This grit free American buttercream (ABC) is everything you love about a traditional ABC, minus the grainy/gritty texture! It’s easy to make, yet smooth as a Swiss meringue buttercream!
What makes this better than a regular American buttercream?
American buttercream (ABC) is one of the easiest and most commonly made frostings, but the biggest problem that most people have with it is that it often has a ‘gritty’ or grainy feel to it. This is because of undissolved icing sugar (also known as powdered/confectioners sugar).
This version uses a technique where the icing sugar is dissolved into hot milk, which is then cooled and added to the butter. This results in a super smooth, grit free buttercream! I first saw this technique on Cupcake Savvys YouTube channel, so kudos to them for introducing us to this method!
Another common complaint is that ABC is far too sweet! Most recipes have double the amount of powdered sugar to butter, which is just far too sweet for some. This recipes uses far less icing sugar without your frosting tasting too buttery.
Is it stable enough?
This was the first thing that came to my mind when I decided to try this technique. Would dissolving the icing sugar into the hot milk make the buttercream less stable? I decided to give the method a go, and experimented with using water instead of milk as my ‘thinning’ ingredient to make the ABC a little more creamy. I also used a bit more sugar than the original recipe so that the frosting was a little more stable. I also did some research and found that meringue powder is a great stabiliser and could easily be added in to this buttercream to provide additional stability.
The result – OH MY! A super delicious, creamy, GRIT FREE American buttercream! It basically tasted like a Swiss meringue buttercream (SMBC) but so much easier to make! Was the recipe good enough to put on my blog – ABSOLUTELY! My new favourite way of making ABC!
Does this grit free version still crust?
The only downside for cake decorators is that this buttercream does not crust because the icing sugar has been dissolved. It acts more like a SMBC where it hardens when placed in the fridge, but at room temperature is soft to the touch. If you’re looking for a traditional American buttercream that crusts, then check out my original ABC recipe.
Grit Free American Buttercream
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (500 g) unsalted butter - room temperature, see note 1
- ½ cup (125 ml) milk
- 2 tsp vanilla essence/extract
- ¼ tsp salt - omit if using salted butter
- 2½ cups (330 g) icing/powdered sugar
- 1 tbsp meringue powder - OPTIONAL
Instructions
- Add your butter to a stand mixer, and using the paddle attachment, mix on a medium high speed for 5 minutes until it is light and fluffy. Give the bowl a scrape down every now and then to make sure everything is mixing well.
- In a microwave safe bowl, combine the milk, vanilla and salt and heat it in the microwave so that it's hot, but not bubbling (about 30 seconds to a minute).
- Add your icing sugar to the heated milk mixture and mix until the icing sugar is dissolved. It should be a thin paste like consistency.
- Strain the milk/icing sugar mixture to get rid of any lumps, and then let the mixture cool to room temperature. You can speed this up by placing the mixture into the fridge for 15 minutes, stirring it every 5 minutes.
- Once cooled, turn your mixer onto a medium speed and slowly drizzle in the milk/icing sugar paste into your whipped butter. It may look like the mixture is curdling, but this is normal.
- Once the mixture is added into the butter, scrape down your bowl, and then mix on a medium speed for a further 10 minutes. This is going to lighten the buttercream in both taste and texture. Your buttercream is now ready!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
141 Comments
Is this recipe supposed to have the texture of slightly softer butter once refrigerated? It felt really dense and buttery when I made it compared to other ABC recipes that just add powdered sugar in without mixing it in water first.
Hi Dinah! So the frosting itself should have the texture of more like a Swiss meringue buttercream when refrigerated 🙂 and it shouldn’t be very dense. The key is in the 10 minutes of mixing at the end which really lightens up the frosting. You may need to whip longer – the longer you whip the fluffier the frosting will become 🙂 hope that helps!
Hi, If I’m to make this as a Chocolate cream, how many grams of cocoa powder do I add to the milk and icing sugar mix. Kindly assist with a Chocolate recipe for this particular no grit ABC
Hi Ann! It depends on how deep you want the cocoa flavour to be but I would start with about a 1/4 cup and then add more at the end if you feel it needs more 🙂
Hi, Also how many cakes and/or cupcakes can this recipe frost?
Hi Ann! This recipe should be able to frost an 8 inch 2 layer cake, and for cupcakes I’m not entirely sure but I would imagine it would frost at least 20 cupcakes with a simple rosette 🙂
Hi, Do you always add meringue powder to yours? If I don’t add meringue powder, will it still be stable?
Hi Ann! I usually don’t add meringue powder to mine, and if you don’t stay in a particularly humid climate then you should be fine without it 🙂
Can I use vegan baking butter and almond milk as substitutes?
Hi Vello! I haven’t tried these substitutes myself so I’m not too sure sorry! I don’t imagine it being a problem though 🙂
Could I add cream cheese to this recipe? should I replace the butter with cream cheese?
Hi mk,
Thank you so much for this lovely recipe, it makes the most velvety icing which is a dream to pipe. I just wondered if I wanted it to be slightly sweeter, would I just add more icing sugar, or would I need to reduce the butter as well ?
Thank you
Hi Jude! So happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe 😀 and yes simply add more icing sugar 🙂
Thanks so much for this … I haven’t tried but I will definitely try this …
Can I use margarine to replace butter and can this be use to frost a tier cake ?
Hi Ebere! I haven’t tried this with margarine myself but this will affect the taste and perhaps the stability too as margarine is softer. It can be used to frost a tiered cake 🙂 enjoy!
Hello. Thanks for this recipe. If we wanted to make this a raspberry or blueberry buttercream, would this work by adding some fruit purée and reducing the milk? (Im just a home baker and my kids love fruit !)
Hello Rakhee! Yes that should work fine. I would add the fruit puree in right at the end 🙂 enjoy!
In Australia we have two types of icing sugar, one is pure icing sugar, while the other has some cornflour added to it. Would the one with cornflour help stabilise the buttercream or should we avoid it altogether? Thank you in advance MK🌻
Hello Apolline! 🙂 Yes best to use the one that has some cornflour in it – that’s the one I use here in New Zealand 🙂 hope you enjoy the recipe!