Chocolate Ermine “Pudding” Buttercream Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between buttercream frosting and Ermine frosting? ›

How does ermine frosting differ from other frostings? Unlike Italian and French buttercreams, which are made with eggs (whites only in the case of Italian, whole eggs in the case of French) and sugar syrup, ermine frosting is egg-free, and it eliminates the fussy step of streaming hot syrup into a running mixer.

If your ermine frosting is too runny, check the temperature. If it's a warm day, the butter may have been too warm before mixing, causing the frosting to become less stable. Softened butter should land around 65 to 70°F for best results.

The secret ingredient in this recipe is time. Most people whip their butter for only a few minutes before adding in sugar, but you'll never achieve a light and airy result this way. This frosting recipe takes its literal sweet time to really incorporate as much air as possible into the butter.

Swiss meringue buttercream is silky smooth and less sweet than American buttercream. Because of the cooked sugar, it also does not form a crust and is a relatively stable style of buttercream. It is also a very pale ivory color which makes it perfect for adding color.

If it's heavy and dense, if it has a greasy texture, or if it seems curdled, it will need to be warmed and re-whipped. If it's too soft or loose to hang from a spoon without dropping, it will need to be cooled and re-whipped. These are routine adjustments, not a sign of failure.

Also more simply known as Swiss Buttercream, this buttercream is popular amongst the professionals. It is more difficult and time-consuming to create than American Buttercream, but it's silky smooth and light texture makes it worth the extra effort.

The good thing about ermine is with the minimal butter used and roux base, you get a stable buttercream that lasts longer in warmer climates. And, not only is Ermine stable but versatile too!

My Ermine Buttercream is curdled:

First, it's completely normal that at the early stage, it curdles a bit, just keep whipping. If you still have a curdle buttercream: either the pudding base or the butter was too cold. Keep whipping a little bit, and it might come together.

Frosting curdles: There's too much moisture, causing the butter to “break.” Frosting is greasy: This frosting is sensitive to heat. If you're decorating with the frosting and it starts to get soft and greasy, pop it in the refrigerator until it cools down a bit and firms up, 10-30 minutes.

Italian Meringue Buttercream

This is considered one of the very difficult methods for making buttercream because the sugar syrup must be cooked to a specific temperature and then, while piping hot, poured into the whipped egg whites.

What not to do with buttercream? ›

Yes, this is absolutely correct. The longer you beat, the more air you incorporate in your buttercream, thus, it will have lots of holes or air-pockets, it will also make the colour lighter. If you will use your buttercream primarily for filling or maybe as simple swirls, then this is ok.

It's not as sweet as American buttercream, but it isn't light and airy like meringue buttercream. The great thing about Ermine Frosting is that it is more stable than American buttercream, but you don't have to mess with eggs like the European versions.

The flavor has a bright vanilla and milky-dairy flavor with the slightest taste of butter at the end. Some describe it as similar to whipped cream. This is reasonably accurate - whipped cream is well, cream, and this frosting has a large proportion of butter and milk.

1. Swiss Meringue Buttercream. This is the Queen of Frosting. Imagine the melt-in-mouth texture of ice cream, just at room temperature.

What is ermine frosting? Ermine buttercream is a type of cake frosting that goes by many names, including boiled milk, cooked flour, heritage, or Ermine frosting. The texture and flavor of this frosting are unlike any other buttercream I've tested. It's light and fluffy with a very mild sweetness and buttery flavor.

Whipped frosting is not only a little less sweet than buttercream, but its texture is much lighter and airier. If you prefer a fluffier mouthfeel, there are plenty of opportunities to use whipped frosting on your desserts, like for a homemade birthday cake or simple cakes, such as a classic pound cake or a butter cake.