Ever since I can remember, I’ve been obsessed with everything cake… and with that, comes buttercream.
Buttercream really is the pièce de résistance of any cake. It can transform it from being ‘just a cake’ to being a delicious delight that’s so beautiful it should be displayed in an art gallery.
The buttercream most of us know is American buttercream, a concoction of whipped butter and icing sugar with maybe a bit of milk, vanilla and salt. This is the buttercream I relied on for years – it’s so easy to make and customise.
But TBH, I can’t remember the last time I made it…
Why I don’t use American buttercream anymore
As I’ve improved my cake decorating skills, I’ve realised American buttercream just doesn’t work for me (and most other cake decorators would agree).
While it’s super simple to make – meaning it’s great for novice bakers – there are two problems I have with American buttercream: taste and texture.
This kind of buttercream consists of just butter and icing sugar, meaning it tastes like…
Butter and icing sugar.
Nothing wrong with that, of course, and there are so many fun ways to elevate it (I’m obsessed with this matcha buttercream ATM), but American buttercream tends to have a slightly grainy texture to it, which makes it look less smooth on a cake.
Nowadays, when I’m piping perfection on a cake, I need a buttercream with a bit more ‘je ne sais quoi’.
READ MORE: 3 really modern spins on buttercream that’ll elevate your baking >
That’s why most cake decorators swear by Swiss meringue buttercream
If you’ve received a cake from a bakery recently and were left wondering what silky, delicious buttercream was covering the cake, I can assure you with a LOT of confidence it was probably Swiss meringue buttercream.
Swiss meringue buttercream is what most hardcore cake decorators swear by – even taste’s senior food editor and resident baking expert (I like to call her my fairy cake mother) Elisa Pietrantonio uses Swiss meringue buttercream for every cake she decorates.
“Swiss meringue buttercream is the GOAT! I pretty much exclusively use that on all my cakes. SMBC holds its shape well and can be easily coloured and flavoured. It’s the buttercream MVP.”
There are several recipes on site where Elisa showcases the versatility and magic of Swiss meringue buttercream. Two of my favourites include her incredible ice-cream cone cake with pink and white Swiss meringue stripes and this adult-only strawberry lime margarita cake, where she flavoured the buttercream with lime and tequila, and created a fun fault line effect.
Credit: Brett Stevens
But what exactly is Swiss meringue buttercream?
The beauty of Swiss meringue buttercream is that it only uses three very simple ingredients: butter, caster sugar and egg whites.
Egg whites might not be an ingredient you’d usually associate with buttercream, but the egg whites are really what make this buttercream so special.
Swiss meringue buttercream starts by making, well, a Swiss meringue. This is done by whisking together egg whites and caster sugar in a bowl over a pan of simmering water until the sugar has dissolved and the egg whites are hot to the touch (but definitely not cooked).
This hot mixture is then transferred to a stand mixer and whisked until stiff peaks form. This meringue is now safe to consume and can be used for topping desserts, but by adding butter, you get the iconic Swiss meringue buttercream.
Bit by bit, soft butter is added to the meringue while the mixer is still going. Eventually, this mixture emulsifies and turns into the silkiest, glossiest buttercream you’ll ever make.
Why Swiss meringue buttercream is better than American buttercream
By dissolving the sugar in the first step, creating a silky meringue and adding soft butter to the meringue, you get a buttercream that doesn’t have the grainy texture of American buttercream.
This allows you to cover and pipe on cakes super smoothly, without too many air bubbles. With this buttercream, you can create cakes that look quite literally picture-perfect.
It’s easy to customise Swiss meringue buttercream, too
As Elisa explained, Swiss meringue buttercream is incredibly stable and holds its shape well, making it ideal for intricate piping, and it can easily be coloured and flavoured with practically anything.
In my time, I’ve flavoured Swiss meringue buttercream with plenty of ingredients like melted (and cooled) chocolate, jams, nut butters, and flavoured powders like matcha.
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How to make the best Swiss meringue buttercream
Our Swiss meringue buttercream recipe is super simple to make, but there are a few things you can do to make sure you make the best Swiss meringue buttercream.
Use a stand mixer
Swiss meringue buttercream requires a lot of whipping. A lot.
You need to whip up a meringue, and then you need to whip in the butter and then let the entire mixture whip until it’s emulsified. This can take over 10 minutes, so hand whisking is a big NO, and I wouldn’t even recommend a hand mixer (but do what you’ve got to do).
Room temperature butter
It’s really important that room temperature butter (or as I like to say, very squidgy butter) is used.
Cold butter will not be able to whip into meringue and emulsify, which can leave you with a split meringue. Plus, butter that’s soft will ensure your buttercream has fewer air bubbles – producing a smoother buttercream.
Keep whipping!
When adding the butter to the meringue, the mixture usually can look curdled, but don’t fret!
Keep that mixer on high, and the mixture will eventually come together into what we now know as the silkiest, glossiest buttercream EVER.
READ NEXT: Italian, French, Swiss: What’s the difference between these meringue types? >
Dining and Cooking