Anybody know if I can half the powdered sugar in buttercream and still be able to decorate with it? I have a customer who has several kid's birthdays in the next month and wants a less sweet buttercream. She says her kids don't eat sweets very much and they won't like it. I asked her what kind of icing they normally eat and she said Ducan Hines out of a can!

Since I am not icing a cake with Duncan Hines yucky frosting, what are my other options? I have only ever used buttercream. She ruled out cream cheese and chocolate too.

Is it time for me to learn how to make IMBC or SMBC???? Are these less sweet tasting?

The meringue icings are a definite maybe for you.

Bronwen uses buttermilk in her buttercream--I haven't tried it myself.

Tell Mom to go with cheesecake or something that can go uniced like flourless chocolate. So what about ganache maybe?

Less sweet icing thoughts for you.

2 sticks butter
3 cups powder sugar
1 tsp vanilla

easy works great and can be easily increased.

you can add more sugar if you need it stiffer but i have never had any problems with it. It is not too sweet, either, my husbnad would eat it on everything if i'd let him.

here is my favorite buttercream recipe. I had been looking for a new less sweet, less grease tasting buttercream and this was sent to me. I love it. I add more meringue powder for more crusting.

Best Buttercream Recipe
Shared by Serenatea


6 Cup recipe ~ makes enough for 1 9 in 4 layer cake plus decorations or 9 x 13 w/decorations

11/2 C. Crisco Shortening (hi-ratio can be used)
2 sticks butter (16 Tbsp), slightly soft but not mushy (I use unsalted)
1/4 to 1/2 C heavy whipping cream
2 tsp Butter or vanilla extract
2 lbs (8 cups) powdered sugar, sifted (measure then sift)
2 TBSP meringue powder, optional for crusting

Beat the shortening until smooth, add the butter and beat together until smooth and light and fluffy. Add smaller amount of heavy cream indicated and the vanilla and mix well. Add HALF the powdered sugar and mix for 5 minutes on low-med speed. Add remaining sugar and mix well. Add more cream or powdered sugar if necessary to adjust for consistency. For fluffier BC beat on low-med speed for about another 10 min. For a super smooth (not fluffy) BC dont beat longer than 5 min. This BC will be whiter when beaten longer. **** ( You can use wilton whitener to get it white)

VARIATIONS: ~~~~~~~~~

ALMOND or CITRUS FLAVORS ~~~

Use 1 tsp of regular vanilla PLUS 1/2 tsp of almond, lemon, or orange extracts. PLUS 1 or more tsp orange, lemon or lime peel to match the extract.

CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM: ~~~~~

With the 6 cups Crisco recipe: Beat in 4 squares melted and cooled semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate **(remove 2 TBSP butter) ** with the butter and shortening. Beat until light and fluffy. Replace 3 TBSP powdered sugar with 3 TBSP Hershey's special dark cocoa powder for a dark buttercream color or cocoa powder, natural or dutch-processed for a lighter BC color. (Sift the cocoa powder after measuring and blend in with the first cup of PS). You may need slightly more whipping cream for consistency.

Hope this helps.

Thanks, I plan to play around with some of these suggestions this week.

Can anyone recommend a good IMBC or SMBC recipe for someone who has never made it before? It sounds complicated from what I read in my Slyvia Weinstock book, and I don't always trust her recipes.

This is, by far, my most requested recipe for icing:

1 cup whole milk
2 TBSP. flour

Whisk together flour and milk; bring to boil over medium heat, whisking constantly. Boil until thickened, about five minutes. Cool to lukewarm.

In bowl of electric mixer, beat together two sticks unsalted butter, 1 cup powdered sugar, and 1 tsp. vanilla. Add cooled milk mixture and beat until light and fluffy.

This is NOT a pure white buttercream, due to the butter content. However, you can add room temp lemon curd, body temp melted chocolate, extracts, etc. to it for different flavors.

I made the Whipped Cream Buttercream from the recipe section here last week, and it's my new favorite. It is outstanding!

Whimsical Bakehouse butter cream is da bomb
EVERYONE loves it....its light and airy, kind of whipped feeling to it

I'm with foxymomma521. The Whipped Cream Buttercream is to die for! It doesn't crust very well, but if you put the iced cake in the fridge for a little while you can use viva on it to smooth. I think this recipe is so under recognized!

I've been told that using salted butter decreases the level of sweetness. So I use one stick of salted and one stick of unsalted....I can't really tell the difference. Maybe using all unsalted will make the difference??? I dunno.......

I searched google and found this:

Whimsical Bake House Buttercream

In mixer bowl, stir together:

6 cups powdered sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

Using whip attachment, add and whip on low speed:

1 cup boiling water (3/4 cup on hot days)

Whip until smooth and is cool.

Add and whip until smooth again:

2 3/4 cup hi-ratio shortening or regular vegetable shortening
6oz (1 1/2 sticks) butter; slightly chilled and cut into 1" pieces

Turn up mixer to medium-high. Whip until double in volume and is light and fluffy. About 10-20 minutes. recipe will almost fill a 5qt mixer bowl when done.

Makes 9 1/2 cups

For chocolate buttercream exchange 1 cup of powdered sugar for powdered cocoa.

if you use 1/8 tsp of salt to your frosting, this will make it less sweet.
Hope it helps.

Thanks brandywine cakes!

I already put salt in my buttercream so at this point I need a new direction.

I like Swiss Meringue BC alot, not very sweet at all. Some think it is too buttery, maybe a touch, but it is not grainy at all just fluffy and yummy.

6 cups conf. sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

Add one cup of boiling water
whip untill smooth
Let this cool
(I put the bowl in the fridge to speed up the process)

3 cups hi ratio shortening (I use sweetex, the recipe says you can use regular but I have never gotten the same results)
1 and 1/2 sticks of butter, chilled
Once you get all the shortening and butter added, you need to whip this for about 15 to 20 minutes...the icing will double in volume, filling a 5qt mixing bowl
I love this stuff and so deos everyone I make it for...like whipped cream almost, but stable

According to the butter I have. Salted butter has 720mg of salt per stick. One Teaspoon of kosher salt has 1120mg of salt. So you are at 64% of a Teaspoon of salt in per stick. That's alot of salt!



Unsalted butter of course has 0mg of salt.

I no longer make regular buttercream with crisco and powdered sugar, but when did, I would always add at least a teaspoon of salt and it was still too sweet for me, my friends and family.

Allie73, I use a very similar recipe to yours except that I use 4 tbs of flour instead of two, and I use shortening and butter flavor instead of butter. I also use 1 cup of regular sugar instead of powdered sugar, but I'd like to try it with powdered sugar. I'm thinking then I won't have to beat it quite so long. With the regular sugar you have to beat it for quite a while until the sugar completely dissolves. How long do you beat YOUR recipe? Also, have you doubled your recipe before? If so, how did it come out?

I'm with you on this one. I just LOVE this recipe. Extra steps I've added that I think help this recipe is I use a blender for a minute or so and blend up the milk and flour really well. That helps to completely incorporate the flour into the milk. When it's done cooking, I immediately put it in a bowl. I've heard people say to continue to stir it in the bowl so a "skin" doesn't form, but I haven't had much luck with that, and I don't feel like stirring forever. So what I do is just pour it in a bowl and let it cool. Then I quickly peel off the "skin" taking as little of the "custard" underneath as possible when I'm ready to add it to the shortening and sugar. This way I don't end up with any tiny lumps.

I find that this recipe lasts literally for DAYS and DAYS on the counter. In fact, I made a batch just for that very purpose: To see how long it would last. I tasted it a lot over the days. I tasted and tasted! Other than the outside layer becoming slightly less tasteful, the frosting was just fine. Amazing!

It also takes color very well, and sprinkles don't "bleed" their color onto it.

I'd be very interested in hearing any tips you have to add as well! Thanks!

To the OP: If you haven't tried this recipe yet, I hope you really give it a shot. It's delicious and light!

Definitely recommend SMBC for you. When you do it right, you don't taste a bunch of butter. Frankly, all of those receipes for BC that use PS, are just sickly sickly sweet to me. I could eat spoonfuls of SMBC all day long and never get all wigged out on a sugar rush!

I'm definitely going to try the SMBC and probably one of the other recipes...either the whipped or the Whimsical Bakehouse one. Some of the recipes seem to have just as much powdered sugar as what my buttercream has though.

I still can't believe someone doesn't like buttercream. This is the first time in ten years I have come across this situation. People are always saying they can't eat any other icing now that they have had my buttercream.

I guess everyone's taste buds are different, and apparently mine have no limit when it comes to sugar!

Thanks for all the help guys!

mellee - I wish I could give you a more scientific answer, but I beat mine until it looks right - no curdles, nice and light and fluffy. I love this recipe. It's rich, delicious, and smooth without the fuss of hot sugar syrup and egg whites.

I'm officially stressing! I made the SMBC and the Whipped Buttercream Frosting and my family didn't like the taste of either one!!!



I will try the one with flour tomorrow and maybe the whimiscal bakehouse recipe. Any other suggestions?

Do you think if I made regular buttercream with half of the powdered sugar I could decorate with it? I'm afraid it will slide off of the cake!

I add a TBSP lemon juice to mine to cut the sweet.Everyone loves it

Don't stress! It takes a while to find the perfect icing. I've been looking for a long time and I still haven't found it, but I'm getting close. I've never made regular buttercream with half the ps, but I wouldn't think you'd get good results. However, you have nothing to loose to try it. If it doesn't turn out, you can always add the rest of the powdered sugar in and save the buttercream for another cake.

You said that your family didn't like either the WCBC or SMBC, but would your customer? If they like the less sweet icings, I can't imagine that they wouldn't like either of those choices. It sounds like you and your family have an incredible sweet tooth!