This buttercream is the foundation of every cake I make.
Swiss Meringue Buttercream (SMBC) is named after the technique that is used to make it. It involves cooking granulated sugar and egg whites over a double boiler and then whipping that into a meringue-a Swiss meringue-if you will. Don’t let that scare you away! It is easy and I will help you succeed in making this dream of a buttercream.
The Pros?
It is smooth like silk with a mild sweetness: just the right amount without going overboard.
I love that it doesn’t require sifting powdered sugar- the bane of my existence! You won’t have to clean your mixer, cupboards, counter tops, and floors of powdered sugar when you’re done. WIN! WIN!
I love that it pipes beautifully without having to fuss over the consistency AT ALL. No adding water. No guessing which consistency works best for specific jobs. This is a one stop shop. I think it’s easier than American buttercream to smooth on a cake and just look at the flowers I piped with it! It really is a dream to use.
I love how versatile it is; it can easily be altered to become a myriad of different flavors.
And finally…the best part? It can be made with just 4 ingredients!
The Cons?
I have heard some people say that the texture of SMBC was too buttery. I reduce the amount of butter in my recipe to combat this. Also, adding a pinch of salt can help. Another tip is to advise your clients to eat the cake at room temperature. This will make a HUGE difference in the taste and texture of the cake and buttercream! Do you like to eat cold butter? Neither do I! Since the buttercream is made with real butter, it needs time out of the fridge to come to room temperature before enjoying. The butter in the buttercream and the cake will soften as it warms and will seem more moist and much more enjoyable to eat.
It is not as easy to color as traditional American buttercream. I will share the best way to color SMBC in a later blog post. It takes an extra step, but the results are phenomenal!
It is not a pure white buttercream like an all-shortening buttercream would be. This has never been a complaint from my clients, but it could be important at a wedding where you need a white white buttercream. To combat this, my suggestion is to add just a touch of violet color to your buttercream. Like the tip of a toothpick amount. This will counteract the yellow and make the buttercream appear more of a true white color. You can always add a little more violet depending on the quantity you are using, but be careful not to add too much. This would take the color too far and look grey. The picture below is the natural color of my SMBC, no violet color added. It is white enough for most of the cakes I do.
It is not the quickest buttercream to make, but I think it’s worth the time. Plus, most of the time required to make it is inactive (which means you can be doing other things in the kitchen while it cooks and whips).
I hope you sum up the courage to try your hand at Swiss meringue buttercream. It is not as hard as it seems and is fairly forgiving. I am sharing my recipe and methods as they are a little different than most other recipes I’ve seen online. Please comment if you give it a try or have a question! I will be sharing flavor variations over the coming months.
- 16 oz Egg Whites, pasteurized from a carton or fresh
- 32 oz Granulated Sugar
- 28 oz Butter, unsalted, room temperature, cubed
- 1 tsp Cream of Tartar, optional
- 1 TB Vanilla Extract
- Pinch of Salt, optional
- Create a double boiler by adding about 1.5 inches of water in a medium to large sauce pan. Choose a mixing bowl-I use the one from my Kitchenaid mixer- to sit on top of the pan of water. You dont want the mixing bowl touching the water.
- Heat the water on medium high until it just starts to boil and then turn it down to simmer.
- Using a whisk, combine the egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in the mixing bowl. Try not to get sugar granules high up on the sides of the bowl.
- Set the egg white mixture on top of the double boiler, stirring every 5 minutes or so. The goal here is to melt ALL the sugar crystals. I just leave the whisk in the bowl the whole time so the crystals melt off the whisk too.
- Cook this mixture until it looks white and frothy on top, all the crystals are melted, and the temperature of the mixture reaches 170 degrees. This is the most critical step when making SMBC. I like it really frothy and white looking on top because this results in a whiter buttercream. This melting process takes about 30 minutes.
- Remove the mixing bowl from the pan. Using the whisk attachment, beat the mixture on medium high (level 6) until it starts to thicken-about 5 minutes. Turn the speed up to a level 8 and whip for another 15 minutes until a meringue forms. You want the temperature of the mixing bowl to be about room temperature and the meringue to be stiff and glossy. You can't over-mix it at this point, so let it whip whip whip.
- Turn the mixer to a low speed. Add the butter in, about one stick at a time.
- Once all the butter is added, turn the mixer back to medium speed and whip, whip, whip. Let it mix until the buttercream comes together. This can take as long as 20 minutes, but usually takes mine 7-10 minutes to come together. The buttercream may look runny and slightly curdled. Just keep whipping. As it whips, it will change into a thicker consistency and look like buttercream.
- Change to the paddle attachment. Add salt and vanilla. Mix on low until incorporated. I let it mix with a paddle on low for a couple minutes to remove some air bubbles before icing or piping with it. Enjoy!
I use "All Whites" brand egg whites in the carton. This is the only brand that works well for me other than fresh egg whites.
Use a scale to measure ingredients for the greatest ease and most accuracy.
