Almost two years ago, I made a wedding cake for my good friend and frosted it with cream cheese Swiss meringue buttercream. The cake turned out great, but the frosting was another story. Turns out that cream cheese doesn’t work so well as a replacement for butter, which I realized after having made two giant batches of frosting, posting about it, and then having it go all weird and curdled when I actually tried to frost the cake with it. It was so unsuccessful that I wouldn’t recommend the recipe to anyone, but it is obviously a topic of interest to many because that post generates a lot of traffic for my blog.
Luckily for me, I got this tip in the comments on the post: for successful cream cheese Swiss meringue buttercream, you have to mix already-made SMBC into whipped cream cheese. I definitely wanted to try it, and I finally got the chance this month with the Beet Red Velvet Cake I made for the Daring Bakers’ challenge. I am thrilled to announce that IT WORKED and tasted amazing! 😀
Cream Cheese Swiss Meringue Buttercream Frosting
This method (adapted from Beyond Buttercream/FromScratchSF‘s tip – big thank you!!) can be adapted to use with any SMBC recipe, in any amount – just add it to whipped cream cheese in a ratio of 100% SMBC to 75-80% cream cheese by weight. For example, the SMBC recipe below (adapted from Cooks Illustrated) weighs about 12 oz, so I added 8 oz of cream cheese. This will give you just enough frosting to fill and frost this 6-inch, 4 layer Beet Red Velvet Cake, but you might want to triple the recipe below for an 8- or 9-inch cake.
(Update 29/09/2015: as pointed out by a commenter, I actually used a ratio of 66% cream cheese in the recipe below, when I thought I was using about 80% (math fail – d’oh!) – however the original tip I got alerting me to this method specified 80% cream cheese to 100% SMBC, so that number is still good. Even with only 66% cream cheese, it was still plenty cream cheese-y tasting!)
In the heat-proof bowl of an electric mixer, combine:
2 egg whites
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
Place the bowl over a pot of gently simmering water and heat the egg white-sugar mixture, whisking constantly, until the sugar is completely dissolved and the mixture is hot to the touch, about 160˚F.
Attach the bowl to the mixer base and beat the mixture with the whisk attachment on medium speed until foamy, then increase the speed to medium-high and beat until you get a stiff-peaked meringue. If the meringue is still warmer than room temperature, reduce the speed to low and stir until completely cool.
Meanwhile, cut 1 cup of unsalted butter into cubes and let it come to room temperature while the meringue whips. The butter should be a spreadable consistency and not melty in any way.
Add the butter, cube by cube, to the meringue, stirring on low speed. The meringue will fall and start to look curdled, but keep adding the butter and stirring and it will come together into a fluffy frosting. Scrape the frosting into a different bowl and set aside.
In the mixer bowl, whip until very light and fluffy:
8 oz softened cream cheese
Scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl several times with a spatula to make sure it is thoroughly whipped.
One spoonful at a time, gradually add the SMBC to the whipped cream cheese, stirring on medium-low speed. Once combined, the frosting should be like softly whipped cream. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until the frosting is like stiffly whipped cream. Add a dash of vanilla and a pinch of salt. You can use the frosting right away, or chill it to firm up a bit (re-whip before using).
YES PLEASE… That is seriously impressive (and rather imposing)
I’m sooo glad you posted this recipe. I’ve had just an awful time with Swiss Meringue Buttercreams, never mind the cream cheese, and wondered why. I think I skipped the step of having the meringue cool down before adding the butter.. and maybe my butter was too soft.. so it never held it’s shape. xx
It’s tricky, because a lot of recipes don’t go into the details… especially the too soft butter part, that can be a killer. But once you figure it out, it’s so good! And actually pretty simple 🙂
This looks amazing but not so easy! Love challenging projects!
Oh, I am *so* going to try this! It looks amazing! 🙂
Thanks for sharing your tips! I have yet to try cream cheese SMB but it sounds heavenly and yours looks like it turned out so well this time around that I will have to give it a try soon 🙂
Are those hot cross buns I see on your dining table? 😛
😉
Wow a quadrouple decker cake! Yum. I also always have problems with the humidity in Hong Kong and having things go runny or melt or just don’t turn out right. I guess I need to start running the aircon when I make cakes and the frosting! Yours turned out perfect!
Thanks Bobbi 🙂
if i am going to use this as cupcake frosting, how many (regular 3oz.) cupcakes can this recipe frost?
Hi Klaudine, the Swiss meringue buttercream I used as the base for this makes enough frosting for 12 cupcakes, so with the added cream cheese you could probably frost 18 cupcakes – perhaps not with big swirls of frosting, but a nice thick smear on top. Let me know how it goes!
Hi there…would you say the consistency was good enough for piping? Thank you.
Hi Ann Marie, it’s a little softer than regular Swiss meringue buttercream but yes, you should be able to pipe this frosting – just make sure you whip it until it’s like stiffly whipped cream after you combine the cream cheese and buttercream (it will be quite soft at first).
Thank you for your prompt response! I look forward to trying this!
Let me know how it goes 🙂
Hi Korena, Thanks so much for sharing the cream cheese SMBC recipe, it tasted great and was very smooth! I added a fair bit of lemon juice which made it a tad tangy and sweet at the same time. However, I could not get it to piping consistency no matter how long I paddle-whip it. I used 80% cream cheese to SMBC ratio, I wonder if perhaps I should reduce the cream cheese portion or the weather in tropical Singapore is just way too hot, it’s 31C here on average.
Hi Corrine, awesome that you tried this out! The heat might have been the problem – sometimes putting it in the fridge to chill for a bit can help, and using less cream cheese would probably help too. 🙂
Thanks so much for this recipe! I’ve made a lot of SMBC since discovering it’s light and tasty goodness a few years ago but I’ve not found a recipe for the cream cheese version – yet. I often make cupcakes ahead of time for special occasions and pipe the SMBC on then pop them in the freezer until I need them; do you think the cream cheese SMBC would do it just as well as regular?
Hi – yes, I think this cream cheese version would do just as well as the regular version for freezing. That said, please let me know how it turns out if you try it! 🙂
How well do you thinks this would travel? I have a red velvet grooms cake to make that will be covered in fondant and then transported about 2 hours away…. I’ll have the AC on in my car…but it is Texas here and always on the warm side…. I’ve never had much luck with regular cream cheese icing holding up in our heat so wondering if this one will make it as well. Also, what is the least about of cream cheese you recommend using? what about a cream cheese and cream cheese flavoring blend? Thanks for the info in advance!
OK, let me preface this by saying that I’ve only made this particular cream cheese SMBC once, but I do have some advice based on other experience:
1) In general, SMBC and heat don’t mix very well – if the butter gets too soft, then the frosting falls apart. Add cream cheese to the mix and it might be risky, but if you could keep the frosted cake cool enough (ie, with lots of AC), then it would probably be OK to travel.
2) You could probably use 50-60% cream cheese (rather than 75-80%) and add some cream cheese flavouring if needed, but in that case you might as well just make a regular SMBC and add the flavouring to it – it might be sturdier. The higher water content in the cream cheese does make the frosting softer than regular SMBC.
I hope that is helpful! I would recommend making a small test batch, if possible, to see how it holds up in the Texas heat and whether or not it would be sturdy enough for your purposes! Please let me know how it turns out, either way 🙂
Hi Korena, I’m planning to coat a wedding cake with your Cream Cheese Swiss Meringue buttercream recipe then Fondant on top. Do you think this will work out? Do I need to refrigerate the whole cake Or can i leave it out in room temperature? Fondant does not do well in the fridge. Im just worried. Don’t want the guests (including me) to get food poisoning. Thanks
Hi Emkay, just be aware that this frosting is a little bit softer than regular Swiss Meringue Buttercream, but it should be fine under fondant. It should also be fine kept at room temperature – SMBC is best served at room temp anyway, otherwise it gets too hard in the fridge. As long as you handle the ingredients in a food safe way, I think it will be OK. Good luck and please let me know how it turns out! 🙂
Ok I have some tips on the Cream Cheese SMB.
It’s important to whisk your eggs in a glass or metal heat safe bowl as recommended. It will save a lot of time if that isn’t your mixing bowl. Transfer the mixture to your mixing bowl from the bowl you whisked in over the water. Then beat on low for a minute and send it to a higher speed. Of course, beat till the mixture is cool. You can refrigerate your mixing bowl a head of time to help.
I let my butter set out for several hours then I cut it into tbls and put it back in the fridge for about 10 to 15 minutes till the outside of the pads of butter are cool but the center is soft. There should be no sheen to the butter if there is put it back in the fridge for a few more minutes.
After your whites have formed stiff peaks and have a sheen add the pads of butter one at a time mixing on a low speed for 10 sec then medium speed for another 10 sec between adding each pad. Make sure after each two pads that you stop your mixer and scrap the side of your bowl. Also scrape out your beaters halfway through adding your pads. Your SMB should not separate. After all the pads are added just let it whip on a med to high speed for a couple of min. This takes more time. But I have NEVER had my SMB go through a period of separation.
After the SMB is whipped and fluffy let it set happy on the counter in your mixer. Meantime cut up the cream cheese into tbls size chunks and set it in the fridge for 10 to 15min or until the outside is cool and the center still soft. Then repeat the same process with the pads of cream cheese as above with the butter pads. The next tip is important! Use a flexible freezer polar pack to rub the outside of your bowl while your mixer is mixing each pad of cream cheese. This will prevent the mixture from becoming too warm so the fats won’t separate. Make sure to patiently add each pad, slowly adding at 20 sec intervals. Always start the mixer SLOW and then only speed up to med. Always scrape the bowl every two pads.
After it is all combine give it a good one minute whip and then add your vanilla. I’m not crazy about the salt. I’m fan of sweeter frosting so I add powdered sugar one tbls at time to taste. If your having issues with the stiffness of the mixture try adding a little meringue powder when you add powdered sugar.
I not a blogger but I was reading this recipe for the ratios of ingredients and I thought I would offer some advice. I hope that’s ok. 🙂
Hi Emmy, your advice is appreciated, thanks! That’s a great idea to refrigerate the mixing bowl before transferring the warm egg whites to it. You are also absolutely right that adding the butter very slowly and mixing fully after each addition will prevent it from separating (though I just want to add: to anyone reading this looking for helpful tips, if your SMBC does separate and curdle, just keep mixing it until it comes back together!). As for the cream cheese, I’ve done it both ways – adding it square by square to the frosting as you suggest, and also creaming it separately and adding the frosting to it spoonful by spoonful as I direct in this recipe… In my experience, adding the cream cheese to the frosting square by square didn’t work out at all, but that might have been a recipe/ratio fault as well. Anyway, I’m sure your advice and experience will be helpful to someone reading these comments!
Korena,
You are right, SMBC doesn’t play well with others. So its definitely good to point out that separation in mixing doesn’t mean a divorce from your Frosting. 🙂
All cheesiness aside. The Flexible Polar/Freezer Pack being rubbed on the outside of the bowl while mixing is my best key tip.
Thanks for accepting my post.
😀
Hi korena, I made the this buttercream but it turned out soupy so I let it sit in the refrigerator for a while before rewhipping it. If its still soupy what shd I do? Maybe I added too much c.c.? How do I save this ? I defintely do not want to throw it out! Shd I add more butter? Help!!!!!!!
Hi Izzy,
Ack, soupy buttercream is no fun! It might have something to do with the moisture content of the cream cheese… If it’s still soupy after chilling and re-whipping, perhaps try whipping up some unsalted butter until very fluffy and then add the soupy buttercream little by little…
The first time I made cream cheese SMBC, it was really soupy, but I still managed to frost the wedding cake I was making by spreading on thin layers of frosting and chilling it, then repeating to build up the frosting in layers. Hopefully it doesn’t come to that!!
Good luck. My fingers are crossed for you!
Ok some good news.. after some refrigeration.. and whipping it it becomes thick..but it looks curdled!!! I suspect because its too cold? Shd i microwave part of it and whip again? This is very sad!
Update : i just microwaved 1/4 of it for 10 s and whipped in the rest. Awesome it all came together! Thks korena!! Btw the magical frosting frm bakingamoment is awesome too.. to the rest.. dont give up!
Oh YAY! I’m so glad to hear that it worked out 🙂 It’s a temperamental thing but I hope it was worth it! 🙂
Hello korena! I have made Swiss buttercream, now, I am experimenting with flavours. I would love to make your cream cheese buttercream. Can I replace the butter with cream cheese? What I want to say is that, I want to make the whole thing with cream cheese and without butter. There will be no trace of butter. If I replace the butter with cream cheese, will my buttercream split? I am asking it because, butter n cream cheese are two different things. Than you
Hi Rand! I would NOT recommend replacing all the butter with cream cheese. There is too much water and not enough fat in cream cheese alone to make a SMBC that doesn’t split – you really do need the fat from the butter in there for it to work! The way this particular recipe works is to add SMBC (made with butter) to whipped cream cheese, in a ratio of 100% SMBC to 75-80% cream cheese (for example, 10 oz SMBC plus 7.5-8 oz cream cheese). It tastes plenty cream cheese-y, if that’s what you’re wondering about 🙂 I hope you give this a try – let me know how it works out!
Hahaha you read my mind, I was wondering if it was going to be cream cheese-y enough. I will give this recipe a try. I would like to use this recipe on red velvet n as a filling for roll cakes n many more. Thank you!!!!
Glad to clear that up for you! This frosting isn’t quite as thick as all-butter SMBC, but it held up pretty well on a cake.
Hi Korena,
I finally managed to do up a batch of pipe-able SMBC! It was stiff enough, just somewhat less stiff than SMB itself but good enough.
I didn’t cream my CC enough for my 1st batch though and it has little icky bits of cream cheese that refuses to melt even after microwaving, whipping, chilling, whipping. =( Has to toss that away, it was an absolute gooey mess. My 2nd batch turned out beautifully. Thanks very much for your clear instructions and all the comments helped alot, so I thought I will share my experience too.
After making the SMB, I left it in the fridge to harden so it’s cold when I added it bit by bit to the whipped CC, which I thought could be one of the factors to having a pipe-able SMBC. Just right after they are combined, I added 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and paddled it on med-high speed for a short while and it’s ready to be piped. I used 50% CC which lends a beautiful cheesy taste yet remains smooth and light in texture, which I much preferred over the usual cream cheese-butter-icing sugar frosting.
Thanks for the update, Corrine! Sorry about your first batch – I always hate to waste ingredients like that 🙁 I’m so glad the second batch worked out! Great to hear that it was pipeable, and I’m sure your tips will be a big help to someone 🙂 (I think using a smaller amount of cream cheese makes a difference – less water from the cream cheese means a less runny/more pipeable frosting.)
I learned how to make SMF from this site. For years, I really never put thought into frosting types and glad that I have. This is such an easy recipe and taste so much better than standard buttercream. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks for your comment – I’m glad you found this post helpful 🙂
Could I make a white chocolate SMB and add the whipped cream cheese to it? Or, would it be better to just make a white chocolate SMB and flavor it with that Red Velvet flavoring? Has anyone ever tried that stuff?
I think you could make a white chocolate SMBC and add the whipped cream cheese to it, no problem. In fact, the white chocolate might even stabilize the frosting a bit… I’ve never tried the Red Velvet flavouring myself, but I can tell you that this frosting is delicious!
Has anyone tried to torch this icing? Wondering if it would hold up to that for a great presentation?
Torch it like a meringue? I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t work very well, unfortunately – too soft and melty, and I don’t know how tasty torched cream cheese would be. I would go with a straight Swiss meringue (not a buttercream) or a 7-minute frosting/boiled icing for torching 🙂
I’m presently chilling my batch. It’s the consistency of pea soup at the moment. Not good. I have made swiss buttercream many times with great success. I am hopeful that this cake will be salvageable but felt it was worth warning others that, if you need a stiff buttercream, this is not a good candidate. The flavor is absolutely delicious and the family has enjoyed eating it with a spoon. I will keep my fingers crossed an update my comment if it works out
Oh, I have my fingers crossed for you too. I think the brand of cream cheese you use can also be a factor in the thickness of the frosting, and some sources I’ve read say that the more you beat cream cheese, the runnier it becomes. I recently had a fail with an attempted Italian meringue cream cheese buttercream frosting… Tempermental, this stuff! Anyway, I hope it works out for you, and if not, maybe you can make a cream cheese frosting trifle? :S
I can’t make cream cheese itailan buttercream work for the life of me but I will try the swiss meringue to see if I have any luck. Let me know if you get the IBC to work!
It was weird – I’m not sure why the IMBC didn’t work, but it was super soft and runny. Good luck with the SMBC!
Hi,
I accidentally added 1 cup of sugar instead of a half cup. I’m obviously not thinking today (;
Will the SMBC be alright?
Thanks
Hi Charlotte, yes, it should be fine, just sweeter!
Hi Korena
I just discovered your blog a couple of weeks ago, which I have been looking at every day since! A friend has asked me to make red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese icing roses on top for her engagement party. I already have a great recipe for cream cheese icing but wondered if making your swiss meringue method would mean a firmer icing (so better roses). What do you think?
Thanks
Siri
Hi Siri, glad you stumbled across my blog! My thought is that this Swiss meringue cream cheese frosting would be a bit soft for roses… I know they require a stiffer frosting and I’m not sure this is it – you could probably pipe it, but maybe not roses. I really like this cc frosting from the Pink Whisk – it’s stiffer and would probably hold up to roses: http://www.thepinkwhisk.co.uk/2012/05/perfect-cream-cheese-frosting.html
This recipe separated after everything was in the bowl. Not sure what happened…
Hi Mandy, ugh, I’m sorry to hear that. Have you successfully made regular Swiss meringue buttercream before? It can be especially tricky with cream cheese – the higher moisture content can cause it to separate. Sometimes is just a matter of mixing it for longer, and it will eventually come together…
I have a love affair with Swiss Buttercream… 🙂 While it is so much more work than traditional American buttercream, it is so worth it! I’ve tried making many different flavors successfully: vanilla, strawberry, cherry, chocolate, salted caramel, brown sugar, coconut, Bailey’s Irish Cream and mascarpone cheese. (and others but you get the idea) The only one I haven’t been able to master is cream cheese. I’m going to try this recipe and see how it works. Thank you!
It can be tricky but this method worked for me – I hope it works for you too!
Thank you for posting this recipe and process. For years I have used an Italian Buttercream icing that is very similar. I was looking for a way to take that buttercream icing and add cream cheese to it so that I could meet my friend’s cake request. I made your version tonight and added amaretto at the end to flavor the frosting and it is delicious.
So glad to hear this method worked for you! The addition of amaretto sounds so good.
I’ve had this recipe bookmarked for some time now – and finally had occasion to make it. It’s absolutely divine! I love SMBC in all its variations, but my recipe has a bit higher butter content for the 4 whites (1 2/3 c.) but the same ratio of sugar. I use half salted and half unsalted butter, as I find unsalted way too bland, and it’s more expensive too. The frosting handles beautifully, makes a lovely smooth surface, and pipes quite well (as long as you don’t dillydally & your room is not too warm!). I also added a shot of lemon juice to heighten the tanginess. So excited to have great success with this – as I too have experienced my share of Gloppy Cream Cheese frosting nightmares (one a wedding cake yet! :-P) I wonder if Rose Levy Beranbaum knows about this one?? Thanks for a fabulous recipe!
Thanks for commenting Karin! I’m so glad to hear this frosting was a success for you. Good idea on the half unsalted/half salted butter – that is a great trick. And I imagine that using an SMBC recipe with a higher ratio of butter would make this cream cheese SMBC recipe even more stable.
Hi Korena! Will 1 batch be enough for a 2-layer, 9-inch cake (Without fondant)? Thank you!
Hi Ben – the recipe as written is enough to frost a 6″ layer cake… for the 9″ cake you describe, I’d double the recipe to be safe 🙂 Good luck!
Hi Korena, I analyzed your recipe that you used in the wedding cake and this recipe and my conclusion is, the ratios in your first recipe were simply wrong, too little sugar resulted in a meringue that was simply not strong enough to hold the butter and cheese.
The ratio for a normal SMBC should be (in grams)
1 part egg white
2 parts sugar
3 parts butter
The first recipe:
7 egg whites
1 cup + 3 tbsp granulated sugar
1 3/4 cups butter
1 3/4 cups cream cheese
when converted to grams it was
200g egg whites
250g sugar
385g butter
385g cream cheese
ratio was 1 part egg white, 1.25 part sugar, 2 parts butter
The second recipe:
2 egg whites
1/2 cup granulated sugar
8oz butter
8oz cream cheese
when converted to grams it was
60g egg whites
120g sugar
240g butter
240g cream cheese
ratio was 1 part egg white, 2 part sugar, 4 parts butter
The first recipe clearly had too little sugar in the meringue.
Also, from your blog: (This method (adapted from Beyond Buttercream/FromScratchSF‘s tip – big thank you!!) can be adapted to use with any SMBC recipe, in any amount – just add it to whipped cream cheese in a ratio of 100% SMBC to 75 – 80% cream cheese by weight. For example, the SMBC recipe below (adapted from Cooks Illustrated) weighs about 12 oz, so I added 8 oz of cream cheese.)
I found some miscalculation in there. For example, for a SMBC of 12 oz, you added 8oz of cream cheese. But 8oz was not 80% of 12 oz by weight, it was 66% only. Hence I think the ratio should be 100% SMBC to 66% of cream cheese by weight.
I am not a professional baker but I love to analyze recipes, I guess it’s just my OCD.
Cheers.
So to make the first recipe works, it should be (according to the ratio of the second recipe that you used)
7 egg whites
2 cups granulated sugar
4 cups butter
4 cups cream cheese
when converted to grams it was
200g egg whites
400g sugar
800g butter
800g cream cheese
ratio was 1 part egg white, 2 part sugar, 4 parts butter
Cheers.
To come to think of it, your first recipe other than not enough sugar, it also did not have enough butter in it. Sorry for the long comments.
Hi Nancy – wow, thanks for all that! You are right, the ratios in the first recipe were way off – I had figured it was due to not enough butter to balance out the cream cheese (which contains lots of moisture and affects the emulsion necessary for SMBC) but you are probably right about the sugar too. You are also right about the second recipe having 66% cream cheese, not 80% – I’ve updated the post to reflect the correct number. Haha, simple math is not my strongest point 😉
Great to have offered some help mathematically 😉
Cheers!
Nancy, I’m sorry, I got even way more confused with your example. So you said, 1:0.66 SMBC to cream cheese ratio or 100%:66% but how did you get that value when Korena’s new recipe above has 420g SMBC (eggs, butter, sugar) and 240g cream cheese so should it now be 100%:50% SMBC to cream cheese ratio? (1:2)??
I’m so confused. Please explain. Korena, if you can explain, that would be great as well. Thanks so much.
-Travis
Hi Travis,
In a recipe with 420 g SMBC and 240 g cream cheese, the cream cheese is approx 60% of the SMBC, not 50%. However it is not the 66% that Nancy suggests, so I’m not entirely sure what is up with the math here either. Regardless, anywhere between 50-70% cream cheese to 100% SMBC will give you a good result!
Wonder if you have any suggestion here as to my failure with a cream cheese smbc. I use smbc often and rarely have a problem. Want to surprise a customer with this version containing cc. All I have is soup. It firms when chilled but I can’t whip away the wet curdled texture after beginning with a solid velvety smbc. I have had similar problems with goat cheese addition but not this bad. I use organic brick cream cheese and wrap in paper towels before using. thanks for any recommendation.
Hi Kimberly, I have a few suggestions that might help (I hope!). First, (this may sound counter-intuitive) make sure the frosting is fully at room temperature before you try beating it… if the fats in the butter and cream cheese are too cold, they won’t emulsify with the egg whites and you’ll have curdled cream cheese soup. Second, you might try making a fresh batch of plain SMBC and then try beating in your cream cheese version a little bit at a time – this might help it hold the emulsion better. Third, I would recommend Philadephia cream cheese. I don’t know what brand you used, but Philly seems to have a pretty consistent moisture and fat level (that’s the tricky part with CC SMBC – cream cheese contains much more moisture and less fat than butter does, so you have to be careful with the substitution of one for the other). Good luck!
Awesome recipe! I made it and it tastes amazing, so light and fluffy and holds well unlike other cream cheese frosting. Only thing that went wrong was that I didn’t whip the cream cheese well enough so there were lumps in the final product, next time I will make sure to scrape the bowl as I whip the cream cheese.
So glad you liked it!
So, I’d like to thank you for this recipe. I was making a carrot cake and although I wanted a cream cheese frosting, I refuse to do powdered sugar based frostings. I adore a meringue buttercream, and this worked very well…except I didn’t find it cream cheesy enough. So I ended up whipping another 8 oz of cream cheese (and about 1/4 cup of the dreaded 10x powdered sugar) and re-incorporating the buttercream with the first 8 oz of cc back into it spoonful by spoonful. THEN it was perfect. Thank you so much.
Hi Ellen, so glad to hear this frosting was a success for you! Good call on adding a little powdered sugar to the extra cream cheese 🙂
Hi Korena,
I’ve just read from the wedding cake post to this one, I definitely identified with you. I’m not a professional baker but I love bakery, I do it as a hobbie and I’m constantly asked to make cakes for friends and family (I actually want to start my business more formally due to this). What I wanted to say is that I felt identified with you when something goes wrong with a recipe ir when things doesn’t work as you expected… it’s so frustrating but I think frustration pushes you to keep trying, it’s trial and error (I’ve always thinked that bakery/confectionery is a sciene). So reading your posts and the comments gave me a sort of comfort and I felt that I’m not the only one that feels frustaded when something goes wrong in this cakes and frostings matters haha!
Definitely I’m trying this frosting recipe I love CC frosting and SMBC is also one of my favorites. Do you think adding color is a good idea? Just out of curiosity 🙂
Thank you and regards from Mexico city!
Thabata
Hi Thabata, thanks for your comment – great to hear from another baking enthusiast and always nice to have someone commiserate with the baking fails as well as with the successes 🙂 I hope you do try this frosting recipe and have good success with it. I think it would be fine to add colour – I’d recommend using paste colour rather than liquid, because then you can add more and get a brighter colour without changing the consistency of the frosting.
Can we use Italian meringue buttercream instead of Swiss meringue buttercream
Yes, absolutely! I haven’t tried it myself but I don’t see any reason why Italian meringue buttercream wouldn’t work.
I absolutely detest regular cream cheese frosting made with powdered sugar. I tried several versions of ermine cream cheese frosting, all were fails. I am wondering if anyone has tried using a good quality powdered cream cheese (like Hoosier Farms brand) in their Swiss meringue frosting as it seems logical that it would add flavor without adding the extra moisture. Thoughts?
Hi Lisa – I have never even seen powdered cream cheese so I definitely haven’t tried it in frosting – but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work! If you give it a try, I’ve love to hear how it works out.
Hi there! I was wondering if I could make plain SMBC frosting by using cream cheese in place of butter so that it stays nice and firm. Do you think this is possible?
Hi! In my experience cream cheese on its own is too high in moisture to make a successful SMBC – you need the butter (which has less moisture and more fat) in there to get the emulsion. Hence this recipe of making a SMBC with butter and then beating in some cream cheese.
Im getting married in a week and making my cake red velvet w/ cream cheese frosting.i tried this on dome cupcakes awsome thank you thank you thank you
Awesome!! Congratulations – I hope your wedding (and cake!) is amazing!