Over the years I have baked many cakes, but not for decorating - strictly eating. So, of course, taste was the top priority. All my frostings were always made w/ butter - never a hint of Crisco - due to flavor. Now, I'm starting with cake decorating, and it's a whole new world.

Today I made a crusting cream cheese frosting, as I was hoping the cream cheese would add some nice flavor. Little crisco was used, and butter was part of the recipe. I still don't like it much. My fear is that every recipe made w/ Crisco isn't going to cut it in the flavor department.

What can I do to enhance the flavor? Or is that the hit you take in order to get icing that you can decorate with? Any suggestions will be very much appreciated! Thanks!

The best decorating icings are strictly solid veg shortening based. However, you can add extracts, oils, flavored coffee creamer dissolved in hot water (this one needs to be substituted for the liquid in your recipe). Lorann makes a really concentrated butter flavoring that tastes like the real thing. Wilton has a raspberry candy oil that is really good. Just experiment with different combinations until you are happy with the result.

I'm w/ prterrell, IMBC is the way to go. I've tried them all and I still come back to it.

I knew I should have noted IMO on that post. OK...IMO the solid veg shortening BC is easy to make, smooth and pipe. It is also shelf stable, meaning it can sit out on a table at a function for more than a few hours. Someone will come back with the statement that the egg whites are "cooked to a safe temp". Yes, but I still wouldn't leave out for more than the time to cut and serve.

Only if you want to eat cold cake and frosting. Yuck! Go ahead and refrigerate, if it makes you feel safer, but bring the cake to room temp before serving or the icing will be hard like a stick of butter and the cake will feel dry in the mouth.

If you use pasturized egg whites to make the meringue, then there really is no reason to refrigerate it. BTW, I took the temp of my icing the other day after incorporating all the butter, and it was 160 deg F, at which temp, even raw egg whites only need to be held for 15 SECONDS to be safe, and it def. was that temp for much longer than that time!

I'm still learning about IMBC. Tried it once - Warren Brown's recipe. Taste was delicious but it curdled like cottage cheese. If you tasted it, it was like tiny pieces of butter and then they melted in your mouth. I also tried the pasturized egg whites (in the carton) and it says on the carton not to use for meringue. (Of course that was after I had started to whip them and got nowhere)

Kaymc - why do u think you can't still use butter based frosting - by which I am assuming you mean regular bc? I see no big difference between butter or crisco based bc in terms of workability, other than criscos higher heat tolerance.
xx

Ok...we are talking apples and oranges here. Yes, if I am baking for home, I love a good meringue icing. (OP...refrigerate your mixture and beat the heck out of it and it will come together) However...if I am working on three wedding cakes and a baby shower, it is shortening. Always. To the butter OP, I live and work in South Texas. You just can't leave butter icing out if you want your carefully smoothed BC to still be on the side of the cake in the AM.

Try hi-ratio shortening versus crisco. It really does make a difference. My icings are creamy and smooths very easily. It also doesn't leave the greasy taste from crisco. I do 1/2 butter and 1/2 hi-ratio. For cream cheese, I just use butter and cream cheese. This is one icing where I just do not like the shortening in it.

Here is what I do for a really yummy, "crisco-based" frosting:

First of all, I prefer Bake-Rite over crisco. Just my personal thing.

I cream 2 cups Bake-Rite in my mixer, then scrape the sides down.
Then I add a whole 2lb bag of powdered sugar and continue to mix on low.
When the sugar and shortening start to come together, I begin to add a flavored liquid coffee creamer a couple of tablespoons at a time. My favorite is Belgian White Chocolate and Macadamia. I add enough to where it tastes good, then if I need more liquid, I add a little milk until it is the consistency I want.

Super easy and delicious!

I have also made this frosting using strong coffee (instant coffee dissolved in just enough hot water to dissolve it). Ooh, another favorite: toffee flavored coffee creamer

I hope this in line with the original question. When you are suggesting IMBC, can you tell my if that is even better than SMBC? I am still experimenting on this. I have made SMBC, but not IMBC yet. I still plan on pouring over CC with a good cup of coffee and a lot of time to research this.

But as a quick question, or even better wording of my original question - when you say IMBC, does that include SMBC too?
Thanks

I will go to the abbreviations thread and try to decipher what all these posts are saying!! It sounds like there is some other recipe where I can use meringue powder and NOT refrigerate it, so I am excited about this! Thanks for all the advice! My next cake will have this new recipe on it once I find it - do any of you have the recipe (link) available quickly? Thanks in advance..........Kay

I found the recipe for SMBC on this site! Thank you! Is this a frosting that I can use for decorating as well? I can't wait to use it!