Adapted from "Wedding Cakes You Can Make: Designing, Baking, and Decorating the Perfect Wedding Cake" by Dede Wilson, who in this book gives a very detailed description on how to make this buttercream. If you've never made this type of icing before, this is a great reference book to look to for guidance, and it gives help on how to "fix" buttercreams, and what to do if too cold or too warm. This recipe makes a wonderful buttercream with a smooth consistency, not too sweet and freezes well. This recipe is simplified: read her recipe for exacting details on cooking it.

Italian Buttercream

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups plus
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water (recipe lists 1/2 cup, I just 'eyeball' the amount)
• 8 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar 1 1/2 lbs.
• (6 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pats

Procedure

Place the 1 1/4 cups sugar and the water in a saucepan. Stir to wet the sugar and bring to boil over medium heat and wash the sides of the pan. Place the whites in a grease-free mixing bowl and whip until frothy. Add in the cream of tartar and continue to whip until soft peaks form. Add in the 1/3 cup of the sugar. Continue whipping until stiff, glossy peaks form. Meanwhile, keep boiling the sugar syrup until the temperature reaches 248*F. When the syrup is ready, reduce mixing speed of the whites to medium and slowly pour in the hot syrup into the egg whites. Try not to get any of the syrup on the sides of the bowl or hard sugar balls may form in the meringue. Continue to whip until cooled, which may take up to 15 minutes. Add in the the pats of butter and whip until combined, smooth and the butter is incorporated.

Notes

Recipe adapted from: Wilson, Dede. Wedding Cakes You Can Make: Designing, Baking, and Decorating the Perfect Wedding Cake. New York: Wiley, 2005.

Content by Renee Shelton. Recipe was first published on PastrySampler.com on February 3, 2007. It was updated on September 30, 2020.