THE SKINNY ON BUTTERCREAM
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Source: Take the Cannoli blog
I’ve been thinking about buttercream a lot lately. No, I haven’t been craving it (although I’m always in the mood for buttercream), rather I’ve been thinking about what exactly constitutes a real buttercream frosting.
Back when I was in culinary school, we were taught that there were only three different types of buttercream: French, Swiss, and Italian. They all include eggs, butter, and sugar and differ in the way they are prepared. I’ve always referred to these three types as “real” buttercream. But more on this later.
There is also a fourth type of buttercream–American. This is the buttercream most of us are familiar with and use. It’s simply a combination of butter, powdered sugar, milk, and some type of flavoring. No eggs are used since nothing is heated. I’m going to sound like a complete snob when I say this, but American buttercream is not buttercream to me. I’m sure people would argue with me, but I’ve always associated this type of frosting with what we find in grocery store bakeries and the baking aisle. Those comments aside, I still use American buttercream when I want to make a frosting that is quick, yet homemade.
The differences I find in American buttercream vs. Italian/French/Swiss buttercream are in taste, texture, and quality. The former has a longer shelf-life, but is generally less smooth, and forms a “crust” on top. The latter has a shorter shelf-life, is smooth, less sugary and more buttery, and is glossy.
The Differences–In Detail
American buttercream: This is the most basic type and usually involves creaming a fat and powdered sugared until light and fluffy. Small amounts of liquids are usually added, such as milk and extracts. This is the only type of buttercream that does not need refrigeration, due to its high fat and sugar content. It only needs to be refrigerated in warmer conditions or else it will melt.
Swiss buttercream (also called a “meringue” buttercream): This involves heating egg whites and sugar (sometimes with an acid, like cream of tartar) over a bain-marie while whisking constantly until the mixture reaches 160º F. It is then removed from the heat and transferred to a mixer, where it’s whipped to medium peaks. Softened butter is added to the meringue while whipping. Flavorings are added at the end of the process. This type of buttercream should be refrigerated if it is not being used or eaten within a couple of hours.
Italian buttercream: This is similar to Swiss buttercream, except that the egg whites are not cooked. Rather, a sugar syrup is made until it has reached soft-ball stage (240ºF) and the egg whites are whipped to medium peaks in a mixer. The sugar syrup is then slowly added into the beaten egg whites with the mixer running. Once the meringue has cooled down, softened butter is added and the mixture is whipped until smooth, fluffy, and glossy. Any flavorings are added after the addition of butter. Storage is same as Swiss buttercream.
French buttercream: This is my favorite buttercream of all time. It is made exactly like Italian buttercream, except it uses whole eggs instead of only egg whites. This results in a richer, creamier buttercream and if you don’t color the buttercream, it will be more yellowish in color. This is the least stable of buttercreams and should always be refrigerated if not being used right away.
These seem to be the major four buttercreams being made out there, but I’ve learned of several others while finding information. There is decorator’s buttercream (used for making decorations such as flowers), fondant buttercream (combination of equal parts fondant and butter and used the same as rolled fondant), mousseline or neoclassic buttercream, and German buttercream (a combination of pastry cream and butter).
Why should you care?
If you’re looking for a less sweet frosting for your cakes, Italian, Swiss, or French buttercreams are the way to go. And even though the process to make these is more time consuming, the results are fantastic! Plus, if you want your desserts to look more fancy, the glossiness of one of these buttercreams can’t be beat.
My own personal tips:
•When whipping the butter into the meringue, you’ll usually find your mixture separating and start to look curdled. Don’t worry! Keep whipping at high speed and adding the butter and it will soon come together.
•Always add the softened butter AFTER the meringue has cooled. If your meringue is still warm, the butter will only melt and you will end up with a liquid-y mess.
•Instead of cocoa powder, try using melted chocolate instead. You won’t have to worry about clumps of cocoa powder or graininess and the buttercream will have a richer chocolate flavor.
•Get a candy thermometer! Don’t try to guess as to what softball stage is with sugar syrups.
If you have any additional questions, or have your own tips about buttercream, post your comments below. Here is a list of links that contain more information on this topic:
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