Swiss Meringue Buttercream
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Swiss Meringue Buttercream might seem a bit intimidating at first, but once you try it, you'll discover a whole new world of cake decorating and desserts. It's light, silky, buttery, and less sweet than traditional American buttercream, with a smooth, luxurious texture.
Swiss meringue buttercream is a frosting used to top and fill cakes, cupcakes, and macarons. It's incredibly light and airy, yet rich and buttery.
What I love most about it is its silky texture. It's made by first dissolving sugar in egg whites; it has an incredibly smooth texture that you just don't get with regular powdered sugar (aka American-style) buttercreams.
When you take a taste, you'll be struck by its subtle sweetness and how it melts on your tongue.
I tried Swiss meringue buttercream for the first time about 15 years ago, and it was a total "a-ha moment!" The light, silky texture and perfectly sweet flavor blew me away. I had never tasted anything quite so delicate before. Right away, I realized that this was the BEST way to take my cakes and cupcakes to the next level, and I have never looked back!
It also works very well under fondant! It gives you a perfectly smooth surface with no lumps or bumps, so it's ideal. When I worked as a pastry chef, it was all we used for fondant-topped cakes.
There are so many recipes here on Baking a Moment that utilize Swiss Meringue Buttercream. I'll share some examples below. But first, I'd like to take the opportunity to answer any and every question you've ever had about this unique and delicious frosting!
Here's Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Light, silky, and smooth!
- Less sweet than powdered sugar-based frostings.
- Perfect for frosting, filling, and piping.
- Easy to flavor in lots of different ways!
- Beautiful texture and glossy finish.
- Great for layer cakes, cupcakes, and celebration bakes.
Ingredients You'll Need
The recipe card at the bottom of the post contains the full list with all of the amounts. Refer to that when you're cooking.
- Egg whites: These form the base of the meringue and give the buttercream its light, airy texture.
- Granulated sugar: This dissolves into the egg whites to make a smooth, glossy base and adds sweetness.
- Unsalted butter: Softened butter turns the meringue into a rich, silky frosting with a luxurious texture.
- Kosher salt: A small pinch balances the sweetness and brings out the flavor.
In Photos: How To Make Swiss Meringue Buttercream
A Few Things to Know Before You Start
Swiss meringue buttercream can look messy partway through. Sometimes it seems soupy, curdled, or separated after you add the butter. This is normal.
Usually, it just needs more mixing. Keep beating, and it will come together into a smooth, fluffy frosting. The meringue should be fully cooled before adding the butter, and the butter should be softened but not greasy or melted.
Step 1: Heat the egg whites and sugar
Put the egg whites and sugar in a large heatproof bowl over gently simmering water. Stir continuously until the sugar dissolves and the mixture feels hot and smooth when rubbed between your fingers.
Pro Tips: I usually cook my whites/sugar for around 10 minutes, whisking occasionally. You'll notice the mixture goes from thick and transparent to thinner and more opaque.
The best way to know if it's really ready is to place a drop on your finger and rub it together with your thumb. If you feel any grit at all, keep cooking. When it's smooth as can be, you're ready for the next step.
You'll also notice that the mixture feels hot to the touch. You can gauge it with a candy thermometer (it should register 140 degrees F), but I don't really find that necessary. If it feels hot and the sugar is fully dissolved, you should be good to go.
Step 2: Whip into a meringue
Take the bowl off the heat and whip the mixture on high speed until it's thick, bright white, and glossy. It should hold stiff peaks and feel cool before you continue.
Step 3: Add the butter
Add the softened butter one tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition. This step takes some patience, but it's what gives the buttercream its smooth, velvety texture.
Pro Tips: Your buttercream might start to look funky and curdled at this stage. Be sure to add the butter slowly (a tablespoon at a time) and let each addition fully incorporate before adding the next. Just keep on whipping, and I promise, it will come back together!
I have found that if I soften my butter in the microwave (while still wrapped in sticks) for 10 seconds at 30% power, then flip it over and do another 8 seconds at 30% power, it comes out perfect!
Just bear in mind that all microwaves are not exactly the same, so you might have to experiment a little to find that perfect sweet spot.
Step 4: Finish with salt and flavorings
Once the buttercream is smooth and cohesive, fold in the salt and any flavorings you would like to use.
Helpful Tips and Tricks
- Use a clean bowl: Even a little grease can stop the egg whites from whipping up properly.
- Dissolve the sugar fully: Rub a bit of the mixture between your fingers to check that it feels smooth, not gritty.
- Cool the meringue completely: If it's still warm, it can melt the butter, making the frosting soupy.
- Add butter slowly: Adding it one tablespoon at a time helps everything blend smoothly.
- Don't worry if it looks curdled: Just keep mixing. It usually comes together nicely.
- Re-whip before using: After storing, let it warm up to room temperature and beat it again until it's smooth and fluffy.
- If you want to serve it on a very hot day, just keep your cake or cupcakes refrigerated until ready to serve.
Add-In Options
- Fold in the seeds of a vanilla bean, 1 ½ teaspoons of vanilla bean paste, or 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract to make Vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream.
- Add melted chocolate to make Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream.
- Add melted white chocolate to make White Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream.
- Place freeze-dried strawberries in the food processor, grind them to a fine powder, and stir them in to make Strawberry Swiss Meringue Buttercream.
- Whip in the zest and juice of a lemon, lime, or orange for a citrus Swiss Meringue Buttercream.
- Stir a tablespoon of instant espresso powder into 3 tablespoons of hot water, then stir the cooled mixture to make Coffee Swiss Meringue Buttercream.
- Puree a couple of cups of raspberries, then cook them down until thickened and stir in to make Raspberry Swiss Meringue Buttercream.
- Reduce sparkling wine to a thick syrup and add it to make Champagne Swiss Meringue Buttercream.
Recipe FAQ
While there is slightly more to it than just creaming butter and powdered sugar together, the payoff is huge! You'll definitely find that it's worth that little bit of extra effort. And once you get the hang of it, it will seem like second nature!
When making Swiss meringue buttercream, the first step is to melt sugar and egg whites together over a pot of steaming water. When the sugar is completely dissolved, you get that incredibly silky-smooth texture in your final product.
But if you don't heat the mixture long enough, you might feel gritty sugar crystals between your teeth.
Believe it or not, you are doing it right! Swiss meringue buttercream almost always goes through a stage where it looks curdled, broken, or split. This often happens just before it fully comes together!
Temperature is everything when making this recipe. The whites and sugar need to get hot enough to dissolve the sugar, but then they need to cool down a lot before the butter goes in.
It's easy to get impatient at this stage! I've done it plenty of times myself and ended up with a runny mess.
But you do not have to pitch it! It's totally salvageable. Just put the entire thing (mixing bowl, whisk, and runny buttercream) into the fridge for about 20 minutes and then re-whip. It works like magic!
It's also a good idea to pay attention to your butter's temperature. You want it softened, but it should still be somewhat cool to the touch. You don't want it so slippery and nearly melted!in the fridge for about 20 minutes,
Swiss meringue buttercream will not crust, as American-style buttercream does. This makes it really easy to work with, especially if you're trying to get a perfectly smooth finish on your cakes.
Swiss meringue buttercream is super versatile! It can be colored with gel paste food coloring (aka: icing colors), and flavored in TONS of different ways.
I often make it the night before I need it, and let it sit out at room temperature. This is fine to do if you plan to use it early the following day.
If you'd like to get even more ahead of schedule, it can be refrigerated for up to a week. But you may find that it comes out a bit hard, and loses some of its airy lightness. Just scoop it out of the container and re-whip it (after it's come back to room temp). It will be just like new!
I honestly think it's one of the most stable buttercreams out there. It works really well for piping, and it holds up beautifully.
It can be frozen as well; just thaw overnight in the fridge, then follow the method above.
Recipes Using Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Ingredients
- 6 large egg whites
- 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar
- 2 cups (454 g) unsalted butter, , softened
- ⅛ teaspoon (0.13 teaspoon) kosher salt
Instructions
- In a large glass or metal bowl, combine the egg whites and sugar.
- Set the bowl over a pot of barely simmering water, and stir continuously, until the sugar is completely dissolved. (Check by rubbing a small amount between your thumb and forefinger; it should be hot to the touch, and feel smooth, not gritty.)
- Remove the bowl from the simmering water and whip on high speed until the meringue is thick, white, glossy, and can hold stiff peaks. (It should be cooled completely. There should be no hint of warmth when you place your hand on the side of the bowl. Refrigerate the meringue for 15 to 20 minutes if necessary.)
- Add the butter in, a tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition. (If the mixture begins to look curdled, continue to beat until it comes back together, before adding the remaining butter.)
- Fold in the salt and any other flavorings you may be using.
Hi! I have made your smb recipe with your mocha cupcakes so many times and have always been successful! It's the only flavour I've tried so far and this time I want to go for a regular vanilla smb. I was just wondering if the recipe is more than what is needed to fill and frost (semi naked style) a two or three 8 8" layer cake
Hi Aisha! This recipe makes enough to fill and frost 1 triple-layer 6-inch layer cake, 1 double-layer 8-inch layer cake, or 2 dozen cupcakes. Good luck and enjoy!
Hi, I've never made swiss meringue buttercream, but I want to give it a try and I was thinking of making a cookies and cream flavored one but I'm not sure how I could achieve that. Do you think it will remain stable if I add the cream from the cookies and some cookie crumbs? Or can I flavor it anotother way, thank you this post was super helpfull!!
That should be no problem Lauren! If I were you, I'd just crush up the cookies finely and fold them into the finished buttercream. Good luck and enjoy!
Hi, I’m a long time lover of Swiss and Italian meringue buttercreams. That said I’m wanting to make a maple flavored one for a cake tomorrow and am wondering if I can substitute the maple syrup for sugar? Have you tried this? It seems like adding at the end would make it too unstable and not give me the deep maple flavor. And I really don’t want to waste a cup or two of precious maple syrup! What do you think? TIA!
That’s an interesting idea! I honestly have not tried that but it sounds delicious. I can say that in my experience you can’t really add more than a few tablespoons of any kind of liquid to the finished buttercream, without it starting to separate. I would love to hear how you make out with this!
Hi! Thanks for the detailed tutorial! Two questions: 1) Can you please update the white chocolate swiss meringue buttercream recipe? The link is broken! and 2) Can you use pasteurized egg whites that come in a carton in place of fresh egg whites? TIA!
Hey Monika! So sorry about that- and thanks for pointing it out. I've updated the post but here is the recipe you were looking for: https://bakingamoment.com/cranberry-white-chocolate-cupcakes/. And yes, you can use egg whites from a carton. I've done it many times and it works well!
Could you please advise how many grams three sticks of butter refers too?
Hey Eve! You are welcome to download my weight conversion chart, it's totally free and you can find it in the right sidebar of this site. Thanks so much and good luck!
Hi! I'd like to use your Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream on some chocolate cupcakes that will be eaten the next day or the day after that so I wanted to find out... After I pipe the buttercream onto the cupcakes should I put the cupcakes into the fridge? Thanks
Hi Nirvana! If it's more than a day or so then I would say yes. Enjoy!
Easy to follow instructions. I made it yesterday. It seemed airy. But I went to frost cupcakes this evening and it reminds me more of eating softened sweetened butter... Not meringue-y at all. Any thoughts what I'm doing wrong ? I actually made a similar recipe a year ago and had the same results ... I literally could have just buttered the cake because that's what the texture was.
Hey Ellen! I'm sorry to hear that the buttercream was not to your taste. I don't think you've done anything wrong. It sounds like you just don't have a preference for this type of buttercream. You might want to try American-style buttercream instead. Here is the recipe for vanilla: Vanilla Frosting, and here is the chocolate version: Chocolate Frosting. Hopefully you'll like these recipes better!
Hi, just wondering how long can you store this icing if you make to much? It’s sooo yummy!
Many thanks
Hey Lachlan! Check out the info within the post, under the heading "Can I make Swiss Meringue Buttercream ahead?" I think you'll find all your answers there. Thanks for reading!
I want to make a cookie cake and was wondering if I could use SMB for piping between the 2 layers and on top? Would I have to keep it chilled until just before serving?
Hey Lydia! Could you tell me a little bit more about the cake you want to make? Are you talking about a cookie cake like this one: Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake? I'm not used to seeing cookie cakes like that that are more than 1 layer. I just want to make sure I give you good advice! I'm concerned that the frosting wouldn't hold up under the weight of a large, heavy cookie.
I tried for the first time and it came out soupy. Put it in the fridge and still soupy. Very discouraging
I'm so sorry you're having trouble Akira. Just to reiterate: the Swiss meringue needs to be completely cool before the butter goes in, otherwise the butter will melt and you'll have a soupy mess on your hands. If you don't get it cool enough before the butter goes in, all is not lost. You can chill the mixture in the fridge and re-whip. As long as it's cooled down enough for the butter to re-solidify, it will come together, but you do have to re-whip it. You can't just put it in the fridge and be done with it, it needs to re-whip. I hope that's helpful!
I popped mine in freezer for 10 minutes then whipped it again. Perfecto
Hi ,
Using Swiss buttetcream, Can i cover the cake with fondant leave it outside over a night ?
Thanks
By outside I assume you just mean not in the refrigerator? You can definitely leave it out at room temperature, but if it were outdoors I'd be worried about bugs and rain.
I made this today and unfortunately I didn't whip the egg whites and sugar long enough (even though I thought it wasn't grainy in between my fingers). Is there anyway to correct this mistake or am I doomed to eat grainy frosting? Thanks!
I'm so sorry Brandy! I don't know if there is a way to correct it once the butter has been added. The sugar needs heat to melt it, but the butter can't handle that heat without melting.
Made this today and the frosting is a bit watery, I can't imagine frosting a cake with it. Would putting it in the fridge thicken it up a bit?
Yes definitely! Read the whole post there's lots of info there as to what to do if the frosting seems runny.
Hi there
Pls can u tell me how many grams of egg white is used in this recipe so i can make it perfect... thank you
Hi Aadils! A large egg white weighs about 34 grams. If you prefer to bake by weight, you might want to download my free weight conversion chart. There's a link in the right sidebar. Hope that's helpful!
At what point do you add the pinch of salt? Sorry if you already said but I didn't see it mentioned in the article or recipe.
It can go in at the very end, along with any other flavorings you choose to use. Thanks Jen!
I came across Swiss Meringue Buttercream searching for a frosting that used less sugar. It seems like I’m going to have to pick either sugar or fat. Why does Swiss Meringue Buttercream have so much butter? What would happen if I only used half?
I've done it and it's still very tasty! It won't be quite as stiff and pipe-able but it still works and tastes delicious.
I know gel colors are much better but Its not available in my country 🙁 maybe I can buy some when I travel at summer vacation thanks again
I have a question I can’t seem to find an answer to anywhere on the internet: Why do I have to rewhip the buttercream after storing it in the fridge? I’ve got some in a piping bag and it looks fine, why can’t I just go ahead and use it?
If it looks fine to you then go ahead and use it. I often recommend re-whipping after it's sat for a while because it tends to lose its volume and become thick and heavy.