I started using a less-sweet buttercream recipe (based on Sugar Shack's recipe) after a bride complained that my sample was just too sweet for her. Of course, as soon as I mentioned the complaint, several family members chimed in "It is awfully sweet." So -I decided to go ahead and fix it.

The "fixed" version is, in a word, fantastic. So delicious. But . . .it's still a bit on the thin side. In fact, the past several cakes I've done end up getting a "fat roll" where the filling icing is pushing out between the layers. I have attached a photo of this phenomenon.

I have tried making the filling icing thicker by adding much more powdered sugar, but it doesn't seem to work. I have worked with only room temp cakes, room temp icing, etc etc. The fat roll appears again and again. So - I have decided the frosting overall has to be too thin.

I have attempted to add both flour and cornstarch to the recipe with VERY yucky results. So - I was wondering if meringue powder would do the trick?

Any of you have experience with this? I think it's a TBS per 3 cups of frosting, but I'm not positive. I just don't want to have to add more sugar, as that defeats the purpose.

Thanks in advance for any advice!
Ginge

If the icing is too thin, it would be sliding down or dripping off, and you'd see through it.

This is a bulge caused by settling cake. Cakes just settle... you can hurry along the settling process by applying pressure to your layers.

leah_s posted about her "trick" using ceramic tiles for weights...
http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=633571&highlight=trick

Well, the problem is, this NEVER happened with my old BC recipe -the too sweet/too thick one. So it's got to be the icing.

i think this frosting doesnt serve as a filling, so just scratch that option out, fillings with chocolate hold well, and why dont u try refrigerating?

Thanks all! I think I might try that smooshing with the tile trick. I never even knew such a thing was possible! This will really help when I do the wedding cake next month for the bride who started all of this icing mess in the first place. Because her filling is Bavarian cream- I knew I was REALLY going to get the bulge, even with an icing dam.

I had a problem with the whole dam/filling/bulging thing and wasn't ending up with much of anything between the layers. So what I did was to carve a slight indentation in the bottom layer about 1/2" in from the edge - - basically making a cake "dam". Then I fill it with frosting and it doesn't ooze out and everybody's happy with plenty of frosting/filling in the middle.

You don't have to add more powdered sugar to the whole batch. Just take out enough for the dam and add more to that to make it stiffer.

Psst! OP, I think you missed that little "featured on Cake Central badge" in CWR41's signature. Who needs a gallery when you have a badge?! *Insert evil laugh*

Yeah, I would try the settling trick. In my experience, meringue powder doesn't really make bc more stiff, it just aids in crusting. If it did help with stiffness, you would probably have to add A LOT of meringue powder! HTH!

P.S. I agree that reply seemed kind of mean-spirited. I really don't understand why some people feel the need to get so crabby on this site.

I think your cakes are pretty

You asked for advice. You received an educated response why your frosting isn't causing your problem, plus the answer to what isincluding a solution how to fix it.

I don't know why you'd think the diagnosis plus solution is mean-ish! Instead of messin', I'd be grateful and thankin'.

That response only came after the OP disregarded the advice that was given and restated "So it's got to be the icing".

This refers to the first response

The OP didn't notice the link in the first response, but did notice the reply and thought it was kinda mean-ish.

Maybe after reading the link, the OP realized that the answer was indeed helpful or a sincere attempt to provide an answer.

Another thing to try is backing off the liquids in your icing. This helps to make the icing thicker without adding additional sugar.

That type of post is typical from that particular member.

Anyway, I rarely let my cakes settle and I don't have that problem. If you take a bit of your icing and add enough powdered sugar to it so it's actually mold-able, then pipe your dam, you should not have a problem with the bulging. It will be super sweet but that's just the dam portion anyway. Incidentally, I have only ever experienced bulging with American style buttercreams. Have you ever tried a meringue buttercream? Those are 100% butter icings and you can pop the layer with the dam on it in the fridge so it gets rock hard.

Good luck!