Creamy American Buttercream

This is a buttercream recipe made by trial and error. This particular combination happened by mistake when I didn't have enough icing sugar left and just used what I had!

The standard buttercream recipe is 1 part butter to 2 parts icing sugar but I found that too sweet. I started gradually reducing the amount of icing sugar and have realised even with this recipe you can use less sugar if that is your preference (or if you are running low on supplies).

The key here is temperature! If your butter is too soft then your piped icing won't hold it's shape and too stiff and it'll be a workout for your arms. If your kitchen is warm then take the butter out about 30 mins before use. If it's cooler than a few hours before. During winter I take the butter out overnight to start baking early morning. To speed things along you can cut the butter into smaller chunks to help it soften faster. Temperature is an experiment related to your own environment so play around with it!

I have also added my trialled flavour modifications and will keep adding as I find more! This is just enough for 12 cupcakes (double for a cake), if in doubt I would suggest making extra! You can always store unused icing in the fridge for another time.

Ingredients

• 200g softened butter

• 200g sifted icing sugar (you can add up to double this for sweeter/stiffer buttercream)

• 2 tsp milk (adjust to taste/consistency)

Flavour adjustments

• VANILLA: add 1/4 tsp vanilla

• CHOCOLATE: add 10-15g cocoa powder

• OREO: 3-4 ground up Oreos (use an open piping tip with this so the bits don't get stuck)

• LEMON: 1 tbsp lemon juice instead of milk

Method

1. Beat butter for 5 mins until glossy

2. Gradually add in icing sugar (+any other dry ingredients), mixing well after each addition

3. Add the milk/liquid substitutes

4. Spread or pipe onto cupcakes/cakes/macarons

5. Store leftover buttercream in an airtight container and keep refrigerated, use within 2 weeks or freeze for up to 2 months. Bring to room temperature before using.