Step-by-Step Swiss Meringue Buttercream {Simple & Stress-free}
Silky. Smooth. Elegant. The only buttercream you will ever need! Come with me as I show you how to take the stress out of making my favourite, luscious, and perfectly sweet, Swiss Meringue Buttercream!
Swiss Meringue Buttercream (SMBC) is a type of meringue-based buttercream that involves gently cooking egg whites with sugar, whipping them into a meringue, then stabilising with butter to form a rich, silky buttercream. This type of buttercream is not overly sweet, easily pipe-able, and wonderfully versatile for any cake/cupcake! One batch is enough to generously frost a layer cake, or at least 24 cupcakes, and freezes well in an air-tight freezer bag for up to 6 months! You’ll want to have SMBC on hand for every cake/cupcake you make – trust me!
5 Reasons why you should make Swiss Meringue Buttercream
- It is smooth, luxurious, and delicate
- Requires 5 ingredients to make
- Is a sturdy frosting for layer cakes
- Easily makes buttercream flowers
- And…can be made while multi-tasking! *amazing, I know!
While there may be a few extra steps to making a meringue based buttercream, they can be mastered with a few simple tips/tricks! After making hundreds of batches of SMBC, I have been through the struggles of creating buttercream that is too runny, too curdled, too thick and have learned that there is always a way to troubleshoot!! No Swiss Meringue Buttercream should ever go to waste, let me show you how!
To make my stress-free Swiss Meringue Buttercream, you will need:
- Egg Whites (separation of egg whites from yolks is easiest when the eggs are straight out of the refrigerator! No need for warming to room temperature.)
- Sugar (granulated or caster)
- Unsalted Butter (allows you to control the salt content of your buttercream)
- Vanilla Extract (or vanilla bean paste!)
- Salt
Feeling nervous about making Swiss Meringue Buttercream for the first time? Don’t worry, I was too. Here are 5 of your most common questions answered!
Must I use fresh egg whites or can I use egg whites from a carton?
I recommend using fresh egg whites as they tend to whip into stiff peaks quite a bit better and quicker than carton egg whites. Having said that, if you have time on your hands and a carton of egg whites in your fridge, this recipe CAN work with carton egg whites too – it will just take at least twice as long for each whipping stage.
How do I know if my egg whites are cooked?
I recommend using a candy thermometer while whisking over the double boiler. The egg white mixture will become frothy after a few minutes and once it reaches 160F (71C) it is ready to remove from the heat. If you don’t have a candy thermometer, another simple way to check readiness is by rubbing a small bit of egg white mixture between your fingers and if it is hot to the touch and you no longer feel any sugar granules between your fingers, the mixture is ready.
What are stiff peaks?
An easy way to know if your meringue has stiff peaks is by stopping the mixture, removing the whisk and observing if the meringue remains still or continues to droop/curve down. Stiff peaks are achieved when the meringue holds its shape and peaks do not fall. If you notice that the mixture is not achieving this consistency after over 10 minutes of mixing, consider whether there may have been any oil/grease/egg yolk introduced into the whipping process, this may be affecting the meringue’s ability to achieve stiff peaks.
Does it matter if I use unsalted or salted butter?
The short answer – No! I recommend using unsalted butter as this gives you the best control of the salt levels of your buttercream. Salt is ultimately what is going to enhance the sweetness of your buttercream and provide that rich, perfectly sweet and delicate flavour. Try both and see what your palate likes best!
What do I do if my buttercream curdles?
Don’t worry! Believe it or not the curdling of the buttercream texture often occurs just before the the mixture turns into a sturdy consistency. Sometimes with fresh egg whites you may not notice this curdling step however if you are using carton egg whites, after adding all of the butter to the meringue, the consistency will remain curdled for an extended period of time. Don’t give up at this point! Simply continue to mix on low speed and leave your mixer to do its job. Come back in 10 minutes to reassess, and continue.
Let’s make some Swiss Meringue Buttercream!
Start by cleaning the bowl of an electric stand mixer thoroughly to ensure all oily debris has been removed! (this is a VERY important step). Dry bowl completely.
Separate egg whites from egg yolks. Add egg whites and sugar to your large clean bowl. Whisk egg whites with sugar. Place bowl over a saucepan filled with no more than 2 inches of water, simmering over medium heat (Note: this step creates a double boiler – the bowl should not be touching the water, it is the steam that will heat the egg whites).
Whisk sugar and egg whites, until mixture is frothy and sugar has dissolved (approximately 5 minutes). You can either feel the texture between your fingers at this point to ensure you can no longer feel sugar grains or check temperature with a candy thermometer – when ready, the temperature of the mixture will read 160F (71C). Remove mixture from heat.
Pheww!! One step done! Time for a deep breath and celebratory treat.
When you’re ready, return the egg white mixture to the stand mixer bowl/reattach clean mixer bowl. Using whisk attachment, beat egg whites on medium-high speed. Beat until glossy, stiff, peaks form and mixture is no longer warm to the touch (~10 minutes). Once bowl and meringue have cooled, replace whisk attachment with a paddle attachment and reduce speed to low.
Begin adding butter (Note: Butter should be left out of the fridge for no longer than 1 hour and still cool to the touch). Add 1 tablespoon of butter at a time, and continue mixing after each addition, until all butter has been added.
Continue mixing on low (this is important to ensure your kitchen does not become covered in buttercream!) Over the next ~10-20 minutes, the mixture will turn from a smooth loose, buttery mixture, to a curdled mixture, and then ultimately to a smooth, sturdy buttercream! It will look visibly thicker and silky (this is what you are looking for!!) **If the mixture remains loose/curdled, just continue to mix! You can walk away with the mixer left running and return to reassess in 10 minutes.
Mmmm….something smells yummy! Stop and smell that buttery sweetness in the air.
Add vanilla extract, and salt. This Swiss Meringue Buttercream is finished when it is thick, creamy, and silky smooth. It will hold its shape very well. Continue to beat for another 3-5 minutes on low speed to remove air bubbles.
We did it!! Time for another deep breath and celebratory dance 🙂
You are now ready to add additional flavourings and/or top your favourite cake/cupcakes!
This Swiss Meringue Buttercream frosting pairs perfectly with vanilla cupcakes, chocolate cupcakes, funfetti cupcakes, and many more!
Enjoy!
Step-by-Step Swiss Meringue Buttercream {Simple & Stress-free}
Ingredients
- 7 Egg Whites (210ml) large
- 2 cups (400g) Granulated Sugar
- 1 1/2 cups (340g) Unsalted Butter
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract/Vanilla bean extract
- 1/2 tsp Salt Kosher or flaked sea salt
Instructions
- Start by cleaning the bowl of an electric stand mixer thoroughly to ensure all oily debris has been removed. Dry bowl completely.
- Separate egg whites from egg yolks. Add egg whites to the clean electric mixer bowl. Add sugar. Whisk egg whites with sugar. Place bowl over a saucepan filled with no more than 2 inches of water, simmering over medium heat (Note: this step creates a double boiler – the bowl should not be touching the water, it is the steam that will heat the egg whites).
- Whisk sugar and egg whites until the mixture is frothy and sugar has dissolved (~5 min). You can either feel the texture between your fingers at this point to ensure you can no longer feel sugar grains or check the temperature with a candy thermometer – when ready, the mixture will be at 160F (71C).
- Return egg white mixture to stand mixer bowl or, if already in a stand mixer bowl, reattach bowl to the mixer. Whisk on medium-high speed. Beat until glossy, stiff, peaks form and mixture is no longer warm to the touch (~10 min).
- Once meringue has cooled, replace whisk attachment with a paddle attachment and reduce mixer speed to low.
- Begin adding butter (Note: Butter should be no more than 1h outside of fridge and still cool to the touch). Add 1 tablespoon of butter at a time. Continue until all butter has been added.
- Continue mixing on low. Over the next 10-20 minutes, the mixture will turn from a smooth, loose mixture, to a curdled mixture, to one that barely pulls away from the bowl, and then ultimately to a smooth, sturdy buttercream! (this is what you are looking for!!) **If you still see a curdled mixture after 20 min of mixing, thats okay! Continue mixing and reassess every 10 min.
- Add vanilla extract/vanilla pean paste, and salt. This Swiss Meringue Buttercream is finished when it is thick, creamy, and silky smooth. It will hold its shape very well. Continue to beat for another 3-5 min on low or fold by hand to remove excess air bubbles.
- This Swiss Meringue Buttercream pairs perfectly with vanilla cupcakes, chocolate cupcakes, funfetti cupcakes, and many more!
- NOTE: Cakes/cupcakes frosted with SMBC can be left at room temperature for 3h, or longer if in a cool room. I recommend keeping desserts in the refrigerator overnight. The buttercream will harden in the fridge however, to return to the same soft/silky consistency as before, simply take cakes/cupcakes out of the fridge at least 1h before serving.
- Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Having difficulty cooling your meringue? I find that you can speed up this process in a pinch by placing ice packs on the sides of the bowl of the mixer as it is running.
- Troubleshooting – Too Thin: If a soupy meringue mixture results, the mixture was likely too warm as the butter was being added. Return the bowl to the refrigerator for 20 minutes to cool down. Rewhip. If still soupy, repeat refrigeration step and reassess.
- Troubleshooting – Too Thick: If the mixture is too cold, just continue to beat the mixture on medium-low until correct consistency is formed.
- The Swiss Meringue Buttercream (SMBC) can be frozen in a tightly sealed freezer bag or air-tight container for up to 6 months. When ready to use, allow frosting to defrost to room temperature and then re-whip using electric mixer (~3-5mins). NOTE: If using SMBC made from carton egg whites, after 1-2min of re-whipping, you will notice that mixture becomes extremely curdled. Don’t panic! Continue to mix. You will need ~20 additional of additional mixing to return mixture to expected consistency. The mixture will slowly become thicker and thicker.
- To make Chocolate SMBC: Melt ~8oz of chocolate (chips or chopped baking chocolate) in a small bowl in the microwave (10-15s increments, stirring after each interval). Once melted, set aside until slightly cooled. Add to prepared vanilla buttercream.
- For other flavourings like peppermint and almond extract – replace vanilla extract and/or add additional flavouring 1/2 tsp at a time until desired flavour is achieved.
- Fun flavourings like Cookie butter, caramel, and jams can also be added to the prepared SMBC until desired flavour is achieved! Just be careful when adding flavourings with a high water content and use as minimal amounts as possible.
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