This bright white heat stable pipeable buttercream is perfect for those warm or hot days and when you want super white frosting. It’s also perfect for piping.
It’s a challenge to create a shortening based buttercream that tastes close to real buttercream, but this one actually does.
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Hey there! Before you scroll, there’s lot’s of important stuff in the post!…including the Important Information Section, which may answer any questions you might have about this recipe. Enjoy!
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This frosting is perfect for those warm or hot days when you need a more stable buttercream and when you want super white frosting.
It’s also perfect for piping roses and other buttercream designs on cakes or cupcakes.
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Cottage food laws and shortening based frostings:
Lots of people work under a cottage bakery license running bakeries out of their homes. I’ve done that too on many different occasions.
Personally, I live in Texas and we are not allowed to sell anything that needs to be refrigerated. I know a lot of people who have moved to the all shortening based buttercream for that very reason and to comply with TCS safety.
Now, I can’t help you determine what is allowed under the cottage food laws in your state, but I can give you a shortening-based recipe that actually tastes good and is more heat stable.
Feel free to ask your local health department or cottage food law representative if you are allowed to use this recipe.
Important information to read first:
IMPORTANT PLEASE READ BELOW! I want to address something before we get into this recipe. I have received a lot of ‘hateful’ comments regarding this recipe and I want to clear up a few things so you’ll know what to expect from it.
- This recipe makes a lot of icing, which is why it calls for many cups of confectioner’s sugar and shortening. It will make enough buttercream to cover at least two, 8″ round cake layers plus extra for plenty of piping details. You can always halve the recipe if you don’t need that much.
- I do realize this isn’t ‘real buttercream’ because it uses vegetable shortening instead of real butter. The point of this recipe is to use shortening to get a more heat-stable, pipeable and bright white buttercream. People have been calling this a heat-stable buttercream for many, many years and I am not the first. Now, if you want a ‘real’ buttercream recipe using all butter, you’ll want to see that recipe here: Vanilla Bean Buttercream
- Vegetable shortening is NOT lard. Vegetable shortening is plant fat and lard is animal fat. This recipe does not call for animal fat (lard).
- This recipe is similar to every other bright white, heat stable, pipeable ‘buttercream’ or icing that you’ll find at bakeries, grocery stores and home bakeries all over the U.S. It has been used for many, many years by home and professional bakers alike and I’ve just modified it to make it taste better. If you’ve eaten a cake from the grocery store, it’s likely you’ve had this icing.
- Please note these things before sending me mean comments. I am truly trying to provide free recipes and be helpful to those who want free cake advice and recipes. It is completely acceptable for you not to like this recipe or decide not to make it. I will understand. Please remember to be respectful when making comments.
About this recipe:
So, shortening based American buttercream isn’t exactly a new thing, so I’m not reinventing the wheel here, but I am adding a few things in that actually help to give you a great tasting buttercream when you can’t actually use butter.
So the way you make bright white, heat stable and pipeable buttercream is to use shortening instead of butter. Yeah, I know it doesn’t sound super appetizing, but I promise it tastes better than it sounds.
If you’re not quite up for going with all shortening here, you can use half shortening and half butter. Your icing won’t be as white this way, so it’s a give and take.
Just know there are ways to get your buttercream whiter. There are buttercream whiteners (basically just white gel food coloring) that you can use. I’ve not really had much luck with those and seem to have better luck using just a speck of violet food coloring to cancel out the white.
If you want more tips and tricks on getting white buttercream, see this post here: How to Make Buttercream White
This buttercream is also a ‘crusting buttercream’, which means that a very thin film will develop over it which will allow you to smooth your cake using the Viva paper towel method.
That’s the method you use to smooth buttercream by letting your buttercream crust, then laying a viva paper towel over it and smoothing it lightly with your hand.
To see more about getting smooth buttercream, you’ll want to check out this post: How to Get Smooth Buttercream
Make sure you keep this buttercream covered after you’ve mixed it, so that it doesn’t develop a film over it before you get a chance to ice your cake.
How heat-stable is this buttercream?
I’m calling this buttercream ‘heat stable’, but that’s within reason. There is nothing you can do to buttercream to keep it from melting if you put it out in the direct hot sun.
This buttercream stands up better to warmer temperatures than an all-butter buttercream, but you want to be reasonable about it.
Another thing to note is that from my experience, this buttercream is not the best under fondant because it does not firm up as well as all-butter buttercream does in the fridge, which makes it a little more tricky when adding fondant over it.
I love this buttercream when it’s summer-time and the temps are warmer. I also love it when I need a bright white icing.
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Ingredient Notes:
Vegetable Shortening: Now, if you can get high-ratio shortening (like Sweetex), it works the best, however, because of the trans fats, it’s now been banned in most places.
I’ve also heard of Solite shortening, but I think that’s based in Australia, so I’ve not personally tried it.
If you have to make a lot of this frosting because you have a baking business or you’re just doing a large cake project, it might be beneficial to order the high-ratio shortening online and have it shipped to you.
I don’t normally do large cakes anymore, so the alternative that I’ve found is to use the Walmart store brand of vegetable shortening. It just seems to work much better than Crisco. It gives the buttercream a much better consistency and it’s smoother than the name brand.
Meringue Powder (optional): If you’re using regular shortening, but you want to stabilize it even more, you can add in a couple tablespoons of meringue powder. This gives it some holding powder.
Salt: Ok this is actually really important because shortening-based icing tends to coat your mouth and ‘seems’ like it’s actually sweeter. To combat this, we’re adding salt.
Powdered Sugar: You definitely need this to add sweetness and to thicken up the consistency.
Cream or Milk: This will make it cream and help you to adjust the consistency.
Clear Vanilla Extract: To keep this buttercream as white as possible, you can use clear vanilla extract in place of regular extract. I like the taste of regular vanilla extract better, but this is your call.
Butter Emulsion: I LOVE LorAnn Oils and the butter emulsion is really good. Regular butter extract you get at the grocery store just tastes gross to me, so I use this instead to give the buttercream more of that ‘butter’ taste. You can get this emulsion here: LorAnn Butter Emulsion
Buttery Sweet Dough Emulsion: This one is optional, but I really like the flavor it adds. You can get it here: LorAnn Buttery Sweet Dough Emulsion
Video:
Ok, let’s get to the recipe:
Note About Recipe Measurements: I write recipes using volume (cups) measurements because here in the U.S., this is what people are more familiar with and I don’t want anyone to feel intimidated when baking. For metric/weight measurements, click the ‘metric’ button under the ingredients in the recipe card below. The weights are converted by a program, not me, and it’s just a best guess. I can’t guarantee that weighing the ingredients will produce the exact same results, since I test recipes using volume measurements.
Recipe:
Bright White Heat Stable Pipeable Buttercream
Ingredients
- 3 cups vegetable shortening (Read the post to see suggestions, what this is and why this is used in this recipe.)
- 9-10 cups confectioner's sugar (This frosting makes a lot of frosting.)
- 2 tablespoons meringue powder (Optional for more stability and holding power.)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 6-8 tablespoons milk or cream
- 2 teaspoons clear vanilla extract (Can use regular vanilla extract if you don't have clear.)
- ½-1 teaspoons butter extract/emulsion (LorAnn oils has a good option.)
- ½-1 teaspoons LorAnn buttery dough extract/emulsion (optional)
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Instructions
- Mix the shortening until smooth.
- Add in the salt, 4 cups confectioners sugar and 3 tablespoons of milk and mix well.
- Optional: If you want to add in a couple tablespoons of meringue powder for extra stability, you can do that now.
- Add in another 5 cups confectioners sugar plus another 3 tablespoons of milk and mix well.
- Scrape down sides of bowl. Add a tablespoon or two of milk or cream if the buttercream is too thick. Mix well.
- Add in the extracts and mix well.
- Add more milk if icing is too thick. Add in only a tablespoon at a time. Mix well.
- Finally, mix by hand with a rubber spatula to help press out any air bubbles.
- See the notes section for best ways to store this and for more questions.
Notes
- This recipe makes a lot of icing, that is why it calls for many cups of confectioner’s sugar and shortening. It will make enough buttercream to cover two, 8″ round cakes or a layer cake plus extra for plenty of piping details. You can always halve the recipe if you don’t need that much.
- I do realize this isn’t ‘real buttercream’ because it uses vegetable shortening instead of real butter. The point of this recipe is to use shortening to get a more heat-stable, pipeable and bright white buttercream. People have been calling this a heat-stable buttercream for many years and I am not the first. Now, if you want a ‘real’ buttercream recipe using all buttercream, you’ll want to see that recipe here: Vanilla Bean Buttercream
- Vegetable shortening is not lard. Vegetable shortening is plant fat and lard is animal fat. This recipe does not call for animal fat (lard).
- This is similar to lots of other bright white, heat stable, pipeable ‘buttercream’ or icing that you’ll find at bakeries, grocery stores and home bakeries all over the U.S. It has been used for many years by home and professional bakers alike and I’ve just modified it to make it taste better. If you’ve eaten a cake from the grocery store, it’s likely you’ve had this icing.
Nutrition
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Nancy
Hi Kara. How many cupcakes can be iced using the full recipe?
Kara
Hi Nancy, I don’t know exactly and it will depend on how much you pipe onto cupcakes, but it should generally cover at least 24 cupcakes. This recipe makes a lot of icing, so depending on what you’re piping, you might have some leftover after 24 cupcakes.
Courtney
Hi Kara! So glad that I found this recipe in time (Texas has been hitting all of the highs lately). Just a question, would you recommend just doubling this recipe for a three tier cake? 6”x8”x10”. No piped decorations or filling, just some pearls and butterflies added on.
Kara
Hi Courtney, yes I’m feeling that Texas heat…it’s so bad right now! Ok, now to tackle your question. The short answer is I think two batches would probably be just enough if you’re not planning on adding it as a filling or doing any piping. So, the longer answer is…if it were me, I play everything safe and I like to have a little extra to work with. Personally, I’d probably make 2 1/2 batches just to give me a cushion. That would be a good amount around the outside of each cake. If you don’t mind making extra if you run out…you could just start with two batches, then make another half batch or a whole batch if you need to. I’m just one of those people that use A LOT of icing and I honestly tend to make a little too much every time. lol
Courtney
Oh! One last thing, I usually use Butter Crisco as my go-to shortening… do you think that would work fine instead of regular+emulsion
Kara
So I haven’t tried the butter Crisco. I actually prefer the store-brand shortening as opposed to the Crisco brand. It seems firmer to me, but that might just be in my head. Anyway, all that to say I haven’t tried the butter type, but I have heard from others who used the butter type and they said it worked out just fine. If you go that route, you can just omit the butter emulsion. If it were me though, I’d probably just make a half batch (without coloring it) first and taste it to see how it turns out. I always play it safe and test things out. Too many times I didn’t do that and I almost always regret it. Anyway, it also might be an option to go with half butter Crisco and half plain shortening. Let me know how it goes!
Patricia Szkotnicki
Is this a very sweet buttercream?
Kara
Yes, in my opinion, this recipe is quite sweet. Most recipes with vegetable shortening and confectioner’s sugar are going to quite sweet as there’s just something about how the shortening coats your mouth and that somehow has an effect on how the sweetness just sticks with you longer. Now, almost all American buttercream recipes are pretty sweet as well as they’re thickened with confectioner’s sugar, but the ones with shortening tend to ‘seem’ like they’re even sweeter. If you like American buttercream and don’t need it to be heat stable, go with one that uses butter instead of shortening. Here’s an option: https://iscreamforbuttercream.com/vanillabeanbuttercreamrecipe/
If you want a more whipped version of buttercream, that in my opinion is a little less sweet than just general American buttercream, check out this recipe here: https://iscreamforbuttercream.com/whipped-vanilla-american-buttercream-frosting/
I hope this helps!
Michelle
hi.. I’m making a sheet cake for my Son’s birthday 11 x 14 should this cover it? I will dye some for decorations.. thanks
Kara
Yes, I think this makes a good amount of icing and should be enough to cover the cake. If you’ll be adding lots of piped decor on it, you might end up needing a bit more. Just depends on how much decor will go on it.
Mary
Just wanted to say thank you. I appreciate all the info I read about. I love trying to bake and learn as I go. I am by no means good at decorating but someday would like to be. I appreciate people like yourself who love to share recipes.
Kara
Thanks for your wonderful comment, Mary. I’m my glad that my content has been helpful!
Courtney
Girl believe me, I am SO ready for fall time!!! Sick of summer!
I’ll most likely make 2 1/2, just for the piece of mind especially considering the purple shade I need. Thankfully I dont have far to drive, so I’m hoping everything goes well. Last summer I had a few cake orders and they melted…so I’ve been wary of baking any in this extreme heat!! I’ll let you know how it all goes in the next few days! Thank you so much for the help!
Kara
Oh yes…if you’re making it a certain color, better just make a bit extra. I find it SO hard to match colors if I end up having to make more. Yeah let me know how it goes. Now, just FYI, it’ll still melt if it’s left outside in the direct heat, so still be careful with it, but I know you know that. I mean in this heat…we can cook eggs on the side walk so, yeah. lol 😉
Gretchen
hello, I’m wondering if you can use cornstarch in place of the meringue powder?
Kara
Hi Gretchen, I think you probably could do that. The powdered sugar already probably has a bit in it, but I think it would be okay to add a bit more. I’d only add about 1/2 to 1 teaspoon at a time though and taste it. I’ve never actually tried it myself. I’m guessing a small amount would probably help, but too much would make it taste weird. That’s just my guess. Hope this helps.
Michelle Barger
I just made 3 batches of this recipe. it all came out so well. I was looking for a good piping recipe! thank you so much!!
Kara
Woo hoo!!! Yay!!! I’m so glad it worked out and thanks so much for the great review!
Katie
If we aren’t allowed to use cream or milk bc of cottage laws, can we replace with water or a different alternative?
Kara
Yes, there are some who add water instead and it works for them. It’s worth a shot. Maybe just make a half batch and try it out though. I’ve also seen some who use the butter flavored shortening in place of some of the regular vegetable shortening and they say that adds some flavor, although I haven’t tried that out myself. There are also some who say that the amount of milk added compared with the amount of sugar, makes it so that it’s not perishable. I am definitely not a scientist so I can’t say whether that is correct or not. I know that the Texas Cottage Food Law has a link to a recipe book that has been tested and vetted. I haven’t used it personally, but many people have. By the way, are you in any of the Facebook cottage baking groups? I’m in a few and they are a wealth of knowledge. I’m in a general one and one specifically for Texas. These aren’t my groups, but they’ve been helpful to me. If you want specific groups, just send me an email from my contact page and I can share with you the specific ones I’m in. They talk about making adjustments for cottage food laws all the time and have some great ideas.
Ruth Raisner
I need to ice a 3 tiered fake wedding cake for our high school musical. The base is made of cardboard. Do you think this icing will hold up under stage lights and for the 4 days our production runs for? It is only on stage for a very short time…
Kara
Hi Ruth, I’m not sure how hot stage lights are, but if it’s hotter than about 80-85 degrees F, then it won’t last long, but you did say that it would be on stage a very short time, so it might work. The only thing is if it will be touching cardboard, it’s going to soak into the cardboard and make it flimsy. For a fake cake, I’d actually probably just use some type of spackle from the hardware store as the fake frosting. It would have less chance of soaking into the cardboard, since it’s not greasy and it would harden and not melt. Hope this helps!
Michelle
Hi Kara,
Wow, this article/page is so much more than a recipe! I’ve learned so much from tips on shortening options to Facebook groups!
I’m starting my cottage baking journey and was looking for frosting recipes when I found this one and the wealth of info on this page. One thing that’s important to me is that I can make my frosting in large batches and freeze it. Do you know if this recipe can freeze well? And if so, for how long? Will it still pipe well?
Thanks for everything!
Kara
So glad the article was helpful! Yes, I’ve frozen this frosting loads of times and have not noticed any difference. The main thing I do though is once it’s thawed out, I put it back into my mixer and ‘fluff’ it up again. It can generally be frozen up to three months. I do have an article on freezing buttercream. Here’s the link if you want to check it out: https://iscreamforbuttercream.com/freezing-buttercream-plus-what-to-do-with-leftover-frosting/#steps-for-freezing-american-buttercream-frosting
I’ve also frozen it in those plastic tubs with lids and it was still fine afterwards. Hope this helps!
Nats
Thank you for this. Will give it a try!