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Swiss meringue buttercream is decadent and versatile and just so much smoother than traditional American icing. It's not difficult to make and it freezes well so make a big batch and have it on hand to flavour as you choose and frost up a batch of cupcakes in a flash.There's at least three types of meringue buttercreams; Italian (made with hot sugar syrup and egg whites), French (made with hot sugar syrup and egg yolks) and Swiss (made by heating egg whites and sugar over a bain marie). I use Swiss meringue buttercream the most because I find it the simplest and most forgiving. It's wonderfully smooth unlike most American buttercreams that are made with icing sugar. If you taste them side by side you'll know the difference. Icing sugar is a bit gritty on your tongue.
So Swiss meringue buttercream (SMBC) is where we'll begin. Among pastry chefs and cake artists there seems to be a variety of ratios that are used. Many have twice as much butter as the recipe I like. I find this one is a nice balance between marshmallowy texture and buttery flavour. It's best served at room temperature but because there's not an outrageous amount of butter it's still palatable when cold. If you're using a scale you can make any amount you want using a ratio of 1 part egg whites to 2 parts sugar and 2 parts unsalted butter. Flavour to taste.
10 large egg whites 2 ¾ cups + 2 Tbsp (20 oz) sugar 2 ½ cups (20 oz) unsalted butter, at room temperature Place egg whites and sugar into a metal bowl that will fit over a saucepan. Fill saucepan with an inch or two of water and bring to the boil. Place bowl over pot and whisk constantly until mixture is hot to the touch, around 130F. Pour into a stand mixer fitted with whisks and beat on high until it is thick and glossy and feels room temperature. It will probably be close to 90F. This can take up to 10 minutes.Meanwhile, chop butter into walnut-sized chunks. When egg white mixture has cooled remove the whisks and use paddles with your machine set on low. Add butter a couple chunks at a time while beating continuously. As you continue to add butter it may look quite liquid. Now’s the time for the magic J. Turn your mixer to high and keep beating until it breaks and then becomes thick and fluffy. At this point reduce the speed to low and add whatever flavor you like. The amounts are suggestions however if you add too much liquid it will break so use restraint. - up to ¼ cup (2 oz) vanilla or liqueur - 2/3 cup (112 grams) dark chocolate, melted and cooled - a paste of 2 Tbsp instant espresso powder & 2 tsp vanilla - ½ cup (4 oz) seedless raspberry puree - ¼ cup (2 oz) fresh squeezed lemon juice & zest of 1 lemon, or to taste - 1 cup (8 oz) cream cheese, at warm room temperature - 1 cup (10 oz) peanut butter - ½ - ¾ cup homemade caramel sauce Increase speed to high and beat till smooth. Store airtight in the fridge for 1 week or freeze for up to 2 months. Believe it or not there's a few people around who like the grit and don't prefer SMBC. So to please everyone I've found that adding a cup or so (~4 oz) of sifted icing sugar provides an acceptable texture for both. 
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Written by Tina Bacon
Friday, January 06 2012 08:11
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