julia, the recipe i use has less butter and much more flavoring than many. its actually also swiss so the method is a tad different, but same outcome. its delicious, and i think, easier.

http://www.cakecentral.com/cake_recipe-6927-1-Very-Vanilla-Swiss-Meringue-Buttercream.html

You know what... I'm probably the only weird one around here, but you know what I found??

I only like it cold, straight from the fridge. I kept the bowl in there and when it's cold and hard it tastes pretty ok. When it's room temp, it still tastes like butter, even though I used what could be officially referred to as an @ssload of flavoring. Literally... I used 2 or 3 tablespoons of each vanilla and almond in one 5 eggwhite recipe!! That's a lot!

I also screwed up when I wanted to use some on cupcakes. I took it out of the fridge and let it sit, then rewhipped it, but it was still a little cold, so it curdled and got liquidy and super nasty looking. I was mad, but thought, ok, let it sit for another half hour! So I did, then whipped it and it was finally warm enough and it fluffed right back up after a few minutes in the mixer. Crisis averted!

I let some of my family try it and they all kind of agreed with me... "eh, it's alright. So... where's your regular buttercream?" We're just stuck where we've always been!

Hey Melvira?

Do NOT read this post if you don't want to be a convert.

No, really.
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Last warning...
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Ok well you asked for it.

I took a culinary class on cakes (3 credit college course in cakes...yeah, I giggled too), and we made what is called a "Swiss American Hybrid Buttercream".

After all your butter is incorporated into your Swiss (or Italian if that's your preference) Meringue Buttercream - you can add 10x sugar to it to sweeten it up a little. <gasp>

See, I warned you.

So you CAN have wonderful silky to die for Meringue based buttercream.....AND gear it towards a sweeter palette!

The extra sugar cuts a little of the butter taste (although I dig the butter taste).

Master Recipe Swiss American Hybrid Buttercream

3/4 lbs butter, soft
6 oz granulated sugar
1/2 cup egg whites
5.25 oz confectioner's sugar, sifted

Heat sugar and egg whites in a double boiler until 140 degrees F. Pour into the KA mixing bowl and whip on high untl soft peak. Add softened butter in small chunks a little at a time, first on low speed, then onto high to medium peak.

(here's where you'd have straight SMBC)

Sift confectioner's sugar over the SMBC, and whip again until incorporated.

This is plenty of frosting for 2 dozen cupcakes or an 8 inch single layer cake.

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My favorite variation? Dissolve 2 Tablespoons instant espresso powder into 2-3 Tablespoons lightly warmed heavy cream. Add to the finished buttercream.

Use the espresso SABC on dark chocolate cake that also has instant espresso powder in the batter.

Scrape me off the floor because this KILLS me it is so good.

Oh, you evil, evil woman!!! You KNOW I am going to try this!!! But you know what's funny... I almost think rolling little balls of the IMBC and dipping 'em in chocolate, then serving cold would be good. Yah, ok, that's probably the baby talking! Heheheh. Hmmm... theres still a little left in that bowl in the fridge...

Hey, I gave you fair warning

That's definately my preferred buttercream, although I vary how much 10x I put in it. If I'm making the espresso - all of the sugar because the espresso is quite bitter. If I'm adding fruit puree or dark ganache, less. And it's great with a shot or two of liquor in it to flavor it.

I need to try it with brown sugar in it sometimes. I have been playing with a "bananas foster" cupcake - the first round was a banana cake with brown sugar-rum buttercream that ended up too sweet for me. Am thinking of making the SMBC with brown sugar and rum, then do a banana filling in a vanilla cake. Hmmmm....

herboudoir, OH MY GOODNESS! the bananas foster cupcake sounds AMAZING!!!!!! i love the thought of banana, brown sugar and rum (oh, and butter!) together.

i do brown sugar smbc with: (makes 8 cups)

2.5 cups packed brown sugar
1.25 cups egg whites
5 sticks butter
1/8 cup (4 tb ) pure vanilla

(may have already posted that,dont remember!)

how do you do your banana filling? a banana custard?


melvira, i'm telling you....UP YOUR VANILLA! (i usually add 1/4 cup - thats EIGHT tb per 8 cup recipe) and drop the almond. then again, i dont care for almond. anyway...

i totally could go for a banana brown sugar rum cupcake!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well the first go at a banans foster cupcake, I made a banana cake, then topped it with a buttercream that I flavored with a brown sugar and rum syrup.

The people at work really liked it but to me it tasted like banana muffin with a WAY too sweet frosting.

I'm willing to play with recipes and try new things and I figure if it doesn't work, then at least I learned what NOT to do. LOL I seem to learn a lot of "what NOT to do's"

I like the idea of being able to make a SMBC with brown sugar...not nearly as sweet, and a little Myers or Goslings in it (you really need the dark rum).

When I make "realish" bananas foster, I make a quick sauce with Myers, butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon, brought up to a boil to melt the sugar, then toss sliced bananas in and let them cook for a minute. Then just pour over vanilla ice cream.

For the filling, was thinking of doing something along these lines, but less sauce and more bananas. Mash the bananas so there's still some texture, then either add to a little pastry cream or to a little stablized whipped cream.

For the cupcake, just stick with my vanilla cupcakes since they're really more vehicles for filling & frosting in this.

Clearly I have a project to work on - can't wait until summer. I'm in college full time so I don't have much time to experiment with baking. Additionally I'm working my way through the Wilton classes so the baking that I have been doing has been for that.

so wait, what IS the difference between SMBC & IMBC? I think I've tried both, but both tasted way too buttery to me - and required SOOOO much butter! I know I've tried Toba's recipe... can't remember what other recipes I've tried.... but they were very very buttery - and I found it hard to smooth.

I wouldn't mind trying again - I know I tried a French buttercream recipe that was fabulous - but very hard to smooth. It tasted awesome though - I'm pretty sure it was from this site and it was kinda like making a pudding first.... it was awesome.

SMBC and IMBC have the same basic recipe - egg whites, granulated sugar, butter

The difference is that in Swiss Meringue, you start off by heating the egg whites and sugar over a double boiler, then whip the eggs. WIth an Italian Meringue, you whip the eggs, then pour a hot simple syrup into it.

Then with both, you add the butter.

Um, HerBoudoir, if you need a taste tester for that recipe, feel free to send me some! Oh.My.God. that sounds good!

Yeah, I get that a lot.

Melvyra - what kind of vanilla do you use?

I like vanilla almost as much as I like chocolate, and I think that would be waaaay too much for me. I'm also sitting here looking at the bottle of Neilsen-Massey Mexican Vanilla that I just bought for $13 and thinking "pour half of that in? No way!"

Not trying to start the great vanilla debate, but I do find that if you get really good REAL vanilla (madagascar bourbon, mexican, tahitian, etc) rather than supermarket vanilla or god forbid imitation, you don't need nearly the same amount to create better flavor.

Well, I gave my bride yesterday the smbc with 1/2 ho-ratio and 1/2 butter. and one with white chocolate in it. They liked the one with white choc, but preferred the regular 10x icing. I think I am going to go with the 1/2 recipe with extra vanilla.

I agree with the vanilla, I just got a 2x organic vanilla that is just wonderful. you can really tell the diff in the smell. it almost smells creamy...Julia

I'm going to try to make IMBC balls and see what it's like! Might be gross... might be addictive. Hard to say!

Currently I am using a couple different kinds of vanilla... (some clear, some not) I don't have any of the 'real' Mexican vanilla that everyone raves about, (been out for quite a while) but my Aunt & her family lives in Arizona and they are coming up next month... what kind should I ask her to bring? Anyone have any favorites?? I can never remember what's good!

i used to cringe at how expensive pure vanilla was when i'd buy small 2 or 3 ounce bottles at the grocery store. i realized that i can buy huge bottles of PURE vanilla for a rediculous fraction of the cost at costco and sams club. now i throw that stuff in everything without concerning myself with the cost. i love that i dont have to worry about using recipes that call for such large quantities.

i definately agree that you need a good pure flavoring. MMMM!

melvira, OOOPS! i realize the OTHER way that may have sounded ! no really, up YOUR vanilla! giggle giggle snort snort......

Ok here's what I'm going to do - start a new vanilla thread.....see you over there

Has anyone else noticed that Melysa is trying to start something with the pregnant woman! Man... after this baby comes I am gonna KICK your vanilla!!!

Sure.. Mel, be a tough MAMA now while NO one will fling spoons of icing at the poor preggo lady !

Melvira.. How Funny ...Ok, heres a big big laddle of my ( yes ) my now whipped bettercreme! Oh darn splat right in the eyeball! Just whipe it off and lick your fingers! Yummy ! I told ya it turned out good Choc malt, you fav !!!!

*lick, slurrrp, smack* Sorry... can't talk now!

Mmmmm.. I have made banana's foster cupcakes before.. SOOOOOOOOOOOO good. Vanilla cake with carmelized banana made with butter, brown sugar and rum mixed in. Then soak with a rum simple syrup.. top with a thin layer or praline filling and top with brown sugar SMBC and a caramelized slice of banana. My husband almost died when he ate them.

And to those complaining of the overly buttery taste of the MBC's.. are you using salted or unsalted butter.. when you make it with salted butter it is very buttery, but it's not nearly as stick-o-butter if you use unsalted butter.

http://forum.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-583550.html

wow! I love IMBC too.

I've got a question for everyone....

My IMBC recipe calls for 3 oz of liqueur per 2cups of butter and 5 eggwhites. I'm concerned about whether it's okay for children to eat this, considering it contains liqueur. Is it okay for kids?

Normally I don't use the liqueur and just use 4 tsps vanilla. But using the liqueur makes it darn good and so much smoother. I'd like to be able to use the liqueur on all my IMBCs

Thanks!

Realistically - vanilla extract is mostly alcohol, so if you're swapping out the same amount of vanilla for liquor, then you're basically leaving in the the same amount of alcohol.

That said - all sorts of moral issues knowingly giving kids booze even in really minute quantities.

I'm with you in that I really like to flavor things with various liquors - depending on the specific good - it really can add a lot of depth and flavor. And you're certainly not using nearly enough to get any kind of buzz - it's just flavoring.

Even so, if I'm going to make something that I know is going to end up in kidlets' hands....I don't use it. For starters, they probably won't like the taste and it's a waste of good booze , but primarily because if they're not MY kids, then it's not my decision to make whether or not it's ok for them. Make sense?

That's the thing.. vanilla extract is the same proof as vodka.. so if you have no issue putting a few TBSP's of vanilla in something a few TBSP's of creme de menthe or something like that really isn't any different regarding alcohol content. It could actually be a little less alcohol depending on the type of liquor. Lemon extract is the same proof as Everclear.. I never really undestood the whole OH NO it's alcohol thing. Unless we are talking about a traditional English fruit cake soaked in rum.. . THEN we might have drunken kids running around.