An easier, no-cook version of SMBC crossed with American Buttercream
I love, love, love the silkiness of Swiss Meringue Buttercream (herein known as SMBC). It isn’t a adenoid-hardening sweet as regular buttercream, not gritty, a dream to decorate with. The only thing is - to me and most of my family - it feels like you’re biting into a big fat stick of butter. That’s off-putting to me. Where’s the happy medium? A hybrid. A hybrid that everyone who has ever tasted it has raved about. We’re talking eyes rolling in the back of their head in delight lovin’ it. What’s even better is it is really hard to screw up and you don’t have to cook diddly. Bad news is you have to use a stand mixer. Hand mixers will NOT work.
Ingredients
6 oz Pasteurized Egg Whites (the egg whites in a carton that says “pasteurized” on it)
6 Cups Powdered Sugar (AKA Confectioner’s Sugar, Icing Sugar)
1/2 Teaspoon Salt (this is really to taste. And I use white regular popcorn salt)
6 Sticks Butter (room temperature. Yes. 6 sticks. Margarine will not work. Plus it is nasty.)
2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract (or other flavoring we’ll go over later)
Directions
Prep it... Get the egg whites to room temperature. I usually do this by measuring them out in my cup, then sitting the cup in a hot water bath for about 10 or 15 minutes. After your butter is at room temp, cube it up - about 5 cubes per stick - into a bowl for ease.
Combine egg whites, sugar, and salt in a stand mixer using a paddle attachment. A whisk attachment will bring too much air into the mixture. Mix on low until everything is combined and you don’t see any dry patches on the sides of the bowl. Stop occasionally and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. When all the dry patches are gone, scrape the bowl down thoroughly again and mix on medium speed for about 5 minutes.
Turn the speed to medium-low and begin to add your butter a cube at a time, allowing a few seconds between each addition. Once all that is incorporated, give it all a good scrape with the spatula. This is the time to add any extracts/flavoring and coloring.
Turn the speed to medium and beat for about 8 minutes. It will have a couple of minutes where it looks a little iffy. It’s OK. It will whip right up and get fluffy.
Turn the speed down to the very lowest setting and let it mix for a couple more minutes (or mix gently by hand) to get some of the air out of the mixture.
There ya go. Slather it on. Resist the urge to squirt it straight into your face from the piping bag (I may or may not fail at this from time to time). Save any you have left in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Tips
I’m sure your first reaction is, “OMG, she put raw eggs in this stuff!” Settle down, Beavis. That’s why I stressed using PASTEURIZED egg whites in a carton. They are perfectly safe. If you crack an egg for this recipe, you’re gonna need to switch to a regular SMBC recipe.
Cakes frosted with this hybrid or meringue buttercreams in general are not really meant to be refrigerated. If you do refrigerate, only do it once. Say you are making the cake a day or so ahead of time for something. Take the cake out and let it get back to room temperature. Meringue buttercream cakes can be left at room temperature for 3 days.
Flavors - This mix is pretty forgiving, so you can add quite a bit to it without it breaking. It takes flavor easily, so add a little at a time, tasting as you go. This frosting takes the liqueur concentrates quite nicely. If you do add too much liquid, it will break eventually. This is why you need to add a tad and taste as you go. I do NOT advise incorporating jams or other things that require refrigeration. Don’t fill them with anything that requires refrigeration, either. No cream cheeses, etc. They WILL sour on you and will sour quickly.
Butter and salt. I mix it up. Sometimes I will mix salted and unsalted butter and omit the salt. Sometimes I just use unsalted butter and use that lovely powdered WHITE and UNFLAVORED popcorn salt. Popcorn salt is so finely ground and incorporates so much better. You use less and have better control. If you don’t have it, use plain old salt. Salt is used to balance sweetness. Use your taste buds. If you think it needs a little more salt to cut sweetness, add a little pinch more. Again, this stuff takes flavors easily, so add stuff a little at a time.
Colors. As evidenced by the lovely Pepto Bismol colored cake I made the other day, it also takes on color like a pale prostitute in a makeup store. Go easy with it because you can’t take it out. Also watch your flavorings. They will color it as well.
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