowly to help remove excess air bubbles before using (this step is totally optional).

9. The buttercream can be used immediately, or refrigerated in an airtight container. To reconstitute the buttercream, bring to room temperature, and mix with the whip attachment in the mixer to bring it back to a smooth, fluffy consistency.

NOTES

Variation: Korean Buttercream
- This is also referred to as “Glossy Buttercream” and was created by Korean baker and baking instructor JoeHee Hang of G.G. Cakraft. The original recipe can be found HERE.
  - Korean Buttercream is made by cooling the meringue more, and using cold butter instead of soft.
  - This buttercream was created specifically with detailed piping techniques like flowers in mind, and works well for any intricate piping work, because it is a nice, stable consistency, and melts more slowly.
  - The recipe that follows is an application of the techniques used to make Korean buttercream applied to my own base Italian buttercream recipe.
- Prepare the buttercream as directed through step 5. Continue to whip the meringue to stiff peaks, then lower the mixer speed to medium low, and continue to whip the meringue until it cools to 85°F / 30°C. To speed this up, you can instead put the bowl of meringue into the freezer for 5-10 minutes.
- The butter should be around 50°F / 10°C. Once the meringue is cool, return the bowl to the mixer and add the butter as directed in step 7. The buttercream will look curdled and broken, but continue to whip it.
- Keep whipping it until the mixture comes together around the whip attachment. It will look smooth and thick, but not as fluffy as traditional meringue buttercreams.