Swiss meringue buttercream to perfection

Hello Royals! You missed me? I know.Been  trying to spend most of my free time to the little boss lately. Priorities you know. :)

As today was raining and we cant really go anywhere, I squeezed a bit of baking time when little boss was napping.  Today's project is swiss meringue buttercream's road to perfection. 

Because - i was never ever satisfied with all the frostings/icing I made in the past. Its either runny or grainy or too sweet. So I promised myself to find time to make just this in full focus. Adapted a Martha Stewarts recipe but modified a bit to withstand SG's hot and humid weather. The result: a fluffy, creamy and sturdy frosting that's not too sweet - just the way I like it! Recipe posted in my blog as well.

Melting sugar with egg in double boiler

Cubing butter. Also help cooling it to room temp faster

Consistency of the mixture. Piping grade.

Squeezing piping bag a bit to break air bubbles

Swirls and roses. 

Tried tilting it to see if its strong enough to hold position and it did! 

Did the tilting again after leaving icing for 15 mins in room temp to check any melting and... Nada! So here's me, happy and proud with my creation! 

Now go and try yourself! If you dont have a double boiler, use a heatproof bowl on top of a pot with simmering water. You can also make do with a hand mixer with just a little price of arm workout! No candy temperature? No problem! Just gauge when mixture is about to boil, thats the indication that its good to go! Importantly - have fun! :)

Swiss Meringue Buttercream Recipe

3 small eggwhites (2.5 big eggwhites)

1cup n 1 tsbp sugar

Pinch of salt

150 gm unsalted butter room temp cut into cubes

1.5 tsp vanilla extract

1. Cook egg whites, sugar and salt in double boiler. Whisk constantly with hand mixer until all sugar dissolves and reached 140F (60C) Temperature is to insure egg white is safe enough to consume.

2. Transfer mixture to a standing mixer and beat at low speed for 3 mins. Continue beating and increasing speed gradually for another 8 mins until mixture is fluffy and glossy and TOTALLY COOL. Do not mix butter when meringue is still hot as it causes the mixture to curdle. Touch the bottom of the bowl to check temperature.

3. With mixer on medium low speed, add butter a few cubes at a time mixing well after each addition. (If u notice the mixture to curdle, just keep beating). Continue until mixture is light and fluffy.

4. Once all butter is in, continue adding vanilla and food coloring if desired. Scrape and mix until completely smooth.

5. You can also change to paddle attachment and mix at medium low to remove air bubbles.