Vanilla French Buttercream

Name: Vanilla French Buttercream
Yield: Makes about 1 quart
Ingredients: 7 extra-large egg whites; 2 1/2 cups sugar; 2 teaspoons cream of tartar; 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and chilled; 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract; 2 vanilla beans, halved lengthwise

This wonderful vanilla French buttercream should be paired with Butter Lane's Chocolate Cupcakes.

Source: The Martha Stewart Show, January Winter 2009

Makes about 1 quart

Yield

Ingredients

7 extra-large egg whites
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and chilled
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 vanilla beans, halved lengthwise

Directions

1. In a large heatproof bowl set over (but not touching) simmering water, whisk together egg whites and sugar until sugar is melted and mixture reaches 140 degrees on a candy thermometer, 7 to 10 minutes.
2. Transfer mixture to the bowl of an electric mixture fitted with the whisk attachment; beat on high until stiff peaks form, 12 to 15 minutes. Add cream of tartar and beat for one minute more.
3. Reduce speed to medium and add butter, a few pieces at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add vanilla extract and scrape vanilla bean seeds into mixture; beat until well combined, about 2 minutes. Transfer to refrigerator; chill for 15 minutes before using.

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Reviews

116

How would you rate this recipe?

116

Melanie Straub de Jesus

25 AUG, 2014

... this is actually a swiss meringue buttercream recipe. french buttercream uses egg yolks, not whites. the two types of buttercream that use whites are swiss and italian. swiss is cooked over a double boiler, italian is when hot syrup is added to whipped egg whites to stabilize them. so, this is swiss.
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- ekeizer8199514
  
  1 JAN, 2018
  
  Agreed. How on earth is this a French buttercream?
lovebaker

2 NOV, 2014

Between step 2 and 3 this should have been included: That the egg whites should be whipped to room temperature. If it's a bit warm, the added butter will melt and the cream will become a soupy mess.
Reply
Shayancakes

29 OCT, 2013

@MademoiselleDomi: Make sure you whisk the egg white at high speed immediately to rich a glossy effect (that was my mistake). The first time I made it, it was perfect, except a little runny which I add more butter but the 2nd and 3rd time it was disaster.
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MademoiselleDomi

22 OCT, 2013

I don't know what I did wrong, but every time I add butter, the egg whites are melting in to something that reminds buttermilk. I tried that recipe 8-10 times and it's always like that. I give up..
Reply
Mills12

13 JUL, 2012

love the recipe..delicious... but beware.. falls flat if it is humid outside
Reply
Melina Valentim

7 JUL, 2012

Seriously? This recipe is very easy and taste really sweet.I didn add the vanilla beans becouse where I live is hard to find.Put the eggs and all the suggar in a bowl and leave it until the suggar is completely dissolved.Forget about the minutes.Keep beating it só it wont cook the egg whites very much...
Reply
crohme

6 JUL, 2012

I wish I could give this ZERO STARS it was that horrible...don't even bother...to the site editors...you should take this recipe down or at least put an asterisk next to the title so people check the reviews first!!!
Reply
geneva2011

8 DEC, 2011

Don't cook this recipe, it is a waste of time and money, I tried to do it twice following each step carefully and it didn't work. The sugar didn't melt enough, and you can feel it after, so wrong texture. Very sadly I had to put it in the trash.
Reply
CleverBaker84

5 DEC, 2011

Complete waste of time and ingredients. This is not French buttercream. I wish I had read the reviews before trying. The icing is way too runny to do anything with it except TOSS IT.
Reply
deepdelights

20 SEP, 2011

This is not French buttercream. For an authentic recipe: http://deepdelights.com/2011/09/19/french-buttercream/
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