Buttercream is a type of icing

Icing (food)

Icing, also called frosting in the United States, is a sweet often creamy glaze made of sugar with a liquid such as water or milk, that is often enriched with ingredients such as butter, egg whites, cream cheese, or flavorings and is used to cover or decorate baked goods, such as cakes or cookies...

 or filling, used inside cakes, as a coating, and as decoration

Cake decorating

Cake decorating is one of the sugar arts that uses icing or frosting and other edible decorative elements to make otherwise plain cakes more visually interesting...

. In its simplest form, it is made by creaming

Creaming (food)

Creaming is used to refer to several different culinary processes.- In baking :Creaming, in baking, is the technique of blending ingredients — usually granulated sugar — together with a solid fat like shortening or butter. The technique is most often used in making buttercream, cake...

 butter

Butter

Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...

 with powdered sugar

Powdered sugar

Powdered sugar, also known as confectioners' sugar or icing sugar, is very fine sugar. When intended for home use, it typically contains a small amount of anti-caking agent....

, although other fat

Fat

Fats consist of a wide group of compounds that are generally soluble in organic solvents and generally insoluble in water. Chemically, fats are triglycerides, triesters of glycerol and any of several fatty acids. Fats may be either solid or liquid at room temperature, depending on their structure...

s can be used, such as margarine

Margarine

Margarine , as a generic term, can indicate any of a wide range of butter substitutes, typically composed of vegetable oils. In many parts of the world, the market share of margarine and spreads has overtaken that of butter...

 or lard

Lard

Lard is pig fat in both its rendered and unrendered forms. Lard was commonly used in many cuisines as a cooking fat or shortening, or as a spread similar to butter. Its use in contemporary cuisine has diminished because of health concerns posed by its saturated-fat content and its often negative...

. Colorings and flavorings are often added, such as cocoa powder or vanilla extract

Vanilla extract

Vanilla extract is a solution containing the flavor compound vanillin. Pure vanilla extract is made by macerating and percolating vanilla beans in a solution of ethyl alcohol and water. In the United States, in order for a vanilla extract to be called pure, the U.S...

. Buttercreams are a popular topping for cupcake

Cupcake

A cupcake is a small cake designed to serve one person, frequently baked in a small, thin paper or aluminum cup...

s, sponge cake

Sponge cake

Sponge cake is a cake based on flour , sugar, and eggs, sometimes leavened with baking powder which has a firm, yet well aerated structure, similar to a sea sponge. A sponge cake may be produced by either the batter method, or the foam method. Typicially the batter method in the U.S. is known as a...

s, butter cake

Butter cake

A butter cake is a cake in which one of the main ingredients is butter. Butter cakes consist of taking the most basic of ingredients butter, sugar, eggs, flour, and a leavening agent and transforming them into a baked good....

s and other dessert

Dessert

In cultures around the world, dessert is a course that typically comes at the end of a meal, usually consisting of sweet food. The word comes from the French language as dessert and this from Old French desservir, "to clear the table" and "to serve." Common Western desserts include cakes, biscuits,...

s.

Whether buttercream with no butter or a butter

Butter

Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...

 equivalent can rightly called buttercream is debated among bakers, pastry chefs, and cake decorators.

Simple buttercream

Simple buttercream (also known as American buttercream, decorator's buttercream or decorator's frosting) is made by creaming together butter

Butter

Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...

, margarine

Margarine

Margarine , as a generic term, can indicate any of a wide range of butter substitutes, typically composed of vegetable oils. In many parts of the world, the market share of margarine and spreads has overtaken that of butter...

 or vegetable shortening, and powdered sugar

Powdered sugar

Powdered sugar, also known as confectioners' sugar or icing sugar, is very fine sugar. When intended for home use, it typically contains a small amount of anti-caking agent....

 to the desired consistency and lightness. Typically twice as much sugar (by weight) as butter. Small quantities of whole egg

Egg (food)

Eggs are laid by females of many different species, including birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish, and have probably been eaten by mankind for millennia. Bird and reptile eggs consist of a protective eggshell, albumen , and vitellus , contained within various thin membranes...

s, egg whites, egg yolks, or milk may be included. Flavorings, in the form of extracts or oils, may also be added. Some recipes call for non-fat milk solids

Powdered milk

Powdered milk is a manufactured dairy product made by evaporating milk to dryness. One purpose of drying milk is to preserve it; milk powder has a far longer shelf life than liquid milk and does not need to be refrigerated, due to its low moisture content. Another purpose is to reduce its bulk for...

.

Due to a high sugar content, the frosting

Icing (food)

Icing, also called frosting in the United States, is a sweet often creamy glaze made of sugar with a liquid such as water or milk, that is often enriched with ingredients such as butter, egg whites, cream cheese, or flavorings and is used to cover or decorate baked goods, such as cakes or cookies...

 can form a thin crust, which prevents sticking

Adhesion

Adhesion is any attraction process between dissimilar molecular species that can potentially bring them in close contact. By contrast, cohesion takes place between similar molecules....

. Compared to other types of buttercreams, simple buttercream has a high proportion of sugar content, making it the sweetest of all the buttercreams.

Meringue-based buttercream

There are three types of meringue

Meringue

Meringue is a type of dessert made from whipped egg whites and sugar, occasionally some recipes may call for adding an acid such as cream of tartar or a small amount of vinegar and a binding agent such as cornstarch found in icing sugar which may be added in addition to the corn starch which...

-based buttercreams. Each is called after the type of meringue used. The two cooked versions are Italian meringue buttercream and Swiss meringue buttercream.

Italian meringue is prepared by the addition of sugar syrup made by heating sugar and water (and sometimes the addition of glucose or corn syrup to stabilize the crystal structure) to the soft-ball stage

Candy

Candy, specifically sugar candy, is a confection made from a concentrated solution of sugar in water, to which flavorings and colorants are added...

 (115°C, 240 °F) to egg whites whipped to soft peaks. The sugar syrup cooks the egg whites, heating them well past the 60°C (140°F) recommended in the USA to kill salmonella and any other potentially harmful bacteria. The syrup and egg white mixture is then whipped until cooled to around 38°C (100°F).

Swiss Meringue is prepared by cooking the egg whites and sugar together in a bowl placed on a pot of boiling water. The mixture is whisked while it cooks until the temperature of the mix reaches 60°C. The mixture is then removed from the heat and whipped at high speed until it forms stiff peaks and has cooled.

French meringue is prepared by whipping egg whites, cream of tartar, and caster sugar until stiff, glossy peaks are formed. French Meringue is usually used in recipes in which the prepared meringue is piped or spread onto a sheet pan and then cooked in a slow (low temp.) oven. When used as a base for buttercream, it remains uncooked. Because of the health concerns in the USA surrounding the consumption of raw eggs, the use of French meringue as the base for buttercream is rare there. In other countries, uncooked meringue is more common.

No matter which of the three types of meringue are used as the base, once it is prepared, butter and flavorings (extracts or oils) are then beaten into the meringue to transform the meringue into buttercream. Meringue-based buttercreams are light and creamy in texture and balanced between sweetness and richness. They are also the easiest to work with when icing and decorating cakes.

French buttercream

French buttercream is prepared in the same way as Italian meringue-based buttercream, except egg yolks (some versions use whole eggs) are used in place of the egg whites--a hot sugar syrup which has reached the soft-ball stage

Candy

Candy, specifically sugar candy, is a confection made from a concentrated solution of sugar in water, to which flavorings and colorants are added...

 is beaten into the egg yolks which have been beaten until they are thick and pale yellow. The syrup and egg yolk mixture is further whipped until it has formed a light foam and has cooled. Butter and flavorings (extracts or oils) are then whipped in. This icing is very rich, smooth, and light. French buttercream tends to melt faster than other buttercreams due to the high content of fat from the egg yolks and butter. This type of buttercream is best suited for use as a filling or an icing, but not for decorations.

Custard-based buttercream

Custard-based buttercream (also known as German buttercream) is prepared by beating together a thick type of custard called pastry cream and softened butter, and may be additionally sweetened with extra confectioners' sugar

Powdered sugar

Powdered sugar, also known as confectioners' sugar or icing sugar, is very fine sugar. When intended for home use, it typically contains a small amount of anti-caking agent....

. In the Russian variant, the custard usually has a flour

Flour

Flour is a powder which is made by grinding cereal grains, other seeds or roots . It is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many cultures, making the availability of adequate supplies of flour a major economic and political issue at various times throughout history...

 or starch

Starch

Starch or amylum is a carbohydrate consisting of a large number of glucose units joined together by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by all green plants as an energy store...

 added for extra thickening. Like French buttercream, this icing is very rich and smooth and is best suited for use as a filling or an icing, but not for decorations.

Rolled buttercream

Most often used for icing sugar cookies, rolled buttercream is prepared by mixing together a large amount of powdered sugar with vegetable shortening, glucose or corn syrup, and flavorings (extracts or oils). So much powdered sugar is needed that it cannot all be incorporated using a spoon or mixer and must be kneaded in. Once all of the ingredients are combined, an icing dough is formed that can be rolled out and cut into shapes. Rolled buttercream is similar to fondant

Fondant

Fondant is one of several kinds of icing-like substance used to decorate or sculpt pastries. The word, in French, means "melting", coming from the same root as "foundry" in English....

, but with a softer texture and less elasticity, it cannot be rolled as thin and so is not good for covering cakes or molding flowers or figures.

Choice of fat

The choice of fat in a buttercream frosting relates closely to the stability. Often, some amount of vegetable shortening is combined with butter for better consistency and resistance to heat.

Butter

Sweet cream unsalted butter is traditionally the fat

Fat

Fats consist of a wide group of compounds that are generally soluble in organic solvents and generally insoluble in water. Chemically, fats are triglycerides, triesters of glycerol and any of several fatty acids. Fats may be either solid or liquid at room temperature, depending on their structure...

 of choice for buttercreams, as evidenced by the name. Butter provides a more delicate texture and superior flavor

Flavor

Flavor or flavour is the sensory impression of a food or other substance, and is determined mainly by the chemical senses of taste and smell. The "trigeminal senses", which detect chemical irritants in the mouth and throat as well as temperature and texture, are also very important to the overall...

 and mouthfeel

Mouthfeel

Mouthfeel is a product's physical and chemical interaction in the mouth, an aspect of food rheology. It is a concept used in many areas related to the testing and evaluating of foodstuffs, such as wine-tasting and rheology. It is evaluated from initial perception on the palate, to first bite,...

 (texture) when compared to vegetable shortening

Crisco

Crisco is a brand of shortening produced by the J. M. Smucker Co. popular in the United States. Introduced in June 1911 by Procter & Gamble, it was the first shortening to be made entirely of vegetable oil...

. Butter melts at a lower temperature, though, making it more difficult to use. The coloring provided by the butter is slightly off-white in the final frosting.

Margarine

Hydrogenated vegetable shortenings

Shortening

Shortening is any fat that is solid at room temperature and used to make crumbly pastry. The reason it is called shortening is because it prevents cross-linkage between gluten molecules. Cross linking is what causes doughs to be sticky. Seeing as cake is not meant to be sticky, shortening is used...

 and margarine

Margarine

Margarine , as a generic term, can indicate any of a wide range of butter substitutes, typically composed of vegetable oils. In many parts of the world, the market share of margarine and spreads has overtaken that of butter...

 have become popular ingredients in commercial icings during the 20th century because they are cheaper and more stable at room temperature, and therefore easier to work with than butter. The whiter color is also favored, especially for wedding cakes. However, shortening does not dissolve in the mouth like butter, leading to a heavy, greasy feel inside of the mouth. The flavor of the buttercream is also not as intense. The resulting product raises health concerns due to the presence of trans fat

Trans fat

Trans fat is the common name for unsaturated fat with trans-isomer fatty acid. Because the term refers to the configuration of a double carbon-carbon bond, trans fats are sometimes monounsaturated or polyunsaturated, but never saturated....

s in hydrogenated vegetable oils. Many margarines are virtually free of trans fats but in the US partially hydrogenated margarine is common.

Additions

Flavorings are commonly present in a buttercream frosting. Vanilla

Vanilla

Vanilla is a flavoring derived from orchids of the genus Vanilla, primarily from the Mexican species, Flat-leaved Vanilla . The word vanilla derives from the Spanish word "", little pod...

 and chocolate

Chocolate

Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC...

 are the most common additions, with coffee

Coffee

Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...

 also a popular flavoring. Clear vanilla extract

Vanilla extract

Vanilla extract is a solution containing the flavor compound vanillin. Pure vanilla extract is made by macerating and percolating vanilla beans in a solution of ethyl alcohol and water. In the United States, in order for a vanilla extract to be called pure, the U.S...

 can be used to create a lighter-colored frosting. For chocolate buttercreams, cocoa powder or melted chocolate is added during the creaming stage or towards the end. Liqueur

Liqueur

A liqueur is an alcoholic beverage that has been flavored with fruit, herbs, nuts, spices, flowers, or cream and bottled with added sugar. Liqueurs are typically quite sweet; they are usually not aged for long but may have resting periods during their production to allow flavors to marry.The...

s or extract

Extract

An extract is a substance made by extracting a part of a raw material, often by using a solvent such as ethanol or water. Extracts may be sold as tinctures or in powder form....

s, such as almond

Almond

The almond , is a species of tree native to the Middle East and South Asia. Almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree...

 or peppermint

Peppermint

Peppermint is a hybrid mint, a cross between the watermint and spearmint . The plant, indigenous to Europe, is now widespread in cultivation throughout all regions of the world...

, can also be added. For meringue-type and French buttercreams, the sugar syrup can be prepared with finely grated citrus

Citrus

Citrus is a common term and genus of flowering plants in the rue family, Rutaceae. Citrus is believed to have originated in the part of Southeast Asia bordered by Northeastern India, Myanmar and the Yunnan province of China...

 zest

Zest (ingredient)

Zest is a food ingredient that is prepared by scraping or cutting from the outer, colorful skin of citrus fruits such as lemon, orange, citron, and lime. Zest is used to add flavor to foods....

 or liquids such as juice for increased flavor. Food coloring can be added easily to any buttercream.

Handling

Most buttercreams can be left at room temperature

Room temperature

-Comfort levels:The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers has listings for suggested temperatures and air flow rates in different types of buildings and different environmental circumstances. For example, a single office in a building has an occupancy ratio per...

 without melting. Buttercreams made with shortening and a higher sugar content withstand warmer temperatures better than those made solely with butter. Cooling buttercream will cause it to harden. If a frosted cake is cooled, the buttercream may crack.

For French buttercream, it is better to leave the cakes with butter cream covered in plastic wrap in the refrigerator. Remove them 10 or 15 minutes before serving or longer to mitigate the chill.

When using buttercream to frost a cake, it is best to work with it when it is soft and spreadable. Icings may be stored, covered, in the refrigerator

Refrigerator

A refrigerator is a common household appliance that consists of a thermally insulated compartment and a heat pump that transfers heat from the inside of the fridge to its external environment so that the inside of the fridge is cooled to a temperature below the ambient temperature of the room...

 for several days. Before use, the icing needs to sit outside the fridge so it can come up to room temperature. If it must be warmed quickly or if it curdles, it can be heated over warm water (such as a bain marie or double boiler

Double boiler

A double boiler, also known as a bain Marie, is a stove top apparatus used to cook delicate sauces such as beurre blanc, to melt chocolate without burning or seizing, or cook any other thick liquid or porridge that would normally burn if not stirred constantly. It consists of an upper vessel...

) and beaten until it becomes smooth again. Avoid directly heating the buttercream.