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Sugarshack's icing and Tips

sugarshack
By: sugarshack
Posted 08/31/09 • Last updated 07/09/07 • 1366 views • 36 comments

Posted by sugarshack

I was asked to post my recipe here so here goes:

Sugarshack's icing and Tips

Ingredients

  • 5 1/2 cups hi ratio shortening ( sweetex) 5 pounds powdered sugar liquid which consists of 1)flavorings and 2) a liquid I make by mixing powdered coffee creamer, one cup to one cup hot water. I make this liquid up a few cups at a time and keep it in the fridge till I need it. Use the liquid hot.

Instructions

  1. I make a big batch in my 5 qt mixer. It gets the level of icing well above the paddle while mixing, and you get very little to no air bubbles in your icing this way. It is important to start with an icing with as little air as possible; so i fill my KA to the rim with this recipe:
  2. mix shortening and liquid first till smooth and creamy. then slowly add a steady stream of PS until it is all incorporated on speed one or 2.
  3. Then I let it go for 5-7-minutes till creamy and smooth on about speed 6.
  4. I ice the tops of my cakes with the open coupler in a pastry bag and give it a quick smoothing with a hot spatuala ( dry, not wet). I then ice the sdies regualry, then use my bench scraper to smooth out the sides. after that I pull the excess icing along the top edge in toward the middle of the cake . I get down eye level with it to make sure that top edge is level all along and not waving. i then use viva with my hands, then viva with a fondant smoother and then computer paper with the smoother to give the final smoothing; which really is the magic touch.
  5. I hope that helped you some!!! Its hard to explain without seeing it!

Comments (36)

littlejewel 12/23/09 at 4:52pm
I have heard a lot about this recipe. Thank you for posting. I will be sure to try it.
dazmae 12/24/09 at 5:52pm
I love, love, love this recipe...the best!!!
deeann11 1/18/10 at 5:06pm
where do i buy sweetex in Canada - and how is it different from normal shortening! i would love to get the look that most seem to get with this recipe of buttercream - ( and lots of practice) LOL
Rosie2 1/22/10 at 10:26am
Hi...I tried this recipe and my buttercream wasn't smooth :-( it had air bubbles and it's not smooth at all :-( however, my KA is only 4qt and I tried to adjust, but maybe I didn't use the proper ratio....anyone has the measurements for a 4qt KA??
Esalota 1/26/10 at 12:22pm
i use this for the first time when i did a baby butt cake, and used the tip to crumb coat with a thin coat while the cake is slightly warm, the leave it set. what a difference. when i frosted the rounds and smoothed them down, i almost didn't put the fondant on it. years ago i remember asking a woman how she frosted so smooth and without crumbs, what she told me was one heck of a lot of work and way too much frosting. it is less greasy, and i've been told it doesn't taste as sweet. but to me it is too sweet. i really don't like over sweet things. and when i decided to make this, i had no powdered coffee creamer, so i used carnation evaporated milk. came out good. thank you so much for sharing and sharing the tips.
nmrollins 2/1/10 at 5:42pm
does this recipe need to be refrig?
amyoungbl00d5 2/15/10 at 1:02pm
If you need more clarity..you can go to youtube and watcher her make it. I found the video under: how to make buttercream frosting.
emjay83 3/6/10 at 12:39am
Rosie2: I made this in my 4 qt. KA, and it came out pretty well -- much smoother than other BC I have used. (Would probably have been even better if I had used hi-ratio shortening, but didn't have any available.) I adjusted the recipe down to just over 4 cups shortening, and 4 lbs. PS, both measured by weight. I added the liquid a little at a time, and ended up using 16 Tbs. total to make the consistency I was trying to achieve. Keep playing with it, and definitely watch the video; it's a big help. Good luck!
AdorableCakes 4/13/10 at 10:27am
Has anyone experienced the icing getting a bubble under the icing. Never had this with shortening w/ transfat. It is bothering me since I purchased quite a bit of sweetex.
vandru10 4/25/10 at 11:40pm
where can i find sweetex?
deeann11 4/29/10 at 1:07pm
I can not find sweetex in Canada ( at least the small town where i live) but i use no name shortening with at least 4g of saturated fat per 2 tsp (10g) . It makes a noticeable difference to me!
zgreenwood 5/23/10 at 11:26am
Does anyone know if this can be frozen? I want to use this on an ice cream cake and want to make sure it won't affect the way the icing behaves.
dacash 5/26/10 at 2:29pm
Approx how much liquid is needed?
sugarshack 5/30/10 at 11:05pm
about 14-16 tbs liquid total and yes u can freeze it!
shearpamela 6/3/10 at 6:17am
Can liquid flavored creamers be used in place of the powdered and hot water mixture? If so does that alter the refrigeration needs?
Shannellr 7/16/10 at 8:44am
I'm in New Mexico and it appears they've taken away all the trans fat shortenings. The generic brands I can find with 1 or 2 grams of it, but where do you buy Sweetex? This is also a huge batch so can it be halved? And does it crust well?
pumpkinpie1958 9/5/10 at 7:05pm
Where do you buy sweetex shortening? Explain what KA is? Thank you, Susan
workathome 10/6/10 at 1:57pm
KA means Kitchen Aid.
michellem79 11/5/10 at 11:49pm
I saw the video on youtube and really want to give this a try. I do have a couple of questions though. If I don't have the wedding bouquet flavoring what can I use in it's place? Would vanilla extract work? Will crisco work in the place of the high ratio shortening? When mixing the hot water and powdered coffee creamer, I am to use equal parts of each? And finally, is this a crusting buttercream? I know I have lots of questions, so thank you for any help you can offer!
Passion4Cake 12/5/10 at 7:15pm
I am guessing this is a crusting BC because they use the Viva method to smooth it. Also, the other post called Sugarshack Buttercream Icing (http://cakecentral.com/recipes/5313/sugarshacks-buttercream-icing) has the info on the coffee creamer - it is equal parts water & creamer and it is supposed to be warm when you use it. Thanks for posting all of these tips! I am looking forward to trying this icing as I tend to have trouble with air in my BC and it drives me nuts!
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