My Favorite Swiss Meringue Buttercream Frosting Recipe

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

My Favorite Swiss Meringue Buttercream Frosting Recipe

Swiss meringue buttercream is like heaven. It’s so light and fluffy and not at all overly sweet like some frosting. I definitely prefer it over any other kind of frosting.

Ever since I first tasted SMBC I have been searching for a fool proof recipe that I love. I have found that recipe. Trust me on this one. It’s amazing.

Most people seem intimidated by SMBC because of the fact that sometimes it curdles when you’re mixing it up. You have to be patient and know that it’ll come back together. Because of the technique used in this recipe, you won’t have to worry about that here. I was a bit skeptical when I first tried this recipe, but it works every time.

I prefer to refrigerate my cupcakes after frosting them with this SMBC. This will set the frosting. Then bring them to room temperature prior to serving.

One Year Ago: Rice and Beans

Swiss Meringue Buttercream

This is my favorite Swiss meringue buttercream

Yield: Enough to frost 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

4 oz egg whites (3-4 large egg whites or about 1/2 cups)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 lb unsalted butter, room temperature
2 tsp lemon extract, almond extract, orange extract, or vanilla extract

Directions:

Lightly whisk egg whites and sugar together over simmering water until egg-white mixture is hot to touch or a candy thermometer reads 140°F (60°C).

Pour hot whites into a room-temperature bowl and whip with a wire whip until double in volume on MEDIUM-HIGH speed. When the mixer stops, the meringue should not move around in the bowl. Meanwhile cut up butter into 2-inch pieces. (The butter should be slightly moist on the outside but cold inside.)

On your mixer, remove the whip and attach the paddle. Add half the butter into the bowl immediately and pulsate the mixer several times until the meringue has covered the butter completely. To pulsate the mixer, turn it on and off in a jerky motion. This forces the butter on the top to the bottom of the bowl. Add the balance of the butter and pulsate mixer several times. Slowly increase the mixer's speed, starting with the lowest speed and increase the speed every 10 seconds until you reach a MEDIUM-HIGH speed.

Continue beating until the mixture begins to look light and fluffy. Stop the mixer and scrape the bowl. Reduce speed to LOW. Add flavoring and continue to beat on LOW speed for 45 seconds. Then beat on MEDIUM-HIGH speed for an additional 45 to 60 seconds.

Leftover buttercream can be placed in plastic containers with lids and kept in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost completely (several hours) and rewhip before using.

Storage: Store the icing in an airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months.

Recipe from epicurious

Dessert, Frosting, Go-To Recipes, Other

22 comments »

11 Responses to “Apple Cranberry Cake-Pie”

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1

nutmegnanny — November 16, 2009 at 4:02 pm

This looks so homey and delicious!
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2

lilybeth12 — November 16, 2009 at 9:39 pm

RDQ: where should I add the cranberries? did you substitute them for the raisins? can i use fresh cranberries?
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3

Jen — November 17, 2009 at 12:04 am

Sorry – I updated the recipe to reflect that I used dried cranberries in place of the raisins.
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4

Jane — November 22, 2009 at 12:29 am

Looks just delicious! I’m crazy lately about cranberries too. Talk about a versatile fruit! I just used them this evening to make a cranberry-apple conserve that served as the sauce for almond-crusted pork tenderloin. It was a big hit.
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5

Lisa — November 22, 2009 at 3:09 am

I also wonder if you can use fresh cranberries since they are in season!
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6

Jen — November 22, 2009 at 4:57 pm

You could definitely make this with fresh cranberries if you wanted.
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Lisa — November 22, 2009 at 6:15 pm

How long did you bake this if you halved it in a 8 by 8 pan? So excited to try it 🙂
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8

Jen — November 22, 2009 at 7:43 pm

I think I started checking it at 30 minutes and left it in for about 45 based on the color of the top layer.
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9

Lucy — November 22, 2009 at 11:03 pm

I’ve seen this recipe around before but it never fails to look so delicious! Gorgeous flavours 🙂
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10

Lisa — November 23, 2009 at 2:19 am

Me again. It is DELICIOUS! I halved the recipe and used 1 cup of fresh cranberries, though I think I could have used more.

Thanks so much!
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Jen — November 23, 2009 at 2:26 am

Glad to hear it Lisa! I will definitely have to try this with fresh cranberries next time I make it.