How to Make Velvety Smooth Buttercream
The most irresistible buttercream EVER! My velvety smooth imitation swiss buttercream has turned a many non-buttercream eaters into buttercream addicts! Ok, addicts might be a strong word but the cravings are strong strong! What I’m trying to say is it’s fairly hard for anyone to NOT love this buttercream. It has a velvety smooth texture that LITERALLY melts in your mouth, has just the right level of sweetness, and pipes and smooths like a dream. 😍😍😍
The Ingredients
My velvety smooth buttercream recipe is an imitation to the classic Swiss Meringue Buttercream. What makes it an imitator is the use of egg whites, sugar and butter. However, the difference comes in that traditional Swiss uses raw egg whites, granulated sugar and butter. My imitation buttercream uses pasteurized egg whites, powdered sugar and butter.
The key in these ingredients is that the pasteurized eggs whites and powdered sugar allows you to skip most of the process that is required for traditional Swiss Meringue Buttercream and diminishes the risk of not properly cooking your eggs and sugar to the proper temperature for safe consumption. Pasteurized egg whites are safe for consumption right from the cart so it is highly imperative that you choose pasteurized egg whites. No, there are NO substitutions.
However, if you would like an egg-less buttercream, try my NEW Dream Cream!
To make the best out of this easy buttercream recipe, allow all ingredients to come to room temperature. Room temperature ingredients aid in the velvety smooth texture of this buttercream and helps your ingredient emulsify easier and quicker.
Get the EGGLESS buttercream recipe HERE!
Recipe Break Down
When I say my Velvety Smooth Imitation Swiss Meringue Buttercream is the easiest to follow and the easiest to convert, I MEAN THAT! The recipe I am sharing with you below will make a batch that will fill a 4.5 quart almost to the top and is enough buttercream to ice and decorate a tall 3 layer 6 inch cake AND a tall 3 layer 8 inch cake.
The conversions are simple as my recipe is a 1:4:4 ratio of egg whites to powdered sugar to butter. So for example, say the recipe calls for 1 ounce of egg whites. Multiply the 1 ounce by 4 and you get the amount for the powdered sugar ( 4 ounces) and butter (4 ounces).
Another easy way to convert is by taking the the number of ounces of egg whites and applying that number to give you the number sticks of butter needed. This is assuming you use 4 ounce sticks of butter. So for example, 2 ounces of egg whites equals 2 sticks of butter. Then multiply by 4 to get the amount of powdered as before (8 ounces of powdered sugar).
My last tip is making my easy buttercream in batches. The recipe shared below is my standard one batch. This is why. 8 ounces of eggs whites equals 8 sticks of butter (32 ounces) and 1 bag of powdered sugar (32 ounces). It helps big time because I don’t have to think too much. Measure my 8 ounces of egg whites, dump one bag of powdered sugar and grab 8 sticks of butter. Done.
Easy peasy, right?
The Method
The method to making my Imitation Swiss Buttercream is quite simple and similar to the second half of the process for traditional Swiss Buttercream. Mix together your pasteurized egg whites and powdered sugar until a meringue is formed. Drop in your butter and any flavorings and mix. Done! No need to cook the eggs and whip until cool. Can you believe it’s literally that easy?
Surprise! There’s actually one last thing you need to know about this process. While anyone can follow a recipe and get great results, a lot of times it’s actually all in the technique that makes a difference! And that is definitely the case here. What sets my buttercream apart from the rest is it’s super silky, moveable texture that actually still has a firm hold with no air bubbles. Kind of like an oxymoron.
What gives this delicious buttercream that ability is time. Time is key. Time and low speed and using the paddle attachment. The combination of these is what knocks out the air bubbles giving you the smooth texture, makes the buttercream silky, light and fluffy and super easy to smooth and work with and most importantly not be too sweet and melt in your mouth.
Use and Storage
My recipe for Imitation Swiss Buttercream makes what I consider one batch. The one batch will make one tall 3 layer 8″ cake AND one tall 3 layer 6″ cake. Or 3 6″ cakes, or 1 and a half 8″ cakes, or a whole bunch of 4″ cakes.
5 ounces for an 8″ cake
3 ounces for a 6″ cake
8 ounces for a sheet cake (14×19)
2 ounces for a 4″ cake
These are approximations I go by. You can check out my vanilla cake recipe here to learn more about my cake layers.
This velvety smooth buttercream can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator for a week or in the freezer for a month and left out at room temperature for 2 days. If I am using the buttercream the next day, I will leave it out on my counters. If I am using it within 2 or 3 days, I will store it in the refrigerator and if it’s need after that or I have leftovers, I will store in the freezer. I like to store my buttercream in these airtight containers to keep it fresh and in good shape. A single batch of buttercream will fit in 1 1/2 of these containers.
A quick tip: Bang containers to remove any air bubbles that might have gotten trapped when putting the buttercream in the containers. This is going to make for a smooth transition when you are ready to use it.
The process to bring the buttercream back to life is super simple. Leave it out at room temperature for 6 hours. I will generaly take it out the night before using or early in the morning right when I wake up and it is usually good and ready for me to use. The best part about this is that IT DOESN’T NEED TO BE REWHIPPED! Yep, my velvety smooth imitation swiss buttercream will be just as smooth and silky as the day you put it in there, even coming from being frozen. Fill your piping bags or scoop right out of the tub because this buttercream is ready to go.
Now if for whatever reason your buttercream isn’t ready right out the tub, mix it by hand or rewhip on low in your stand mixer and you will be good to go!
What It’s Good For
Absolutely EVERYTHING! Pipe cupcakes, ice and decorate cakes, fill cake jars, fill chocolate bars, pipe on top of pies, stuff cookies with it. The options are literally endless because this imitation swiss buttercream is so light and silky.
Commonly Asked Questions with Answers
Q: Is there a recipe that’s just as good without eggs?
A: Absolutely! My Dream Cream Buttercreams are completely egg-free. That means no eggs, no egg whites, and no meringue powder!
Q: Can I use regular egg whites? (Non-pasteurized)
A: ABSOLUTELY NOT! The safety in this recipe is using PASTEURIZED egg whites that have already been treated. If you want to use fresh eggs, do the traditional Swiss Meringue Buttercream Recipe instead. It’s delicious too!
Q: Does it taste like eggs?
A: Not at all. It tastes like the best ice cream you’ve ever had!
Q: Can I use less butter or powdered sugar?
A: I wouldn’t recommend it, but if you would like to experiment to find your own combination, go for it! Although it is pretty perfect already so just give it try this way first and then adjust from there if needed.
Q: Will this buttercream hold up in hot temperatures?
A: You will have to test it in your climate to know for sure, but I have used this buttercream on many cakes that have sat out in the hot, humid, Texas summer heat for hours. It held up beautifully.
Q: It looks really soft. Will it crust or firm up?
A: This is not a crusting buttercream, but if you chill it in the refrigerator, the buttercream firms up to a nice hold. You can easily maneuver it around like I do in this video here.
Q: Can this buttercream be colored?
A: Yes! You can color this buttercream using food colorings. Like most buttercreams, allow the buttercream to set to allow the color to develop and deepen. You can also heat up a bit of it in the microwave then add it back into the batch to quicken the process.
Q: Can I replace half the butter with shortening?
A: I haven’t personally tried it, but I would assume it would still work the same. Give it a try and let me know how it turns out!
Recipe
Difficulty: Beginner
Servings: 1
8 ounces Pasteurized Egg Whites (Room Temperature)
32 ounces Powdered Sugar
32 ounces Butter (Room Temperature)
Flavoring to taste
Instructions
Add room temperature eggs and powdered sugar into bowl of stand mixer with whisk attachment.
Whip on high speed until eggs and powdered sugar creates a meringue. Approx. 8-10 minutes.
Add in your butter in chunks and whip until well incorporated and fluffy. Approx. 8-10 minutes.
While mixing, add in your flavorings.
Switch to paddle attachment and mix on lowest speed until buttercream is velvety and smooth. Approx. 15 minutes.
Enjoy and frost to your delight!
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