Easy Buttercream Recipe for Flower Piping
Rich, stable buttercream that pipes beautifully for creating detailed flower decorations. This recipe produces the perfect consistency for roses, leaves, and intricate piping work that holds its shape.
Equipment
- kitchen scale
- measuring spoons
- kitchenaid stand mixer
- spatula
Ingredients
- 500 g butter *
- 1 kg powdered sugar
- 1-2 tsp hot water *
- 2-3 tsp vanilla extract or flavoring of choice
Instructions
- Let butter sit out at room temperature for at least 1 hour
- Cut butter into smaller pieces and put into mixing bowl, or stand mixer
- Beat butter until smooth and starts to stick to the side of the bowl *500 g butter *
- Gradually add icing sugar *1 kg powdered sugar
- Beat butter and icing sugar on medium until combined
- Add flavoring2-3 tsp vanilla extract or flavoring of choice
- Add 1 tsp of hot water, add more until you reach a medium consistency1-2 tsp hot water *
- Turn speed down to low on mixer and mix for 5 minutes
Notes
- You can use unsalted butter or salted - or do half and half. It all depends on how sweet you want the final buttercream to taste. I find salted butter can even out the sweetness of the sugar. But if you want to control the amount of salt added, use unsalted and add 1 tsp of salt.
- Sifting the icing sugar isn't 100% necessary, you can ultimately achieve the same buttercream without doing so. Sometimes I sift, sometimes I don't...just depends how I feel that day. Do what works for you.
- The amount of water and/or butter added will be dependent on your environment. Dryer and cooler environments may need more. The buttercream should be smooth but firm enough to hold it's shape, but not too firm that it is hard to pipe. Aim for a medium consistency!
- Mixing the buttercream on low for a few minutes after everything is incorporated can help eliminate some air that was introduced during the initial mixing process.