King Arthur Italian Meringue Buttercream

By efriend

Ingredients

• start the meringue, you’ll need:
• start the meringue, you’ll need:
• start the meringue, you’ll need:
• 1/2 1/2 1 8 1 powder + 1 cup water, or 8 fresh egg whites + 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/2 1/2 1 8 1 powder + 1 cup water, or 8 fresh egg whites + 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/2 1/2 1 8 1 powder + 1 cup water, or 8 fresh egg whites + 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1/4 1/4 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 1/4 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 1/4 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 1/3 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 1/3 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 1/3 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• Make the sugar syrup
• Make the sugar syrup
• Make the sugar syrup
• In a small, preferably nonstick saucepan with a pour spout, combine:
• In a small, preferably nonstick saucepan with a pour spout, combine:
• In a small, preferably nonstick saucepan with a pour spout, combine:
• 1/2 1/2 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 1/2 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 1/2 1/2 cup water
• 1 1/4 1 1/4 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 1 1/4 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 1 1/4 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• Place the pan on the stove over medium heat.
• Place the pan on the stove over medium heat.
• Place the pan on the stove over medium heat.
• finish the frosting, you’ll need:
• finish the frosting, you’ll need:
• finish the frosting, you’ll need:
• 1 1/2 1 1/2 1″ pounds unsalted butter, cut in 1″ cubes
• 1 1/2 1 1/2 1″ pounds unsalted butter, cut in 1″ cubes
• 1 1/2 1 1/2 1″ pounds unsalted butter, cut in 1″ cubes
• 1 1 to 2 2 2 tablespoons flavoring (I opted for 2 teaspoons vanilla extract)
• 1 1 to 2 2 2 tablespoons flavoring (I opted for 2 teaspoons vanilla extract)
• 1 1 to 2 2 2 tablespoons flavoring (I opted for 2 teaspoons vanilla extract)
• 1/2 1/2 1/2 cup vegetable shortening (optional; more about that later)
• 1/2 1/2 1/2 cup vegetable shortening (optional; more about that later)
• 1/2 1/2 1/2 cup vegetable shortening (optional; more about that later)

Preparation

Step 1

Put the meringue powder, water, and salt (or the egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt) in the bowl of a stand mixer. Use the whisk attachment to move the powder around to moisten it, and to incorporate the salt.

Whip at medium-high speed until the whites become opaque, the whisk leaves tracks in the bowl, and the mixture holds a soft peak when you pull th

With the mixer running, gradually add the sugar and whip until the meringue is shiny. At this point you can turn the mixer off or leave it running at its lowest speed.

Stir at first, just until the sugar dissolves, then don’t stir anymore.

Bring to a boil and grab your digital thermometer. Cook the syrup until it reaches at least 240°F; I like to hit 245°F and you can go as high as 250°F before the syrup begins to color and turn to caramel. The sugar syrup is going to cook the meringue, setting the proteins in the egg whites and creating a stable base for the frosting.

When the syrup is ready, the bubbles are large and make a snapping noise. Head for the mixer immediately and turn it to medium-high speed.

Pour the syrup down the side of the bowl, in the sweet spot between the bowl and the track of the whisk. This can be a trouble spot; having a pan with a slight indentation on the side makes this easier to pour. If you have no such pan…

grease the inside of a heatproof measuring cup with a spout, and carefully but quickly pour your hot syrup from the pan into the cup, and from there right into the meringue.

Let the mixer run. The meringue needs to cool to about 80°F before adding the butter, or else you’ll have butter soup instead of frosting.

While you have the thermometer out, check your butter’s temperature. If it’s above 70°F, put it back in the refrigerator for 5 minutes (set a timer!). If it’s below 60°F, find a warm place for it for a few minutes.


Once the meringue is cooled, it’s time to add the butter a little at a time with the mixer running. I made two batches of buttercream, one on the too-warm side, and one on the colder-than-it-should-have-been side. They both worked. Let’s take a look at each.