I used to steer clear of using fresh strawberries in buttercream recipes simply because I believe using freeze dried berries yields the best consistency and most flavorful buttercream. I still think it’s much easier to use freeze dried fruit when flavoring buttercream, but after years of chatting with people making my recipes all over the world, I realize that not everyone has access to it. So, I took to the kitchen determined to find the best way to make strawberry buttercream with fresh or frozen berries. And guess what? I came up with a recipe that is flavorful and easy to work with for filling, frosting, and decorating cakes and cupcakes. Plus, just look at this naturally beautiful color!

How to Use Fresh or Frozen Strawberries for Buttercream

Fresh and frozen berries contain a lot of liquid. That’s why you can’t just blend them up and add them into your buttercream – it will ruin the consistency to the point of no return! Instead, the secret to creating the best flavor + consistency is to first purèe the strawberries and then reduce them into a jam-like consistency over the stove. This reduction process keeps all the flavor intact while getting rid of the unnecessary liquid content. 

Making the reduction is super simple, but does take a little time. You’ll purèe the strawberries using a food processor, then transfer them to a small saucepan set over medium heat and bring them to a boil. Once this happens, turn the burner down to low and simmer the strawberries for 10-15 minutes, until the majority of the liquid content evaporates from the rest of the purèe. This leaves you with a jam-like consistency that you can add right into the buttercream to flavor it (once it’s room temperature, that is). 

Why Reduce the Pureè?

After purèeing your strawberries, they will be extremely liquid in consistency. Adding too much liquid to your buttercream causes it to curdle and thin to the point where it’s soupy and unusable. By cooking that purèe to the point of reduction, you’ll be able to remove as much liquid from the strawberries as possible and amplify the flavor of the berries by getting rid of all that extra water. This yields a much smoother, more flavorful buttercream in the end. 

Best Cake Pairings for Strawberry Buttercream

This strawberry buttercream goes perfectly with pretty much any cake flavor. Here are some of my favorite flavor pairings to date: 

• Strawberry Cake
• Strawberry Lemonade Cake 
• Chocolate Cake
• Vanilla Cake 
• Lemon Cake 
• Funfetti Cake
• Matcha Cake 

Whatever you end up pairing it with, I hope you love this fresh strawberry buttercream as much as I do!

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Fresh Strawberry Buttercream

A silky smooth strawberry buttercream made with fresh or frozen berries. Perfect for pairing with layer cakes, cupcakes, macarons, and more!

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Servings 3 Cups

Ingredients

• 5 Oz (1 Cup) fresh strawberries, chopped* see notes if using frozen berries
• 1 Cup (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3 1/2 Cups (420g) powdered sugar
• pinch of salt

Instructions

Make the Reduced Strawberry Purèe

• Using a food processor, purèe the chopped strawberries (you’ll end up with about ½ Cup after this). Add the strawberry purèe into a small saucepan set over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10-15 minutes, until it becomes jam-like and has reduced by half. You’ll end up with about ¼ Cup of reduced purèe after this step. Let it cool completely to room temperature (either in the refrigerator or on the counter) before moving on in the recipe.

Make the Strawberry Buttercream

• With a hand mixer or paddle attachment on your stand mixer, beat the butter on medium-high until it’s creamy, about 5 minutes. 
• Add the powdered sugar about a cup at a time and mix on low speed, making sure each addition is fully incorporated before adding the next. Scrape down the bowl and paddle as needed.
• Add the (room temperature!) reduced strawberry purèe and a pinch of salt. Continue mixing on low speed until fully incorporated and smooth, scraping down the bowl and paddle as needed, 1-2 minutes.

Notes

*Frozen Berries: if using frozen berries, thaw and dry them completely before purèeing in a food processor. Because of the extra liquid content the ice adds, you may need to cook the purèe for slightly longer than 10-15 minutes to get it to a jam-like consistency. 

Make Ahead Tips: This buttercream can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week. When you’re ready to use it, bring it back to room temperature and re-mix in your stand mixer on low speed to bring back to smooth buttercream consistency. 

Yield: This buttercream makes enough to:

• Frost 12-15 cupcakes with a piping bag
• Fill and crumb coat a three-layer 6-inch cake or two-layer 8-inch cake
• To have enough for frosting and decorating as well, double the recipe. 

Did you make this fresh raspberry buttercream? I want to know what you paired it with and what you think! Let me know in the comments below and feel free to tag @sugarandsparrowco on Instagram to show me. I love to see what you create!

The post Fresh Strawberry Buttercream Recipe appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

To make things a little easier, I whipped up some handy charts below to give you a good estimate of how much frosting to make for your bakes. 

Will This Chart Work with Any Kind of Frosting?

I wrote this chart with American Buttercream in mind (which is my go-to frosting). If you’re going by volume (not by weight),  this chart will work with any kind of frosting – swiss meringue buttercream, italian meringue buttercream, whipped cream frosting, etc. Most frosting recipes will state how much they yield in Cups (aka by volume), so you can base your estimations and scaling off of the chart below regardless of your preferred frosting. 

Tips for Scaling Frosting Recipes 

Let’s say you need 4.5 Cups of frosting based on the chart below, and you notice that one batch of the buttercream recipe you’re using yields only 3 Cups. How should you proceed? 

Working backwards, you’d divide 4.5 Cups by 3 Cups to get your answer: 4.5/3 = 1.5. In other words, you’ll need 1.5 batches of your buttercream recipe to have enough for your project. That means you’ll multiply each ingredient in your buttercream recipe by 1.5 to scale the recipe properly. 

If you don’t want to do all that math by hand, I recommend using a recipe scale calculator like this one where you can simply copy/paste your ingredients list and choose the scale amount (in this case, scale by one and one half) to get the correct amount of each ingredient.    

I will say that it’s always better to have a little more buttercream than you expected than to not have enough. To prevent that scenario, I recommend rounding up when estimating.

*A Note on Gram Measurements: I didn’t put gram measurements on this chart because different kinds of frosting vary by weight per cup. If you’re using American Buttercream (like most of my recipes), then you can go with the gram measurement of 1 Cup = 215g and scale the recipe from there.

I hope that you find this chart and info helpful for your cake planning! Let me know in the comments if you do and feel free to tag @sugarandsparrowco on Instagram to show me what you make! I always love to see what you create.

The post How Much Buttercream Do I Need? Helpful Chart Included! appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

My favorite way to make fruit-flavored buttercream is always with freeze dried fruit. It gives the frosting the most authentic flavor without compromising the consistency of the buttercream. So whenever I’m perusing the freeze-dried fruit selection at my local grocery store, I always check to see what kinds are available. When I saw that freeze-dried blueberries were a thing I just had to snatch them up for a buttercream recipe!

Amazing Natural Color and Flavor

This blueberry buttercream has the most authentic flavor and the natural color is just unreal. You make it by grinding freeze-dried blueberries into a powder using a food processor, then adding them to the buttercream. 

One thing I’ve noticed is that different brands of blueberries can yield slightly different colors. This is because of a natural pigment found in all blueberries called anthocyanin. Different types of blueberries have slightly different pigments. For example, wild blueberries have more of a red-violet pigment (like you see here) and cultivated blueberries have more of a deep blue or indigo pigment. 

To give you some visual examples of how this can affect the resulting buttercream color, I made this lemon cake with blueberry buttercream using these freeze-dried blueberries from Trader Joe’s and got more of a bluish purple color.

Then for this buttercream recipe, I used Natierra Organic Freeze-Dried Blueberries and it turned out way more red-violet, but with the same amazing blueberry flavor. Pretty wild! 

What are Freeze-Dried Blueberries?

The process of freeze drying removes all the liquid from the berries while keeping the color and flavor intact. The blueberries are essentially frozen, and then the ice is vaporized after that. This preserves all the nutrients of the blueberries, since the only element eliminated is the water content. The process also makes the blueberries dry enough to grind into powder for flavoring and dying foods like buttercream. 

You can usually find freeze-dried berries in the snack section at your local grocery store. I’ve seen them at New Seasons, Whole Foods, Target, Costco, and Trader Joe’s. If you can’t find them locally, Amazon is also a great resource. Just make sure they’re freeze-dried and not just dried. 

Can I Use Fresh or Frozen Blueberries?

Since both fresh and frozen blueberries still contain a ton of water, you can’t do a straight substitution in this recipe. Adding all that water content will make your buttercream split, plus the flavor won’t be as powerful. If you can’t find freeze dried blueberries locally or online, I’d recommend trying a reduced blueberry pureè to flavor the buttercream instead. That will mean pureèing the blueberries, then cooking them down in a saucepan to remove as much liquid as you can. 

What to Pair with Blueberry Buttercream

Here are some of my favorite cakes to pair with this blueberry buttercream:

• Lemon Cake
• Vanilla Cake
• Chocolate Cake
• Vegan Vanilla Cake
• Vegan Chocolate Cake

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Freeze-Dried Blueberry Buttercream

This delicious blueberry buttercream is packed with amazing flavor, natural color, and is the perfect consistency for decorating cakes and cupcakes.

Prep Time 20 minutes

Servings 3 Cups

Ingredients

• 3/4 Cup (18g) freeze-dried blueberries
• 1 Cup (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3 Tbsp (45ml) whole milk, room temperature
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 3 Cups (360g) powdered sugar
• pinch of salt

Instructions

• With a food processor, grind the blueberries into a powder and set aside.
• Whip the butter using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment on medium-high speed until it’s creamy and light in color (5 minutes). Add vanilla, milk, and blueberry powder and continue to mix on medium until fully combined.
• Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time and mix on low speed, scraping down the bowl and paddle after each addition. Add a pinch of salt and mix on low speed until fully combined and smooth, 1-2 minutes. 

Notes

Make it Ahead: This buttercream can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container at room temperature for one day, or in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Bring it back to room temperature and re-mix with your mixer on low speed to bring it back to frosting consistency. 

Make it Vegan: you can easily substitute the butter in this recipe with your favorite vegan butter sticks. I like to use Earth Balance brand. Then substitute the whole milk in this recipe with your favorite non-dairy milk. Coconut and soy milk yield the best results in my opinion. 

Yield: This buttercream makes enough to:

• Frost 12-15 cupcakes with a piping bag
• Fill and crumb coat a three-layer 6-inch cake or two-layer 8-inch cake. To have enough for frosting and decorating as well, double the recipe. 

What will you do with your blueberry buttercream? Let me know in the comments or tag me on Instagram if you make this recipe!

The post The Best Blueberry Buttercream Recipe appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

The other day I had an epiphany while I was perusing the aisles at Trader Joe’s. I stumbled upon their selection of freeze dried fruits and when I saw the raspberries I knew I had to try them in a buttercream recipe. The results? Absolutely flawless flavor, not too sweet (like when you use raspberry jam or preserves), not watery (like when you use fresh raspberries), and so easy to work with!

What are Freeze Dried Raspberries?

The process of freeze drying simply removes the moisture from the raspberries while keeping them packed with flavor. They’re perfect for baking in your favorite scone recipe, throwing into pancake batter, or in this case, grinding into a fine powder with a food processor and tossing into a buttercream recipe. And just look at the color! 

I’ve used this raspberry buttercream recipe to fill and frost cakes, decorate cupcakes, and have even gotten a bit crazy and mixed it with vanilla buttercream to make a flavor ombre as a cake finish. It pipes like a dream and is so easy to work with. A great pairing for pretty much any cake flavor you could think of!  

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Freeze-Dried Raspberry Buttercream

A light, balanced raspberry buttercream that’s packed with flavor. The perfect addition to any cake! 

Prep Time 15 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Servings 3 cups

Ingredients

• 1 Cup (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3/4 Cup (18g) freeze-dried raspberries
• 3 Tbsp (45ml) whole milk, room temperature
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 3 Cups (360g) powdered sugar
• pinch of salt

Instructions

• With a food processor, grind the raspberries into a fine powder. Sift out the seeds (if a few seeds end up in the powder that is totally ok) and set the powder aside.
• Whip the butter using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment on medium-high speed until it’s creamy and light in color (5 minutes). Add vanilla, milk, and raspberry powder and continue to mix on medium until fully combined.
• Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time and mix on low speed, scraping down the bowl and paddle after each addition. Add a pinch of salt and mix on low speed until fully combined and smooth, 1-2 minutes. 

Notes

Make Ahead Tips: This buttercream can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Just bring back to room temperature and re-mix with your mixer! 

Yield: This buttercream makes enough to:

• Frost 12-15 cupcakes with a piping bag
• Fill and crumb coat a three-layer 6-inch cake or two-layer 8-inch cake. To have enough for frosting and decorating as well, double the recipe. 

Here’s how I’ve used this raspberry buttercream in the past:

As a filling and frosting in my raspberry chocolate cake recipe. So delicious!

As a filling for my matcha cake recipe. It would also pair perfectly with a chocolate, vanilla, or lemon cake.

What will you do with your raspberry buttercream? Let me know in the comments or tag me on Instagram if you make this recipe!

The post Freeze Dried Raspberry Buttercream Recipe appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

Update 2022: After posting this recipe four years ago, I found that my one bowl chocolate cake recipe makes the best chocolate cupcakes! It’s what I prefer, and the crowds agree. So, this recipe has been updated with the new (and even easier to make!) recipe. 

Oh, chocolate. It’s made me weak in the knees since I was a kid sneaking it into the cart when my mom wasn’t looking. Some people prefer fruity desserts but I tend to lean toward the decadence of something chocolatey. If you’re in the same boat, then this recipe is for you: melt-in-your-mouth chocolate cupcakes with a chocolate buttercream that has been described by a friend as “the kind you need to put in the sink and fill the bowl with water because you can’t stop eating it.”

This recipe is everything you want in a chocolate cupcake – rich and decadent, moist and fudgy, and the perfect chocolatey flavor throughout. It’s a classic flavor pairing that will satisfy any chocolate lover in your life, and I’m a firm believer that every cake maker should have a good chocolate cake and chocolate buttercream recipe up their sleeve. Whether you pair the recipes together or use them separately to pair with other flavors, these are some great staples to add to your recipe box. 

You’ll notice that the cupcake recipe calls for hot coffee or hot water. You can absolutely use either, but the hot coffee will really help amplify the chocolate flavor in these cupcakes. It won’t add any coffee flavor in the process. I like to use fresh pour-over coffee, but you can use instant coffee or whatever you’re used to drinking at home.

I’ve kept the decoration simple with these babies by piping a swirl of chocolate buttercream with my Wilton 1M tip, but feel free to get creative with the design. They’re made even more beautiful with these pretty sprinkles from Fancy Sprinkles in the Birthday Balloons mix. I just love the pops of color and texture they add! 

Here’s a quick video of how to make these chocolate cupcakes before you read through the recipe below:

PS: If you’re into cake decorating videos like this one, be sure to check out my YouTube Channel! Click the Subscribe button while you’re there so you never miss a new video. 

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Chocolate Cupcakes With Chocolate Buttercream

Rich and moist chocolate cupcakes topped with decadent chocolate buttercream.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Servings 15 cupcakes

Ingredients

One Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes

• 1 Cup (132g) all-purpose flour
• 3/4 Cup (150g) white granulated sugar
• 1/3 Cup (30g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 Cup (60ml) vegetable oil
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 Cup (120ml) buttermilk, room temperature*
• 1/2 Cup (120ml) hot coffee or hot water**

Chocolate Buttercream

• 1 Cup (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3 Cups (360g) powdered sugar
• 1/2 Cup (45g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
• 3 Tbsp (45ml) whole milk, room temperature
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt

Instructions

Make The Chocolate Cupcakes

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF/177ºC and line a cupcake pan with 12-15 liners.
• Whisk all of the dry ingredients together in a large bowl to fully combine them. Add the vegetable oil, eggs, vanilla, and buttermilk and mix on low with either a hand mixer, the paddle attachment on your stand mixer, or by hand until combined. Add the hot coffee (or hot water) in a slow stream. Continue mixing on low until fully combined and smooth, 1-2 minutes. The batter will be very thin.
• Pour the batter into the prepared cupcake liners (no more than ⅔ full) and bake for 15-18 minutes, until a wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.

Make The Chocolate Buttercream

• In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, whip the butter on high speed until creamy and light in color, about five minutes. Scrape down the bowl and paddle and turn the mixer to low, then add the powdered sugar, cocoa powder, milk, vanilla extract, and salt. Continue mixing on low speed until fully combined and uniform, 2-3 minutes, scraping down the bowl and paddle as needed.

Assembly

• Let the cupcakes cool thoroughly before frosting with chocolate buttercream. In the images above, I've used Wilton tip 1M to pipe a swirl with the buttercream before adding these sprinkles. 

Notes

*DIY Buttermilk recipe: add 1 Tbsp of white vinegar to a jar and top it with 1 Cup of whole milk. Stir and let sit for 15 minutes before using in the recipe. 

**hot coffee will not add any coffee flavor to the cupcakes, but it does help amplify the chocolate flavor better than hot water. 

Make Ahead Tips: 

1. The chocolate cupcakes can be made ahead and stored at room temperature, covered with plastic wrap, for up to two days. Alternatively, they can be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to two months. 
2. The chocolate buttercream recipe can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. When you’re ready to use it, bring it back to room temperature and re-mix with your stand mixer on low speed to bring it back to frosting consistency. 

Did you make these chocolate cupcakes? I want to know how it went! Leave a comment below and feel free to tag @sugarandsparrowco on Instagram to show me. I love to see what you create!

The post One Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

This Summer, something happened to me that has never happened before (to my knowledge at least): one of my cakes melted in the outdoor heat. I made a birthday cake for a dear friend’s daughter – my vegan vanilla cake with vegan vanilla buttercream. The party was outdoors and the temperature was around 85 degrees. I refrigerated the cake up until I needed to drive it to the party, thinking that would be enough to preserve it for a few hours. But about an hour after the cake was displayed, the thing started melting (along with my heart). Thankfully, these were the kind of friends who were able to laugh about it with me as it all fell apart. Here’s a before and after:

Although it was a first for me, it got me thinking about so many of you who live in hot and humid climates. I’ve even gotten questions over the years from said people wondering how to make their buttercream more heat stable. The fact of the matter is, the butter in buttercream frosting starts to break down when it’s in an environment that’s above 82 degrees, and vegan butter has an even lower melting point. So, I thought I’d do some experimenting on how to add stability to your buttercream (both vegan and non) for those hot and humid days while keeping your frosting nice and tasty. 

For my experiment, I created four mini cakes and frosted them each with different frostings using my favorite vanilla buttercream recipe as a base: 

• All butter (aka the recipe as-is)
• Half butter and half shortening
• Half butter and half shortening + meringue powder for added stability
• Half vegan butter and half shortening (with coconut milk as the liquid)

I refrigerated each cake until firm before placing them in the direct sun on an 88 degree day with 35% humidity and here’s a video of what happened:

If you’re into cake videos like this one, head on over to my YouTube Channel. You’ll find all sorts of cake decorating tutorials, recipes, and my entire Cake Basics series in video format. I’m always adding new videos there, so be sure to hit the subscribe button so you’ll always be the first to know about a new one. 

Buttercream Heat Test Results

Over the course of the two hours I had the cakes in the sun, none of them completely melted, which was kind of disappointing because I wanted things to be more dramatic. The day just wasn’t hot enough. So in the end, I had to break out the hair dryer to see what would happen with more heat applied. 

After I cranked up the heat on these cakes, the all-butter buttercream frosted cake melted into soup:

The cake with the half vegan butter and half shortening got a huge air bubble in the frosting that started to melt:

The half butter and half shortening frosted cake looked pretty good after one hour but this is after two hours out in the direct sun + hair dryer:

And the half butter/half shortening with added meringue powder had relatively no change: 

I did try an all-shortening frosting because I hear that’s really heat stable, but just couldn’t get over how terrible it tasted. You’d have to use a lot of flavoring to get it to taste normal (and even then, the texture is a little weird).

I concluded that when you’re up against crazy heat (according to these test results at least), use half butter and half shortening with meringue powder. If you’re in need of vegan frosting, you can chance it with half vegan butter and half shortening or try the all-shortening route (with the meringue powder omitted) if you can get it to taste good. I’m going to add my preferred recipe below and in the notes, I will show you how to adapt the recipe for using all-shortening, making it vegan, etc. 

What is High Ratio Shortening?

When you think of shortening, what do you think of? Crisco is what I thought of before all my research into heat stable buttercream. It turns out that Crisco (and most shortening) is made with zero trans fat – in other words, it won’t add enough stability to your frosting. So in order to add that stability, you need what’s called high ratio shortening. That means the shortening has a high ratio of fat with added emulsifiers and no added salt or water. In other words, the micro emulsifiers in it help your frosting to hold more sugar and liquid and thus make it more temperature resistant. 

Unlike Crisco though, high ratio shortening can’t be found at your typical grocery store. I found this high ratio shortening on Amazon, which claims to be made specifically for cake making, but there are other brands (Sweetex is one I hear about a lot) that cake decorators use. You might be lucky and live close to a cake decorating shop that sells high ratio shortening, so check your local area to see.  

What is Meringue Powder? 

Meringue powder is basically powdered egg whites, but it also contains cornstarch, sugar for sweetness, gum arabic for thickening, and cream of tartar which helps with stabilizing. If you want to try just adding meringue powder to your buttercream without adding any shortening, add 1 Tbsp (per batch of frosting) by mixing it into the powdered sugar before adding it to the butter in the linked recipe. 

With taste and stability in mind, here’s my new go-to recipe for heat stable buttercream:

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Heat Stable Vanilla Buttercream

A tasty vanilla buttercream that stands up better to hot and humid environments. Makes enough to fill and frost a double layer cake, fill and crumb coat a triple layer cake, and frost about 20 cupcakes.

Servings 3 Cups

Ingredients

• 1/2 Cup (113g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 Cup (100g) high ratio shortening
• 3 1/2 Cups (420g) powdered sugar
• 1 Tbsp meringue powder
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp whole milk or heavy whipping cream, room temperature
• 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste

Instructions

• With a hand mixer or paddle attachment on your stand mixer, cream the butter and shortening on medium-high until it’s creamy and light (almost white) in color. About 7 minutes.
• Whisk the meringue powder into the powdered sugar. Then, with the mixer on low, add the meringue/powdered sugar mixture one cup at a time, scraping down after each addition and making sure each cup is fully incorporated before adding the next one.
• Add vanilla, milk, and salt and mix on low for another minute until fully incorporated.

Notes

Make Ahead Tips: This buttercream can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. When you’re ready to use it, bring it back to room temperature and re-whip in your stand mixer to bring back to smooth buttercream consistency. 

To Make It with Vegan Butter: substitute an equal amount of vegan butter (I love Earth Balance Sticks) for the unsalted butter, omit the meringue powder, add 1 Tbsp vanilla instead of 2 tsp, add 1 Tbsp dairy-free milk instead of 2 Tbsp whole milk (my favorite is unsweetened coconut milk), and salt to taste. 

To Make It All-Shortening: omit the butter and use 1 Cup of high ratio shortening, 1 Tbsp of vanilla (and ¼-½ tsp of any other flavorings you’d like, such as butter extract, almond extract, etc), 4 Tbsp of whole milk or non-dairy milk, and keep the salt amount the same. 

To Make It Extra White: After all ingredients have been incorporated, add 1-2 tsp of Americolor Bright White or icing whitener of your choice. 

Yield: This buttercream makes enough to:

• Frost 12-15 cupcakes with a piping bag
• Fill and crumb coat a three-layer 6-inch cake or two-layer 8-inch cake. To have enough for frosting and decorating as well, double the recipe. 

Did you try this recipe? I want to know that you think! Let me know in the comments below or feel free to tag @sugarandsparrowco on Instagram and show me. I love to see what you create! And if you have a go-to recipe for heat stable buttercream or technique that you swear by, let us all know in the comments. We’re all in this together!

The post Stable Vanilla Buttercream Recipe for Hot Weather appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

I am a firm believer that having a go-to vanilla buttercream recipe is essential for cake making, and this Vegan Vanilla Buttercream is the one I reach for when I’m in need of a trusty vegan frosting. Not only does it frost like a total dream, it also holds its shape beautifully when piped and can be easily tinted any color under the sun. Oh, did I mention it tastes amazing too? Cause that’s pretty important! 

There’s nothing complicated about this Vegan Vanilla Buttercream recipe, but the powerful vanilla flavor and silky texture make it seem complex. The truth is, I simply swapped out the dairy in my favorite (non-vegan) Vanilla Buttercream Recipe with vegan friendly ingredients and the results ended up being so perfect. It’s just four ingredients: a good vegan butter (I love Earth Balance sticks), powdered sugar, a quality vanilla extract, and your favorite unsweetened dairy-free milk. 

One of the secrets to success with this recipe is making sure your ingredients are room temperature before starting. That means you’ll need to take the non-dairy milk and vegan butter about an hour ahead of time so they can come to room temperature before you start the recipe. Want to really knock this recipe out of the park? Invest in a great quality vanilla for flavoring. You can use any kind of vanilla extract or paste, but I always use bourbon vanilla (I get mine from Trader Joe’s!) to give it a rich vanilla flavor. 

This Vegan Vanilla Buttercream is extra versatile in the sense that it can be used for filling cakes, frosting cakes extra smooth, piping cupcakes and intricate decorations, and any other kind of dessert that calls for buttercream. It’s as easy to work with as it is to make. It can be paired with any cake flavor (everything pairs well with vanilla!), but if you’re looking to make an all-vanilla cake be sure to check out my Vegan Vanilla Cake recipe! It’s a tried and true crowd pleasing combination. Enjoy!

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Vegan Vanilla Buttercream

A silky smooth, flavorful vanilla buttercream that's dairy-free and vegan! Perfect for pairing with cakes, cupcakes, and any dessert that pairs well with vanilla buttercream.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Servings 3 Cups

Ingredients

• 1 Cup (227g) vegan butter, softened to room temperature I use Earth Balance sticks
• 3 1/2 Cups (420g) powdered sugar
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 Tbsp unsweetened dairy-free milk, room temperature

Instructions

• With a hand mixer or paddle attachment on your stand mixer, cream the vegan butter on medium-high until it’s creamy and light in color. About 7 minutes. 
• With the mixer on low, add the powdered sugar one cup at a time, scraping down after each addition and making sure each cup is fully incorporated before adding the next one. 
• Add the vanilla and unsweetened dairy-free milk and mix on low for another minute until fully incorporated. 

Notes

Make Ahead Tips: This buttercream can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. When you’re ready to use it, bring it back to room temperature and re-whip in your stand mixer to bring back to smooth buttercream consistency. 

Dairy-Free Milk Suggestions: My favorites to use with this recipe are unsweetened coconut milk and unsweetened soy milk. You are free to use any dairy-free milk you’d like, but make sure you like the taste of whatever milk option you choose, as it will end up flavoring the buttercream. 

To Make It Extra White: After all ingredients have been incorporated, add 1-2 tsp of Americolor Bright White or icing whitener of your choice.  

Yield: This buttercream makes enough to:

• Frost 12-15 cupcakes with a piping bag
• Fill and crumb coat a three-layer 6-inch cake or two-layer 8-inch cake. To have enough for frosting and decorating as well, double the recipe. 

Did you make this Vegan Vanilla Buttercream? I want to know what you think and how you used it! Let me know in the comments below and feel free to tag @sugarandsparrowco in your Instagram photos to show me. I love seeing what you create!

The post Vegan Vanilla Buttercream Recipe appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

I’m excited to share everything I know about coloring buttercream with you, especially because how I achieve buttercream colors has been one of my most frequently asked questions over the years. I’ve got all the info you need below, but first, here’s a video to walk you through all of the products I love and helpful tips for getting those colors spot on: 

Want to see more Cake Basics videos like this one? Head to my YouTube Channel to see the growing collection. You’ll also find tons of cake recipes and decorating videos there to inspire you and broaden your skill set – be sure to hit the subscribe button so you never miss a new one!

My Favorite Products:

Although I definitely started out with those liquidy primary food colors you can get in the baking aisle of any grocery store, over the years I’ve learned that using gel-based food colors make a world of difference. Here are the ones I have come to depend on and will be taking about throughout this post:

Americolor Soft Gel Paste Kits: these water-based gels are the best there is (in my opinion). They’re super concentrated, so you don’t need to use a whole lot to get rich colors. They also don’t affect the taste or consistency of your buttercream, and they come in pretty much every color you could imagine – you won’t ever have to worry about mixing custom colors. 

If you’re serious about your buttercream color palettes, I highly recommend getting either the Nifty Fifty Kit or Heavenly Seventy Kit. Like the names suggest, the Nifty Fifty comes with 50 gel colors and the Heavenly Seventy comes with 70 gel colors. Of course, you can purchase any Americolor gel on its own (they come in a few different sized bottles), but it’s always ideal and inspiring to have an entire kit full of color gels on hand. 

Americolor Bright White: whether I want my buttercream to be extra white for frosting a cake or I need to whiten it before adding color (we’ll get to the importance of that below), my favorite icing whitener is hands-down Americolor Bright White. If you’ve ever struggled with buttercream that is too yellow for your liking, I recommend keeping a big bottle of this on hand. 

Wilton Color Right Food Coloring System: If you’re not ready to invest in a big kit of Americolor gels and don’t want to keep buying colors one-by-one, the Wilton Color Right Food Coloring System is wonderful. It comes with eight water-based gels that you can mix with one another to create custom colors. Again, these are super concentrated and don’t affect the taste of your buttercream. The only thing I’ll mention with these is that you’ll need to know some basic color theory to achieve the colors you want (I’ll give you a mini lesson below!). 

I do realize there are other brands and types of food coloring products out there, but the ones above are the ones I reach for on the daily and are responsible for all the color palettes I’ve been able to create. So with these in mind, read on for everything I know about creating colorful buttercream. 

My Best Tips for Getting the Colors You Want:

1. Consider Your Buttercream Type

First, let’s talk about the type of buttercream I’m using, because that makes a huge difference in the outcome of the color. I use this buttercream recipe for everything I do, which is an American buttercream. Of all the buttercream types, American buttercream is the easiest to color and achieve rich, dark hues with minimal product. 

Other types of buttercream, such as Swiss Meringue or other meringue-based buttercreams, don’t take color as easily due to the high fat content not being as compatible with water-based gels. This may mean either the need to use more product, use different types of product (such as oil-based gels), wait longer for the color to develop and deepen, or use alternative methods of coloring the buttercream. I’ve never worked with any other type of buttercream before, so if Swiss Meringue (or another type) is your go-to, you may need to research the best methods and products to use for what you’re working with. 

2. Start with the Right Base Color 

Remember those elementary school lessons about colors? Yellow + blue = green and so on? Well along these same lines, when coloring buttercream it’s important to know that whatever color your buttercream is to start with (aka the base color) will mix with any color you add, which has a huge effect on the final color. To get the purest color palettes, you’ll want to start with a white buttercream, because white + any color = that same color (which intensifies as you add more color).

My go-to vanilla buttercream recipe is pretty pale in tone to begin with and easy to mix with colors, but if you’re starting with a more yellow-toned buttercream, that yellow color will mix with whatever color you add to it. To combat this, you’ll need a good icing whitener like the Americolor Bright White mentioned above. I add a teaspoon or two to each batch of my buttercream at the very end of the recipe, make sure it’s mixed in well, and just look at the difference it makes: 

It’s totally fine to start with yellowish buttercream if the end result of your coloring session will be in the yellow-toned family (yellow, orange, lime green, etc), but just keep in mind that the base color will affect the end result. Other than that, the only time I recommend not starting with white buttercream is if you need to achieve the colors black, deep burgundy, or dark brown. In those cases, always start with chocolate buttercream because it’s much easier to go from brown to black (and so on) than it is to go from white to black. 

3. Start Small

It takes practice to know how much buttercream you’ll need for different scenarios – what amount is ideal for filling and frosting a cake? Or for the final frosting layer on top of a crumb coated cake? Or for just a few buttercream flowers? Because those amounts vary so greatly, it’s almost impossible to come up with a “recipe” (or how many drops to use) for different color intensities.

I will say that the smaller the amount of buttercream you start with, the smaller the amount of color gel you’ll need to use to get a rich color. That being said, if you’re going for a pastel color and starting with a small amount, it’s also easy to add too much color gel and go overboard. Once you have the amount of buttercream measured out, the best way to approach coloring buttercream is start with a small amount of gel to see what color you end up with and go from there. 

To demonstrate, I’ve got two bowls here with about ½ Cup of buttercream each. I’ll start by adding about half a drop of Fuchsia color gel to the bowl on the right and mixing it all together. 

After mixing it all together, I can see we end up with a super slight pink color and can feel more comfortable adding one more drop to achieve a Fuchsia pastel.

Now I’ll double the amount (so, three drops) to the bowl on the left to show you how quickly this color can intensify. 

The more buttercream you have, the more drops you’ll need to use to intensify or darken the color. Because of this, you’ll just need to practice and be sure to always start with a tiny bit of gel unless you want a super dark color to begin with. 

4. Allow Time for Colors to Deepen

Not only does the color get richer and richer the more color gel you add, it’s also important to know that these colors will actually darken a little more over time. Again, this is going to take some practice and patience, but just look at how these Fuchsia colors from the above example have darkened after 15 minutes:

And then after 30 minutes: 

So whether you’re going for a dark color or not, be sure to factor in that the color will most likely get a little bit darker over time. 

5. Study Up on Color Theory

Especially if you’re mixing custom colors, knowing a thing or two about color theory will make you so much more confident. Here’s a great article that covers the basics, like what happens when you mix certain colors together and how to make a color warmer or cooler. The Wilton Color Right Food Coloring System that I mentioned in my “favorite products” section above comes with eight different color gels that you can mix together to create certain shades. It even comes with a handy little guide on how to make certain colors, but I still think it’s really important to know color theory, because sometimes the color you mix up is just a little off and knowing color theory will help you learn how to fix it. 

To demonstrate, I’ll show you how I would create a few different variations of purple buttercream starting with one drop of pink and one drop of blue. Notice that we end up with a cool-toned purple pastel color: 

The more blue you add to this color, the cooler it will be and the more pink you add, the warmer it will be. I want a warmer toned purple, so I’m going to add another drop of pink. See how the tone of the color changes? 

Now that I have a sort of “recipe” for this color, I can darken it by adding another round – one drop of blue and two drops of pink. I’ll keep doing this, adjusting the tone as necessary, until I end up with the color I’m going for – all the while knowing that time will intensify the color. 

If you’re ever stumped on how to mix a certain color, you can always Google how to make it as well. There are a lot of painting and art websites that will note the different colors that make up a turquoise blue or a forest green, so if you just Google things like “how to mix (name of color)” the results may be art-related but so helpful! 

6. Learn How to Lighten Colors 

Just in case you made a color and realized that after time it’s too dark or not right in some other way, having a little extra white buttercream or Americolor Bright White around is a life saver. Mixing in a little bit of white buttercream or icing whitener will help lighten the color so you can achieve the shade you were wanting to begin with instead of having to start from scratch. 

I hope all of this is helpful for your buttercream color palettes! It really does open up a whole new world of creativity when you have a great buttercream recipe, the right products, and know how to use them. So excited for you to explore some new possibilities with colors! 

Want more Cake Basics? Head here to see all of the posts and learn the methods of caking I’ve come to love over the years. I’m cheering you on every step of the way!

The post A Guide to Coloring Buttercream Frosting appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

If you’re reading this, chances are you love coffee as much as I do (or you’re here for a coffee loving friend). I don’t know about your city’s coffee situation, but we Portlanders are spoiled when it comes to good coffee. I wouldn’t call myself a coffee connoisseur per se, but I know what a good cup tastes like. So when I set out to configure the perfect coffee layer cake recipe, I wanted to capture the rich and aromatic flavor of the good stuff. The only way to do that is to use rich and aromatic coffee beans in the recipe!

It all starts with a delicious cup of coffee. The best part about this is you can make yourself an extra cup or two for sipping while you start whipping things together. I really love these Blue Bottle Coffee beans, because the combination of Congolese and Ethiopian beans produce a chocolatey aroma with undertones of blueberry and cardamom. Sounds delicious, right? Just keep in mind that whatever beans you choose will flavor the cake, so choose wisely! PS: isn’t it the best coincidence that my cake ended up matching my favorite coffee mug ever? 

The texture of the cake is super soft thanks to cake flour (makes for ultra-fluffy cakes!) and a little brown sugar and sour cream for extra moisture. To bring out the richness of the coffee flavor, I’ve paired this coffee layer cake with a vanilla espresso buttercream and a chocolate ganache drip. The hint of chocolate ganache adds the perfect amount of depth to balance out the coffee flavors, and I can’t tell you how much I love the vanilla espresso buttercream. It’s basically my classic vanilla buttercream recipe with instant espresso powder added, but it ended up looking so pretty with the little flecks of espresso and tasting like a dream. 

For garnish, I’ve used some chocolate covered espresso beans and these Speculoos cookies from Trader Joe’s ground into crumbs. If you’ve had these yummy cookies before you know they were made for pairing with coffee! They’re crispy caramelized cookies with a spiced cinnamon flavor, making them perfect for coffee dunking (or coffee cake decorating!). And thanks to these flavor choices, I ended up stumbling upon the most delicious snack ever: spread some vanilla espresso buttercream onto a Speculoos cookie, top with another cookie, and eat it like a sandwich. Heaven, y’all. 

Whether you need something sweet to add to your brunch table or you just love coffee-flavored things, this cake will make you oh so happy.

Update 2021: I scaled this recipe down to make enough batter for three 6-inch cake pans or two 8-inch cake pans (the most requested sizes). Enjoy!

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Coffee Layer Cake With Vanilla Espresso Buttercream

Layers of moist, flavorful coffee cake with decadent vanilla espresso buttercream

Prep Time 45 minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 25 minutes

Servings 15 slices

Ingredients

Coffee Layer Cake

• 2 3/4 Cups (290g) cake flour, sifted before measuring*
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp instant espresso powder
• 3/4 Cup (170g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 Cup (205g) granulated white sugar
• 1/3 cup (65g) packed brown sugar
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1/2 cup (120g) sour cream, room temperature
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 Cup (120ml) whole milk, room temperature
• 1/2 Cup (120ml) strong coffee, room temperature

Vanilla Espresso Buttercream

• 2 cups (452g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 8 cups (960g) powdered sugar
• 4 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 Tbsp (45ml) whole milk, room temperature
• 1 Tbsp instant espresso powder
• 1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

Make The Cake

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare three 6-inch or two 8-inch cake pans by spraying the sides with a cooking spray (Baker's Joy is my favorite) and a wax paper circle fitted to the bottom of the pan. Alternatively, you can grease and lightly flour the pans.
• Sift the cake flour and then measure by spooning and leveling it in your measuring cup. Add the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and espresso powder into a bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside. Combine the whole milk and coffee in a small container and set aside.
• In the bowl of your stand mixer (a handheld mixer works fine too!), cream the butter for on high for two minutes until it’s light and fluffy. Add in white and brown sugars and continue to mix on high for another two minutes, scraping down the bowl and paddle as needed. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition. Add vanilla and sour cream and mix for one minute on high, scraping down the bowl and paddle once more. 
• With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Add the coffee and whole milk mixture and mix until just incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and give it a few stirs to make sure there are no lumps. Batter will be slightly thick, but pourable.
• Pour batter evenly into prepared cake pans (about 2/3 of the way full) and bake for 35-40 minutes. They’re done when they spring back to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pan for five minutes before turning them out onto a wire rack for an additional few hours of cooling. Make sure they’re entirely room temperature before applying any frosting.

Make The Vanilla Espresso Buttercream

• In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter on med-high until light and fluffy (about 5 minutes), scraping down bowl and paddle a few times in between.
• Add powdered sugar a few cups at a time, scraping down bowl and paddle between intervals. Mix on medium until fully incorporated. 
• Turn mixer to low and add vanilla and milk. Mix on medium for one minute. Scrape down bowl and paddle and add the instant espresso powder and salt. Mix for another minute on medium until incorporated.

Assembly

• Torte each layer to desired height. Fill the first layer with vanilla espresso buttercream and place the second layer on top. Fill the second layer with vanilla espresso buttercream before placing the final layer on top. Crumb coat with vanilla espresso buttercream and place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to chill before frosting with a final layer of vanilla espresso buttercream.
• Decorate however you wish. I’ve chosen to decorate with a chocolate ganache drip, a few swirls on top with Wilton tip 1M, and garnish with crushed Speculoos cookies and chocolate covered espresso beans. 

Notes

*DIY Cake Flour Recipe: To make your own cake flour, spoon and level one cup of all-purpose flour and remove 2 Tbsp. Add 2 Tbsp of cornstarch. Repeat per the amount of cake flour you need, then sift the flour and cornstarch mixture 4 times (don’t skip that step!). After sifting, spoon and level to re-measure the amount of cake flour you need.

Make ahead tip: These cakes can be baked, cooled, wrapped in plastic wrap, and left out at room temperature up to two days ahead of decorating. Unfrosted cake layers can be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and stored in the freezer for up to two months before thawing and frosting.

The buttercream can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. When you’re ready to use it, bring it back to room temperature and re-whip with your stand mixer. 

Disclaimer: this post does contain some affiliate links, meaning I may receive a small commission if you click them and purchase items I’ve recommended. Using these links won’t cost you any extra money, but they do help to keep Sugar & Sparrow up and running. Thank you for your support!

Did you make this cake? I want to know how you liked it! Let me know in the comments below or tag me on Instagram so I can see your coffee-infused creation!

The post Coffee Layer Cake With Vanilla Espresso Buttercream appeared first on Sugar & Sparrow.

I’ve tested a ton of buttercream recipes in my day, but my go-to is a super simple American buttercream recipe that I’ve tweaked to my liking. I’ve used this recipe for frosting countless cakes and cupcakes and I’m a big believer that a good vanilla buttercream is something every baker should have in their recipe box. There’s nothing fancy about the way this recipe is made, but it will certainly taste like you whipped up something special!

Making sure you use a good quality vanilla extract or paste is one of the secrets to success. You can use any kind of vanilla extract or paste, but I always use bourbon vanilla (I get mine from Trader Joe’s!) to give it a rich vanilla flavor. The other secret to success? Room temperature everything. That means taking the milk and butter out and letting them come to room temperature for about a half hour to an hour before you start any mixing. 

Here’s a quick video I whipped up to show you my method for making this buttercream recipe and all my tips for success:

I’ve got more recipe videos like this one + some fun cake decorating tutorials on my YouTube channel if you want to see some more! I’m always rolling out new videos, so click the subscribe button while you’re there to ensure you never miss a new one.

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Vanilla Buttercream

A rich, flavorful vanilla buttercream that is so easy to whip up, but tastes like you made something special. 

Prep Time 20 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Servings 3 cups

Ingredients

• 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3 1/2 cups (420g) powdered sugar, sifted
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp whole milk or heavy whipping cream, room temperature
• 1/4 tsp salt, or to taste

Instructions

• With a hand mixer or paddle attachment on your stand mixer, cream the butter on medium-high until it’s creamy and light (almost white) in color. About 7 minutes. 
• With the mixer on low, add the sifted powdered sugar one cup at a time, scraping down after each addition and making sure each cup is fully incorporated before adding the next one. 
• Add vanilla, milk, and salt and mix on low for another minute until fully incorporated. 

Notes

Make Ahead Tips: This buttercream can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. When you’re ready to use it, bring it back to room temperature and re-whip in your stand mixer to bring back to smooth buttercream consistency. 

To Make It Vegan: substitute an equal amount of vegan butter (I love Earth Balance Sticks) for the unsalted butter, use 1 Tbsp dairy-free milk instead of 2 Tbsp whole milk (my favorite is unsweetened coconut milk), and omit the salt. 

To Make It Extra White: After all ingredients have been incorporated, add 1-2 tsp of Americolor Bright White or icing whitener of your choice.  

Yield: This buttercream makes enough to:

• Frost 12-15 cupcakes with a piping bag
• Fill and crumb coat a three-layer 6-inch cake or two-layer 8-inch cake. To have enough for frosting and decorating as well, double the recipe. 

Tips for the best buttercream consistency

There are three types of consistency for buttercream that you need to know, and each one plays a different role in cake decorating.

Medium Consistency

This is the most versatile of all consistencies. It works perfectly as a filling between layers, crumb coating, frosting a cake (especially if you want a smooth buttercream finish), and even decorating cupcakes with simple piping tips. This buttercream recipe is medium consistency as-is, so it’s super easy to spread smoothly onto cakes. To test and make sure you’ve got a medium consistency going, you should be able to dip your rubber spatula into the buttercream and it will come out with soft peaks and spread easily when you move your finger over it.

Thin Consistency

This is the perfect consistency for painting with buttercream or writing a message on your cake. To achieve it, just add 1-2 additional teaspoons of room temperature milk to thin out the buttercream. 

Stiff Consistency

If you’re piping buttercream flowers, especially ones with petals that need to stand upright, you’ll need a stiff consistency. Add an extra 1/2 cup of powdered sugar per batch of the above recipe to achieve this. When you dip your rubber spatula into the frosting, it should come out with stiff peaks, but when you pipe with it, make sure it’s not so thick that you have to put a ton of extra pressure on the bag or clog the piping tip. If you’re running into these problems, fear not! You can tone it down by adding room temperature whole milk, 1 tsp at a time, until it’s just right.

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