{"id":19400,"date":"2021-12-06T08:00:58","date_gmt":"2021-12-06T08:00:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.janespatisserie.com\/?p=19400"},"modified":"2022-07-07T14:39:28","modified_gmt":"2022-07-07T13:39:28","slug":"how-to-make-swiss-meringue-buttercream","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.janespatisserie.com\/2021\/12\/06\/how-to-make-swiss-meringue-buttercream\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Make Swiss Meringue Buttercream – Back to Basics!"},"content":{"rendered":"

So say hello to a new back-to-basics blog post – how to make delicious homemade swiss meringue buttercream.<\/strong><\/h2>\n

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This is a recipe that has been requested over and over, so I thought I would give it the attention it deserves, and give it a blog post all to its own\u2026 swiss meringue buttercream. <\/span><\/p>\n

If you aren\u2019t aware, swiss meringue buttercream is different from the normal American buttercream frosting of unsalted butter and icing sugar, and different again to cream cheese frosting<\/a>. It is genuinely a swiss meringue turned into the buttercream. <\/span><\/p>\n

I did a back-to-basics blog post on cream cheese frosting<\/a> as that is also a fairly difficult frosting to make sometimes, and I thought this one is on a similar level – it\u2019s something that needs explaining in a bit of detail so you know exactly what you are doing! <\/span><\/p>\n

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Many people like swiss meringue buttercream because it is \u2018less sweet\u2019 and has a more mousse-like texture. I would still say it is fairly sweet, just in a completely different way to the classic American buttercream frosting. <\/span><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t see anything wrong with the classic cake topping, as it is just so easy – but the taste of swiss meringue is just beautiful. It\u2019s so light it is like eating a cloud – but it is a bit more time-consuming to make so be prepared. <\/span><\/p>\n

For swiss meringue buttercream, you have to start with making sure that the block unsalted butter is at room temperature. You don\u2019t want to heat the butter in any way to make it room temperature though, you need to leave it naturally. How long this takes depends on the time of year – peak summer is probably only 30-60 minutes, whereas peak winter may be the best overnight. <\/span><\/p>\n

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The butter wants to be at a temperature where you can press your finger into the butter to indent it really easily, but it\u2019s not melting away. You definitely do not want to use stork, margarine, or a baking spread of any kind for this. <\/span><\/p>\n

Once you have done this, you can start the process of the swiss meringue. Swiss meringue is made using egg whites and sugar as your normal meringue is, but with a completely different method. There are a few other types of meringue such as french or Italian, but this time we are talking swiss! <\/span><\/p>\n

With swiss meringue, you cook the egg whites out over a double boiler, whisking, until the sugar grains have dissolved. This takes a fair amount of time as you don\u2019t want to go crazy with the heat, and the egg whites are meant to slowly heat using just the heat of the steam underneath. <\/span><\/p>\n

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For this recipe, I cook the meringues until they reach 72\u00bac – or 160\u00baf. Technically that translates to 71.11\u00bac, so I just went with 72\u00bac. It is so important to use a sugar thermometer when making this recipe as you really do need the temperature to be accurate! You can use regular sugar thermometers<\/a> or a thermometer like this one<\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

When you are at this stage, other than checking the temperature, you need to carefully rub some of the mixture between your fingers – the mixture should be smooth. If there is a grainy texture, then the sugar hasn\u2019t dissolved and may need to be heated further until it is. <\/span><\/p>\n

I used a large glass bowl over a medium pan, with about 1.5\u201d worth of water in the bottom. The bowl sits above the water, and doesn\u2019t touch it – you want the water to be a simmer, so once it\u2019s boiled, I usually leave it at a half level like 5. <\/span><\/p>\n

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Whisk the mixture constantly, until it reaches the temperature, and then transfer to a stand mixer bowl – I will say that using a stand mixer<\/a> is SO much easier than anything else, but an electric hand whisk is still better than just your arm and a balloon whisk. All in all, this recipe takes about 45 minutes to make, with about 25-30 minutes whisking. <\/span><\/p>\n

When you whisk the eggs and sugar in a spotlessly clean bowl, you need to whisk the mixture until it reaches a lovely meringue with glossy stiff peaks and the bowl is completely at room temperature – this takes about 20 minutes, if not longer. The meringue MUST be at room temperature, so you don\u2019t melt the butter. <\/span><\/p>\n

If the bowl feels even slightly warm, keep on whisking until it has cooled. I whisk at about 6\/7 on my KitchenAid mixer<\/a> – and it’s a fair amount of time to be whisking for. If you don\u2019t use a stand mixer, you are going to have to stand and whisk in the same way until it’s cooled. <\/span><\/p>\n

This is when you add the butter – you need to add small amounts of butter, letting it beat in fully each time. I switch my whisk to my paddle attachment at this stage as well. I add in about 1 tbsp of butter at a go – about 1\u201d size cube of butter. <\/span><\/p>\n

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It is so important to not add too much butter, as it needs to mix in well. As you mix, the texture of the swiss meringue buttercream may change, and this is normal. You can find some troubleshooting tips below if you are worried! <\/span><\/p>\n

Once all the butter is incorporated, add any flavouring such as 1 tsp vanilla extract<\/a>, and beat for a further couple of minutes, scraping down the side of the bowl and making sure it\u2019s combined. You should be left with a lovely delicious swiss meringue buttercream! <\/span><\/p>\n

Troubleshooting<\/strong>: <\/span><\/h3>\n