Recipe Station

This frosting looks and tastes like a gourmet treat, but it's actually quite simple to make.

If you haven't made a Swiss meringue before, the process is simple. Combine egg whites, toasted sugar, cream of tartar, salt, and vanilla seeds in a double boiler, and cook, stirring constantly with a flexible spatula. For this recipe, you'll take the mixture to about 185°F (85°C) to make sure it's fully cooked. Then you'll whip it on high speed until the meringue is fluffy, light, and cool to the touch, about 90°F (32°C).

Sure, 90°F doesn't sound cool, but it's well below body temperature, so the bowl won't feel warm against your palm. It's also the perfect temperature to accommodate the butter, which should be pliable and cool, about 65°F (18°C). Whipped together, they'll average out to about 72°F (22°C).

You can achieve that perfect temperature any number of ways, with a cooler meringue and warmer butter, or vice versa, but that's a tightrope beginners needn't walk. Though you have a few degrees of wiggle room in either direction, if the ingredient temperatures aren't properly balanced, the buttercream may be runny and thin, or dense and greasy—maybe even curdled and broken. With an awareness of the role temperature has to play, and a trusty digital thermometer, all those problems simply cease to exist.

One other thing we like about this frosting is that you can make ahead and store it in the fridge or freezer and then use it when you need it:

Simply roll open the mouth of a gallon-sized, heavy-duty zip-top bag; scrape in the buttercream; press out the air; and seal. It'll keep about two weeks in the fridge, or several months in the freezer. (The issue with freezing for longer than that isn't spoilage so much as odor absorption.) Do be sure to lay the bag flat, which helps the buttercream to thaw rapidly down the line. When you're ready to frost a cake, warm the buttercream back to 72°F, then re-whip to restore its spreadably soft consistency.

We just love this Swiss meringue buttercream frosting because not only is it delicious, it's also incredibly versatile. We like to make up a nice big batch and then freeze it so we already have frosting made when we need to make a cake, cupcakes or other confections. Yum!

Article Source: Serious Eats