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Battle of the Buttercreams, Part VI: Swiss Buttercream and Test Results

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Swiss-Buttercream-1

Oh yeah, time for the grand finale: the last post of my ‘Battle of the Buttercreams’ series! Which buttercream will win the title of ‘Best Buttercream Frosting Ever’?

So exciting!

Anyway, first things first. Let’s find out more about the last type of buttercream: Swiss buttercream!

Color: ivory, almost white
Fat content: 51%
Sugar content: 42%
Texture: velvety smooth
Level of difficulty: easy

Like Italian Buttercream, this buttercream is based on meringue. However, while an Italian buttercream is made by enriching an Italian meringue – made by pouring hot sugar syrup into egg whites – this buttercream is based on a Swiss meringue, a meringue made by whipping a mixture of egg whites and sugar that has been gently heated in a double boiler until the sugar dissolved into the egg whites. Because of this, I think this type of buttercream is easier for beginning bakers or cooks new to making buttercream. Furthermore, this preparation method allows you to pasteurize the egg whites, thus killing any salmonella that may be present in your eggs and making your buttercream safe for pregnant women, old people, little kids and people with compromised immune systems. Even though Italian Buttercream is made by pouring burning hot sugar syrup into a bowl of egg whites, the whites don’t reach a temperature of 70°C/160°F – the temperature needed for pasteurization – and is therefore not safe to be consumed by these groups.

Something to keep in mind when baking for a party!

Apart from that, Italian and Swiss buttercream are quite similar. Of all the buttercreams I’ve tested, these were the lightest in color: a pale ivory. As I explained in the post on French Buttercream, it can visually be more appealing to use a lighter butterceam if you plan on flavoring it with things as coconut purée or peppermint extract. When it comes to the ‘egg whites to sugar’ ratio, Swiss and Italian are quite different though. Whereas Italian meringue usually calls for 50-82 grams of sugar per egg white, the recipes I’ve looked at to come up with an ‘egg white: sugar ratio’ for the Swiss call for anywhere between 30 to 50 grams of sugar per egg white.

Quite a big difference…

As usual, I decided to go with the least amount of sugar possible, about 30 grams per egg white. Many of my taste testers commented that they really loved the flavor of this buttercream, using adjectives such as “balanced” and “wonderfully mild”. Some testers simply gave this buttercream an 8 out of 10 and many loved the fact that it “wasn’t too sweet”. On the other hand, some of my taste testers noted that this buttercream lacked in flavor a bit and had a slight buttery aftertaste. However, although my testers had varied opinions on the flavor, all agreed that this buttercream has a great texture! 

How smooth and creamy the buttercream is obviously depends on how much butter you’re using. The recipes I’ve looked at used somewhere between 45 to 90 grams of butter per egg white. I went with 50 grams of butter per egg white. I have to say, I prefer this buttercream over the Italian. This one is a lot creamier, because it doesn’t contain quite as much butter. In fact, I’ve used more than twice the amount of butter in the Italian Buttercream and I think that, in the future, I’ll probably cut back on the amount of butter I use in my Italian buttercreams. Because not only does the amount of butter affect the flavor and texture of your buttercream, it also affects the buttercream’s pipe-ability!

Personally, I think this buttercream piped better than all of the other buttercreams I’ve tested. I mean, just look at that huge swirl! It’s so dramatic and spectacular! It held very well – even after it had been sitting next to the fire place for a couple of hours – but the texture was soft and smooth at the same time!

Swiss-Buttercream-2

But that’s enough about the Swiss buttercream. Let’s find out whether the Flour Buttercream, which some have already dubbed ‘The Best Frosting Ever’, is really the best! Will the new kid on the block leave all the classic buttercreams in the dust? Or will one of the golden oldies prove to be the ultimate buttercream?

First, imagine a drum roll…

(Or click on the link and hear one…)

So which buttercream came in first? Well, it wasn’t the Flour Buttercream. Neither was it the American, French, Italian or Swiss buttercream…

You guessed it. The new ‘Best Buttercream Frosting Ever’ is the German Buttercream! The only custard based buttercream out there!
In second place, Flour Buttercream. It may not be the best, but second place isn’t all that bad either, right? In third place, American Buttercream, although I’m pretty sure that I won’t be making that one again. In fourth place: Italian. Fifth place: French. And, finally, in sixth place: Swiss!

I have to say, these results kind of surprised me. Sure, I knew that the German buttercream was going to win. All of my testers loved it! However, judging by my taste testers’ comments, I was sure that Italian would end up in sixth place. But here they are, the official results of ‘The Battle of the Buttercreams’:

1. German Buttercream
2. Flour Buttercream
3. American Buttercream
4. Italian Buttercream
5. French Buttercream
6. Swiss Buttercream

It was a close call though. I’d asked my testers to give each buttercream a grade out of ten, 1 being absolutely horrible and 10 being divine. The difference between the German buttercream and the Swiss buttercream was only half a grade!

So what can we conclude? Well, I guess that buttercreams in general are just utterly delicious and you basically can’t go wrong with them. And, like I said before, you really can’t argue about tastes!

I mean, had it been up to me, the winner would probably have been German too, but the rest of the list would have looked dramatically different. Something like this: 1) German. 2) French. 3) Swiss. 4) Flour. 5) Italian. 6) American. Whereas the Rocking Rebel’s list looks like this: 1) Swiss. 2) French. 3) Italian. 4) German. 5) Flour. 6) American. See? I’m in love with this guy and the only two buttercreams we agreed on are French and American!

Anyway, I hope the posts in this series have showed you just how easy it is to adapt a recipe to your own personal taste and hopefully they will help you in developing your own buttercream recipes!

Swiss-Buttercream-3

As for me, I really enjoyed doing this series and I’m already thinking about a series about cream puffs or macarons, something along the lines of ‘Puff Perfection’ and ‘Macaron Mania’…

But first, I’m going to make myself a huge grilled cheese sandwich with pesto, fresh tomatoes and mozzarella cheese!

Enjoy!

Oh, and those Sour Cream Chocolate Cupcakes? There’s a recipe for them right here!

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4.4 from 7 reviews
Swiss Buttercream
 
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Prep time
Total time
 
Yields: about 180 grams (or 1 cup) of buttercream. Enough to frost half a cake or about 5 cupcakes.
Author:
Ingredients
  • 2 egg whites
  • 70g (or ⅓ cup + 1 teaspoon) granulated sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • pinch of salt
  • 100g (or ⅓ cup + 4 teaspoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
Instructions
  1. In the bowl of a double boiler (or a medium-sized bowl suspended over a pan of simmering water) combine the egg whites, sugar, vanilla and salt. Heat, stirring gently to dissolve the sugar and salt into the egg whites. You can test whether the sugar has dissolved by rubbing a bit of mixture between your fingers. It should feel smooth. If you want to pasteurize the egg whites and kill any salmonella that may be present, clip on a sugar thermometer and allow the egg white mixture to reach a temperature of 70°C/160°F, gently stirring continuously.
  2. Once the egg whites have reached the desired temperature or the sugar has dissolved, take the bowl off the heat and, using a mixer, whip the egg whites until the bottom of the bowl has cooled and the meringue holds stiff, shiny peaks. The meringue itself should have cooled down to body temperature.
  3. Next, start adding the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, waiting until each tablespoon of butter is incorporated before adding the next. Once all the butter has been added, the resulting buttercream should be smooth and thick. Use immediately or cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge until needed. Store in the fridge for up to 1 week or for up to 2 months in the freezer in a freeze-proof container or bag.
  4. To use buttercream that has been refrigerated, allow to come to room temperature (this takes about 3 hours in a warm kitchen) or microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring in between each interval, until it's soft. Then mix through until it's spreadable again. Thaw frozen buttercream in the fridge overnight, then allow to come to room temperature before use and, once at room temperature, mix briefly until smooth.
  5. Serve at room temperature. If you've assembled a cake or decorated cupcakes, allow cake or cupcakes to come to room temperature before serving (about 3-5 hours in a warm kitchen).

 

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    • Hi Kelster! I think the Italian would be great on your birthday cake! Try using the ‘butter to egg whites ratio’ I’ve used for the Swiss, because the Swiss piped beautifully 😉

      Oh, and let me know how it turned out!

  2. I’ve really enjoyed this series of buttercream posts, I am so shocked the Swiss came 6th! But hey ho I guess you can’t argue with a blind taste testing. I have never heard of flour buttercream before… must come up from under that rock more often! The idea freaks me out a little but nothing ventured nothing gained so I shall try and give it a go some time. Thanks for these posts I have really enjoyed them.

    • Thanks Emma, I’m so glad you enjoyed it! I was really shocked too when I first read the results, but the fact that Swiss came in 6th doesn’t mean it’s not good or something… It just means that the other buttercreams are even better 😉

      And don’t be intimidated by the flour buttercream. It’s very easy to make and really delicious!

  4. this series was so good! i admit swiss isn’t a favorite of mine. i have to try the german. it sounds great!

    • Thanks you so much Dina! I’m SO glad you liked it 😉 And the German is just TOO good! Try dissolving some instant coffee powder in the milk before making the custard too. It’s to die for!

  5. I loved this series! Thanks for conducting this experiment. I didn’t even know German buttercream existed, so I’ll have to try it out.

  6. When you say enough to frost half a cake, do you mean half of a single layer? Or one layer of a double layered cake? I’m planning to use this recipe for my son’s double layered birthday cake on 12/26.

    • Hi Angelina, 3 cups of buttercream are generally enough to frost a 6-inch, 3-layered cake. This would mean that for a cake that size you would need to triple the recipe. However, how much buttercream you will need for your son’s double layered birthday cake really depends on the size of the cake. A 6-inch cake obviously calls for less buttercream than a 10-inch cake. Plus, how much buttercream you will need also depends on whether you like thick, generous layers of buttercream or thin layers.

      For a 9-inch double layered buttercream cake I would usually use about 4 to 5 cups of buttercream. However, when in doubt, I always make sure that I have enough. It’s better to have some leftover buttercream than having to make some more halfway through the frosting process 😉 Leftover buttercream can always be frozen!

      • Thanks so much for the guidance! I quadrupled the recipe in two sets of double batches to frost a 9-inch double layered homemade Funfetti cake (with a lemon curd filling) for my kiddo’s fifth birthday. I’ve made the same Devil’s food cake with cocoa frosting and bittersweet ganache filling for his birthday every year, but this year he requested white cake. I had to learn a new recipe in a hurry! The Swiss buttercream was so easy to make, was yummy and piped beautifully. I even shared a picture on Google+! https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-EbA8vCZxiC4/Urzo3coRd-I/AAAAAAAAKMk/_7oSVRPP4RY/s832-Ut/13+-+1 Thanks again 🙂

        • Thanks Angelina, I’m so glad you liked it! The cake looks gorgeous! And your son has a beautiful name too 😉

  7. I just came across your buttercream series (a little late, I know), and it is fantastic! I’m not big on frosting, but I’ll definitely be trying out the German buttercream soon. Love your blog!

    • Thanks for stopping by Mel! So glad you like my blog 😉 The German buttercream is delicious. It’s my personal favorite!

  8. Very interesting series, thank you so much. I just recently made my first German Buttercream (which previously I had never heard of). I had heard of all the others ( and have made some of them) but I do agree with you on the American Buttercream, tooth-achingly sweet!
    Luisa

  9. Hi, really enjoyed your buttercream battle, can you tell me which butter cream hold it’s shape better in warm places? I’m baking cupcakes for a charity event in a fairly warm place and I’m worried that my buttercream frosting would melt or turn glossy. Thanks

    • Hi Golnaz, nice to meet you 🙂 If you’re making cupcakes for an outdoor charity event, you need to keep in mind that the lower the fat content of the buttercream, the better it will hold up in warm temperatures. Therefore, I would advise you to use flour buttercream, as it has a fat content of only 24%. However, flour buttercream tends to slouch a little after piping. It does set up beautifully after that, but if you want well defined buttercream roses, you may want to go with a different kind of buttercream or add a little more butter to the flour buttercream to make it a little thicker.

      Just keep in mind that it’s the butter that will cause your buttercream to melt in warm temperatures, so try to keep the butter (fat) content as low as possible, whichever buttercream you decide to go with 🙂

  10. Nila, I love what you’ve done here!! I’m making cupcakes today for my daughters’s 3rd birthday. I normally make American buttercream but it’s so sweet. I’ve been messing around with Swiss buttercream for the past few days. I do like it, but think it’s a little buttery tasting, but I’m guessing that’s how it should be. I like that your recipe calls for less butter then most ice seen. The ones I’ve tried have almost double the butter. I’m going to use your recipe tomorrow for Swiss buttercream and I’ll definitely come back to try the others. Thanks!!

    • Hi Brooke, thank you so much, I’m so glad you like the recipe! I’m not really a fan of too sweet or too buttery buttercream either, so I just love how easy it is to adapt buttercream to your own taste and preferences.

      Also, keep in mind to always serve buttercream at room temperature. Cold buttercream just taste like a big chunk of sweetened butter… Leave the cupcakes in a warm place for a few hours before serving to ensure the buttercream is soft and velvety! It’s better to serve it a little too warm than a little too cold 🙂

      Let me know how the cupcakes turned out?

    • Hi Dee, nice to meet you! General rule of thumb: one large whole egg: 50g. One egg yolk: 17g. One egg white: 33g. So you’ll need about 66g of egg whites for the Swiss Buttercream recipe.

      But if I were you, I would just use two egg whites. No weighing… Buttercream is pretty forgiving 🙂

  13. Hi Nila, loved reading your blog about the different butter creams. I’m also not too sure what flour icing is. I have been making the standard butter icing for cup cakes and cakes, but now Im rather excited about these alternative butter creams which I will be experimenting with soon. Thank you.

    • Hi Des, thanks so much for you kind words! All I ever wanted was the buttercream series to be helpful and to introduce people to different kinds of buttercream, because they’re all sooo delicious 😉

  14. Hello Nila,
    I have just stumbled on to site and it is fantastic!
    The buttercream series is wonderful!
    My grandmother use to make german buttercream for her cakes and I never knew how. She was of generation who did not share recipes.
    Now I know.
    Thanks
    Irene

    • Hi Irene, nice to meet you! Thank you so much for your kind words 😉 Don’t you love German buttercream? It’s so smooth and creamy! Oh, and by the way, I can totally relate to your story, too. My grandmother used to make an amazing apricot pie, and I never really learned how she made it either. I’m still looking for a great recipe 😉

  15. Thank you so much for these ratios!! I made Swiss buttercream for the first time and it turned out amazing! Thoroughly enjoyed the buttercream battle.. Have to try out the others as well. Your blog is a treasure trove – am hooked! Keep up the good work Nila.

  16. Hi, Nila
    I would really appreciate your help! I want to use buttercream to frost my cake (for the crumb coat & rosettes). I don’t know which buttercream to make.. Which one holds it’s shape the best but is also light and fluffy?

    I was leaning toward swiss buttercream (your photo the SMBC looks like the type of buttercream I’m picturing).

    Is the butter flavour really strong? I’ve read that, if you’re not used to it, you should heavily flavour it. Also, can I use liquid food colouring?

    Thanks! 🙂

    • Hi Sally! I found that the Swiss buttercream pipes gorgeously and holds its shape really well! So yeah, I recommend that one! The Swiss buttercream doesn’t really have a strong butter flavor. It’s just velvety smooth and delicately sweet, with a subtle vanilla flavor. If you add more butter, the butter flavor will be a bit more pronounced, but the buttercream may also become less pipe-able (too stiff), so keep that in mind if you’re trying to make a very buttery buttercream.
      As far as flavorings go, I love the simplicity of the vanilla buttercream. But you can also add a few tablespoons of lemon or orange curd, or some raspberry puree for a raspberry buttercream. You can also add a few teaspoons of instant coffee granules to the egg white and sugar mixture as you’re heating it for a delicious mocha version! Or fold some melted dark chocolate!
      To answer your question about liquid food coloring: go for it! If you can add something like raspberry puree or lemon curd, I don’t think a few drops of liquid coloring will pose much of a problem. If the buttercream becomes too loose, you can always add a few more tablespoons of butter 😉

      Hope this helps!

  17. Thank you so much for all of this amazing information. I learned how to make the flour buttercream as part of the original Red Velvet cake. I always liked it, but I had never heard of some of the others. What an awesome blog.

  18. Hi Nila,
    Thank you for these amazing posts of ‘Battle of the Buttercreams’. Such a wealth of information condensed and disclosed. I will be frosting 4 cakes tomorrow and have decided to make the Swiss for 3 reasons: it is easy, it will hold its shape outdoors in this sunny weather and I will be having a ton of whites from making the creme patissiere fillings.
    You had me at the fat and sugar stats… Loved that!
    Thanks again. Keep posting…

    • Thanks Sheila! I’m so glad you liked the series 🙂 Good luck with frosting the cakes! Just one last tip: regardless of the fact that Swiss buttercream holds it’s shape in a hot environment, try to keep your cakes out of direct sunlight! Have fun!

  19. To sum up, after reading all the recipes and results:

    Unless it’s a recent phenomenon (I only noticed that in the last year, or so), we Americans have never called it American Buttercream; just “insert flavor” Frosting.

    Plain (no chocolate) frosting is traditionally made with all shortening, or half shortening, half butter. I generally use pure vanilla or Creme Bouquet flavorings, depending on what flavor casual cake/cupcakes I’m making. Creme Bouquet should only be used on cakes flavored with it or plain yellow or white cakes; tastes awful on a chocolate cake, IMO. Tastes wonderful otherwise; like a combination of vanilla, almond and lemon, but different. Hard to describe; you’ll have to try it.

    All shortening should only be used if you need a pure, white frosting (you’re also supposed to use clear vanilla, which is artificial, and tastes it), that looks prettier, and is most stable at room temperature.

    I’ve tried all butter, but was never happy with the results; it doesn’t hold up well in warmer weather.

    My Mountain Icing (your Flour Buttercream) is from the 1960s and you cook the paste with only 1-2 tablespoons of the sugar, mixed with the flour (my recipe uses twice as much flour as yours; same amount of the other ingredients, plus a pinch of salt), to avoid lumps when you add the milk. The cooked paste looks awful, but that’s completely normal. You cream the butter and sugar for quite a long time (15-20 minutes, or so) so the sugar dissolves (it will), then beat in the flour paste until it’s fluffy. The texture is similar to a denser whipped cream and tastes like french vanilla ice cream, in frosting form. It does need to be kept chilled until you serve it (even the leftovers). THIS is the traditional frosting for Red Velvet Cake, NOT Cream Cheese Frosting (that’s a more recent adaptation by cooks from the US Southern states…they’ll argue otherwise, but they will be wrong).

    In both American recipes, you seem to be missing a crucial ingredient, IMO: a pinch of salt to enhance the flavor (may also help with the “too sweet” comments).

    As far as the 4, true buttercreams, I believe they all have their place, depending on what you’re making, or your preference, as do the 2 American Frosting/Icing recipes.

    My German Buttercream sounds a bit more sturdy than yours. I start with a very firm crême patissiere (made with gelatin), not a plain, cooked custard.

    I’d only use French buttercream to fill a cake. I tried filling and frosting genoise layers and it tasted like I was eating a barely sweet stick of butter, LOL. I frosted over the buttercream with Mountain Icing and it was delicious. It knocked the butter taste back to where it belonged (subtle flavor) and brought the sweetness up to a perfect level.

    I really enjoyed reading about all the tests and results. Thanks!

  20. hi! I tried making swiss buttercream but everytime i add the butter (little by little) it becomes watery, am i doing anything wrong? -_- help! 🙁

  21. Hey there! I’m so glad i found this series of posts, now i don’t have to do all that work 🙂

    Do you have any suggestions for coconut swiss buttercream? I’ve read some recipes that use coconut milk, but yours doesn’t have much in the way of liquid so i’m wary of trying it.

  22. Hi Nila,
    Thanks for the great information. I would like to know which buttercream is the best to make flowers for the cake. I would like to make some big flowers like Roses,Carnations,Chrysanthemums with lots of petals. Could you please recommend which type of Buttercream is best for this. The flowers should also hold their shape obviously. I don’t generally like the Royal icing flowers which is hard & gives that Artificial look..Thank you.

  23. Hi Toughcookie
    Thank you zo much for this test. I have to make a weddingcake this coming weekend and thought about making a two tier cake with a buttercream icing. Saw some beautiful piped roses on the net and love a challenge. But which buttercream with ‘so many’ different choices. Was just thinking about googling what the differce is between all of them when I stumble on your blog. Have read the battle from the beginning (learning about never before heard buttercreams (flour, French (although I found a recipe for French buttercream that used regular egg white meringue (made with not heated sugar) and German).
    Since I will be decorating my cake by piping, I’ve decided to stick with my original plan: the Swiss buttercream.
    Now I just have to decide on what sort of cake to use…… I want to layer them with passion fruit curd.
    Any suggestions?
    Again, thanks for a great article. Kind regards.
    Boelo

  24. Hi may I know how long can we keep flour buttercream in fridge (not freezer). I kept mine (with flavouring added) in the fridge for 1 week and it turned bad after that, giving a chemical bitter taste. I made french buttercream before and it is okay even up to 2 weeks in fridge. I used both buttercream for macaron. Can u advise as my flour buttercream turned bad 2 times within a week of storage in fridge.

  25. Hi! Thank you for compiling a review for the various buttercreams! I am always a fan of SMBC, however, the last two times I made it, instead of getting a marshmallow/vanilla flavor, I got a frosting that almost exactly tasted like butter! I can’t even eat a slice of cake with the load of frosting in it, because most SMBC recipes I came across calls for a lot of butter. I’ll be trying your recipe on Friday for a kiddie birthday party, however I’d like to ask how much of the recipe do I need to frost 36 regular sized cupcakes? Thank you very much! 🙂 x

  26. Firstly, the German buttercream is really great. The custard makes it a little rich, though, so don’t eat too much….

    Secondly, I tried the Swiss buttercream but I think I must have done something wrong. My meringue wouldn’t whip and stopped somewhere at a soupy soft peak stage. Perhaps it was because I pasteurized the eggs?

    • Also, do you know what is causing both the German and the Flour Buttercreams to have little chunks of “something”? In both of them, I’ve ended up with little bits of something suspended in my frosting. It’s hard and white – a lot more prominent in the German than the Flour. Any suggestions for preventing this would be welcome. Thanks!

  27. This is a great review of the variety of buttercreams available, which is why people are still discovering and commenting on it years later! A great testament to your work, Nila. I made the Swiss buttercream on the weekend and after adding the butter it wouldn’t thicken up (I think my bowl was still too warm) so I popped it in the freezer for ten minutes and then after a quick whiz it was great. Very different to the usual icings I use but everyone enjoyed it on my sister’s angelfood birthday cake so that’s the main thing. I think people are getting tired of the super sweet icings and everyone seems to be watching their weight in my family so it was a good choice. Can’t wait to try the others, and be brave enough to give the Italian a go. Love your website!

  28. hi nila! did you ever make a ganache buttercream? please give me your review. thank you 🙂

  29. Hi,
    It is very interesting post. I read completely and enjoyed.
    i would like to know which type is good for icing the cake and which one is good for making roses.
    Thanks in advance.

  30. Hi Nila,

    Thanks for your amazing reviews and sharing of the buttercream recipes. I’m new to cake decorations with buttercream. I used the buttercream recipe learned from class, but they’re way too sweet. I’ll definitely try your recipes. Questions: is the Swiss Buttercream a crusting buttercream? Is the recipe shared in the stiff, medium, or thin consistency?

    Thank you very much.

  31. Hi nila! I know u repeatedly comment that smb holds its shape even at warm temps but i was wondering if anyone here has tried adding gelatin to stabilize it even more, say for an outside event. I was thinking maybe blooming and dissolving gelatin in cream or milk and then adding it to finished smb. I’ve tried this with cream cheese frosting (cream cheese + butter + confectioner sugar) to make extra tall swirls on cupcakes and they hold great, doesn’t alter flavor. But of course smb is very different

  32. How many batches can be made at one time? Trying the Swiss buttercream for the first time and need quite a few batches so hoping to be able to do lots at a time. Thanks for your help!

  33. wow. I am impressed with your blog and site. I am working on my first wedding cake for stepdaughter, and I have decided to make the SMBC for the frosting – the cake is 3 tiers 12”/10”/8 “and 5″ high each layer. do you think 20 cups of butter cream will do? thank you for sharing this incredible information

  34. Hi there!

    Really loved your post on buttercream! I’ll be making a chocolate cake for a friend’s birthday and I’ve decided to use your Swiss Meringue as the frosting. However, I want to make a rich chocolate buttercream but Im not sure how much cocoa powder/melted chocolate/ etc to add. Would appreciate it if you can help me out here!

    Didnt have much success in making the normal kind of buttercream. Everytime it will turn out grainy. Im so glad I stumbled upon your blog! Keep up the good work! 😀

  35. Hi Nila!

    I found your site today while searching for the perfect flour buttercream.

    I made it several years ago using the “bechamel” method. However, I used it to make cream cheese frosting and it just wouldn’t come together. It’s stayed like slightly thickened bechamel. I kept adding more cream cheese and even powdered sugar and ended up with a bigger batch of same.

    I called my Aunt, who’s a great baker, and asked what to do. She said to close my eyes and flush it down the toilet! Well, I couldn’t do that so I froze it into 1cup amt’s to use when baking marbled choc. brownies. They were fantastic. Needless to say, we had a lot of brownies for 1 1/2 yrs. ….

    I wonder what your thoughts are on the failed cream cheese flour frosting. (I’ve been working up the courage to make the frosting fail again as the brownies were wonderful.)

    Love your site.

    Linda…who also likes whipped cream on cake ; )

  36. PS. I can’t have enough CHOCOLATE. When you figure out how to serve it with a hypodermic, plese let me know!

    I do as you do with ganache when I need chocolate frosting whip it until it’s fluffy.
    L

  37. Wait… American BC is better than Swiss MBC? :O I just… but it’s so… how… why… gaahh! I don’t understand my life anymore! I guess to each his own… but wow. I would’ve thought SMBC would at least place 3rd or 4th, not 6th! What a shocker!

  38. Hi Nila!

    Do you think the swiss buttercream will be good (I mean firm) enough to use in a wedding cake? 😉 Thanks for your help 🙂

  39. Wow i really loved this series!
    In cooking school we were only taught the French method, and you can make the Pate a Bombe 2 ways: Poached:(double boiler with egg yolks + sugar until it reaches 85°C, then beat the hell out of it, when it reaches body temperature add the butter + flavor) and the Hot Syrup method to 118°C.
    Keep in mind if you want a thicker Cream you can use egg yolks + eggs!

    I had never heard of the Flour method! i guess i’ll give it a try!
    I can´t wait to try the PB version! yummy!

    Thanks for all the knowledge!
    XO

  40. Hi Nila! Thank you so much for your awesome buttercream battle – its really helped me find the courage to start tackling this part of baking and decorating 🙂 haha

    Quick question: Do you happen to know how many cupcakes your recipe above can frost? I know it says around 5 but I know different styles of piping can heavily influence how much frosting is needed per cupcake. I’m planning on frosting my cupcakes in the rose (not rosette!) style: http://41.media.tumblr.com/6d4f825d1961d926e2392893c123822d/tumblr_n1d2szN6oQ1qzdiqvo1_1280.jpg

    Thanks so much in advance and best of luck in your thesis writing! Hope the regular blogging resumes soon…your posts are always so well written and the photos are seriously amazing.

  41. Nila,
    Thank you so much for your concise explanation of the different buttercream.
    You have helped me immensely!
    I would like to ask if there is any suggestions for those who use merengue powder in the Swiss BC. I am in Costa Rica right now and finding pasteurized eggs are hard to come by in my particular town so I am hoping to substitute. Any advice would be helpful, thanks!

  42. Nila,
    I was wondering if I can use pasteurized egg whites (from the carton) in place of the actual egg? There a recipes out there that does this, and I’m wondering will there be a difference in terms of stability, fluffiness etc? Thank you for such an informative post!

  44. Hi Nila! Great blog, I learnt so much! I’ve been asked to make a wedding cake and am planning to use the Swiss buttercream to ice a three tiered cake. I’m also a bridesmaid so I will have to assemble the cake at least the day before. Is that ok? Will the cake hold it’s structure for that long in warm temperatures?

    Thanks so much for the help!

  45. Thanks for all this information about different types of buttercream! I’ve been working my way through them, but I’ve encountered trouble with this one…I thought I followed the directions but what I ended up with was lumpy and grainy (although still delicious). Any ideas on where I went wrong and what I could do to prevent it from happening again?

  46. Thank you so much for publishing this “series”. I used to always make “European” style butter-creams, but due to numerous computer failures over the years, being very busy etc, had managed to loose my favorite recipe – very similar to the flour buttercream and I love “meringue” frosting’s rather than plain butter-creams, better texture and flavor. I was thrilled when I found your blog after various searches. Thanks again. Louise

  47. Nila, first of all, thanks for the awesome series on buttercreams. I tried the recipe in your link for Sour cream Chocolate Cupcakes and had some queries. Even though I had only half filled the containers, the batter rose and overflowed outside. What could be the problem here? My batter was quite runny, is that how its supposed to be? I used free standing paper cups instead of a muffin tin, don’t know whether that made any difference. But whatever was left in the cup was super soft and tasty! Any advice ? Thanks in advance.

  48. I don’t know if you’ll get this in time…

    I’m making cupcakes today. The plan is to pipe the tops of cupcakes so they look more or less like a rose. Would this Swiss recipe hold the shape?

    Thanks!