About two years ago, I decided I wanted to learn to decorate cakes, just in a basic way. Nothing too fancy, but I wanted to be able to make fun things for my kids birthdays. My sister-in-law is an amazing cake decorator and so she put together a beginner's kit for me of things I'd need. More on that in my next post on basic decorating techniques. But I had a hard time coming up with a frosting recipe that I could work with. Most buttercreams use a lot of shortening, and the dalda/vanaspati is NOT good for frostings. :) Fondant was out of the question because it uses marhsmallows. For a long time I've used a cream cheese buttercream. But recently I ran across this recipe, and it worked great for Kiryn's recent birthday cake. So much cheaper and easier than the cream cheese buttercream, plus I got my smoothest result yet! The amount of this recipe will fill and frost a 9 inch round two layer cake.
Confectioners Frosting
5 c. icing sugar
250 g. butter, at room temperature
2 1/2 t. vanilla
3-4 T. cream or milk
Beat the butter with an electric mixer til it's nice and fluffy. Add the vanilla and beat til combined. With the mixer on a low speed, add the icing sugar, about a cup at a time, and beat to combine. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula often to keep it well mixed. Once you've added all the sugar, add about 2 T. of cream. Beat on high to combine. If the frosting looks dry, add another T. of cream and keep beating. You want it to be shiny, but to stand up on it's own and be a bit stiff. If you get it too wet, just add a little more icing sugar. Keep going back and forth until you get it right!
If you want to color your frosting, set aside the amount you want in a separate bowl, and add your color to it. Probably went without saying. :) Happy Baking!
*taken from joyofbaking.com*
I am definately trying this next time I make a cake. My buttercream is never as smooth looking as yours. I was wondering how you got your so nice looking, so thanks for the post.
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