I need help with my buttercream. I used the recipe from Wilton's, including the meringue powder. I have used this recipe for several years without a glitch, until this weekend. I sift the powdered sugar into the KA bowl. When the mixing was done, the powdered sugar had clumped up again, and left the mix tasting like butter. What happened?

The recipe I use is:
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbsps water
1 lb sifted powdered sugar
1 tbsp meringue powder

Hmm....I don't know what went wrong.

I don't ever put meringue powder in mine unless I'm making royal icing; and I don't use water, I've only used milk.

I would suggest trying again......sometimes you just have to get "just the right" amount of ingredients; and sometimes it seems different with each batch you make.

Good Luck!!!

The weird thing is that Saturday night I made a batch and it did the clumping. I thought it was just because I had used a generic brand of powdered sugar. But the second batch I made on Sunday was with C & H. I even tried another batch after that and got the same results, more clumping. The worst part is that this was for a baby shower cake due the next hour.

I have been having the same problem. I use the buttercream recipe with all shortening. It used to turn out perfect every time. Now it seems like every time I make it there are more and more lumps in it. I just don't know what to do. It is very agrivating especially when trying to decorate with a small tip.

Did you taste the sugar, for some reason it sounds like it had to much corn startch in the sugar. I never heard of it happening but you never know if the machinery got messed up. The other thig may be you haven't mixed your butter and crisco enough before adding the sugar, I also mix my meringue powder with my crisco, try that. I hope it helps.

Make sure your butter is at room temperature and be sure to cream the butter and crisco together well before adding the sugar. Hope this helps.

I'm not sure if this is the same thing you're talking about, but I had a similar problem last night. I'm taking the wilton courses again with some friends and I was running late when I made my icing yesterday afternoon for last night's class. I didn't scrape down my bowl between each addition of sugar like I usually do. When I did finally scrape the bowl it was really "stuck" and I think what I scraped back in was all clumpy. I didn't notice it in the icing, but when I was practicing with it my tips kept clogging.

The only other time I've had clumps was when my butter or cream cheese wasn't soft enough. I've also used the really cheap powdered sugar (dh's fault LOL) and had no problems.

Thanks koolaidstains, I think that was the problem. I was rushing to get it made and I just remembered that I never scraped it throughout the process like I usually do. I will have to try making another batch this afternoon and see if that was the problem.

I would say your butter wasn't soft enough. When I make 50/50 I cream the butter first to soften then add the crisco and cream again.

Thanks for eveyone's help. I tried another batch and found that I wasn't letting the shortening and butter cream together long enough. The shortening was staying in little clumps at first so then the powdered sugar was attaching to the clumps. I have made some more batches over the past couple of weeks and they are turing out great again!