Cake Frosting Advice Please

[julesapple]

I have been tasked with making the cupcakes for my sister's birthday bash this weekend and I'd like to make a pure white buttercream type icing to pipe on top.

I know if I was abroad I could buy a pure white shortening to use instead of butter, but that's hard to get here. So, can I use White Flora or something like Trex as a substitute? It's for texture and colour rather than flavour, as I have access to a whole host of natural and NI flavourings that I can use.

Do any of our cake buffs know if I can do this?

Thanks

Jules

[lottie dolly]

am no idea anout links,but,if you type in ..white butter cream.. you get some idea of what your looking for,all the best

[di]

I accept it's a total cheat but Betty Crocker do a ready made frosting in white...very sickly sweet and probably lots of additives, but if you can't find another way.

[mothhawk]

Why not get some double cream, whip it till it's stiff, and use that? It probably won't be pure white, but as close as makes no difference. After all, butter is just refined cream with salt and anatto added.

[lottie dolly]

if all else fails,mix some icing sugar with water for a glue,and put a little meringue on top,like the 20 in a box from a@@a

[julesapple]

I spent forever trawling the net, and I've discovered I can use White Flora or Trex just as you would in buttercream. I need to decide on flavouring now.

The cakes will be ordinary vanilla sponge but with a fruit filling put into a cavity at the top. I have some gorgeous pear jam that tastes incredibly fresh, so I'm thinking Poire William flavouring in the frosting. That's the theory anyways........if the white frosting doesn't work then I'm going for lemon sponge, lemon curd and yellow frosting flavoured with lemon.

I've bought aqua polka dot cake cases and brightly coloured rice paper butterflies to decorate them with - just hope the flutterbies look as pretty in the flesh as they did on ebay!

Jules

[Creemteez]

Unsalted continental butter is very pale and if you whip it till its very pale before adding the icing sugar the resulting butter cream will be very pale - almost white! I've got to say that thge idea of white vegetable fat as an alternative doesn't appeal - even with a hefty lug of flavouring.
Try googling The Barefoot Contessa's Meringue frosting. It involves heating the egg whites and granulated sugar together to melt before whipping and then adding very softened butter to the mix. Not sure of the quantities so best check! Good luck!

[julesapple]

I have to bake today - our cake tin is empty - so I might phooter about and see if the Trex thing is a good idea. From what I've read, you would use 20% less than butter or margarine in a recipe. A chef friend has said I might try palm oil solids. I thought about creamed coconut too, but not sure if the birthday girl or any of the guests will like coconut.

I've bought some Trex, some White Flora and some butter from Brittany, which is the whitest I could find. I seem to remember Dutch butter being very pale, when I was growing up over there, but it doesn't seem to be now.

Jules

[julesapple]

I've just found Crisco on Amazon - yay!!!

Jules

[Alison]

I'd be very dubious about using the likes of Trex, great in pastry but the taste is horrible and you wouldn't get the nice buttery taste. I know you said that flavour isn't important but I'm sure it would taste through. By the way, just for my total ignornace, what is the difference between frosting and icing? Is it just an Americanism or is there actually a difference?

[julesapple]

No difference at all, Alison, I just have a weird accent from growing up a Forces brat.

The taste is important obviously, but with our professional flavourings we can mask that. It's the consistency and the whiteness I was hoping to achieve. I'll have a play any way.

Jules

[julesapple]

Here's the finished Trex frosting



I made it up like buttercream, with a splash of milk, and flavoured it with lemon oil. Before adding the flavouring it tasted just like plain fondant icing. It's also got a good texture and I think it'll pipe very nicely. I was surprised to discover that Trex has changed; it no longer looks like lard, it's very opaque white and looks like very white butter.

Jules

[Hilary B]

Too late of course, but I was going to suggest seeing whether you could find goat-milk butter, because that IS white, and buttery!
Flavour or no flavour, I have always been able to taste 'margarine cream'!

[julesapple]

I did buy goats butter, so good suggestion and, not having had to use it, I had it on toast this morning - a first - and it's lovely!

Jules

[lottie dolly]

pleased you got it sorted JA