CiCi's Buttercream

*not my image.

Buttercream Icing

I get a lot of requests for my buttercream icing recipe. The tricky part is, I don't really use a recipe. My mom taught me to make this delicious mixture and she never measured anything, either.

The great thing about making icing without a recipe is you get to taste it. Often. And, you can customize it to suit your palate on a given day. Sometimes I like my icing sweet enough to hurt my teeth, while other times I prefer it to be a little more on the buttery side. Sometimes if I'm making a variation, I want the "special" ingredient to stand out most of all. So it really depends.

Here are some general guidelines:

Don't bother with a mixer, you really need to hand mix this stuff. I prefer a wooden spoon.

Start with about 2 Tbsp of butter.

Add about ½ C of icing sugar*.

Mix them together well, then add about 1/8 C of milk.

Add 1/4 tsp vanilla (or more, if you're making more icing) 

That's it. You'll be able to tell by the consistency if the icing is useable in it's current form. If it looks to be about the right consistency, which can also vary by the way, the next step is to taste your icing. Do it. 

You know you want to.

If it’s too sweet, add a little more butter, or try a little more vanilla. Stir again, taste again.

If it’s too wet, add a little more sugar (and if that makes it too sweet, see above). Stir again, taste again.

If it's too dry, add a little more milk.

Keep playing with it until it seems right. Depending on how thick you make it, you can use this as a simple glaze, you can use it in an icing bag to make pretty shapes, or you can spread it on with a knife (usually my preferred method). 

Variations:

Bailey's Irish buttercream icing: Exactly the same as above, but substitute Bailey's Irish Cream for all (or some) of the milk. I like this one to taste of Bailey's, so I often make it a little thinner. 

Maple buttercream icing: Exactly the same as above, but substitute real maple syrup for all of the milk. For the love of maple, do not use table syrup for your icing. Trust me, it's not worth it. 

Chocolate buttercream icing: This is a little trickier. You start out by gently melting 2-4 squares of Baker's chocolate (the bitter kind) in a saucepan. Add your butter while it's melting, so that the chocolate won't harden as it cools. Once it's melted, or mostly melted, take the saucepan off the heat and stir, stir, stir. Add your milk (at room temperature) once the chocolate/butter mixture has cooled a little. Stir some more. 

Add your icing sugar. Stir. Check texture. Taste now. With this variation, it's important that you don't over-sugar the icing. If it gets too sweet, you definitely won't want to have to melt more chocolate, it's a pain in the arse. So once you have tasted and checked your texture, carefully add a little more of whatever you think is missing. Stir often, taste often. 

I think you get the idea. Add just about anything you think will taste good and try it. If it doesn't work out, try something else! If you make something really great, please post it here.

*icing sugar is the same as powdered sugar or confectioners sugar.