Buttercream Icing

Many of the recipes for buttercream icing (or buttercream frosting) use icing sugar, an ingredient I don't tend to keep in my pantry. So I was pleased when I came across this allrecipes Creamy Frosting Recipe that used white sugar. I found the amount of icing produced by the recipe was too much for what I needed so I've adjusted the proportions for my recipes.

Makes 1 serving (about 1½-2 cups)

Times

Preparation:

5 minutes

Cooking:

20 minutes

Ingredients

• ³/₈ cup (about 90ml) skim milk
• 1 Tbs plain flour
• ½ cup butter, softened (not melted)
• ½ cup white sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Method

1. Pour milk into a small saucepan.
2. Sift the flour and add to the milk a little at a time, stirring to ensure there are no lumps.
3. Gently heat the milk and flour, stirring until it boils and thickens. Cool the milk and flour mixture thoroughly.
4. Cream butter, sugar and vanilla extract in a bowl.
5. Add the cooled milk and flour mixture, beating until the icing looks like whipped cream.

Variations

• Brandy buttercream icing

  After creaming the butter, sugar and vanilla extract, add 30ml (1½ Tbs) brandy to the mixture. Ensure that it is thoroughly mixed in before adding the cooled milk and flour mixture.

• Orange buttercream icing

  Substitute the vanilla extract with 1 tsp of orange juice. Optionally, add 1-2 Tbs of orange zest into the icing or sprinkle it on top of the cake or slice.

Tips

Use the following ingredients as required for different food intolerances:

• Soy or another vegetable-based milk instead of skim milk
• Dairy-free spread instead of butter
• Gluten-free plain flour instead of plain flour