Aquafaba Swiss Buttercream Recipe - Gretchen's Vegan Bakery (2024)

FAQs

What if I put too much liquid in my Swiss meringue buttercream? ›

To fix this, place the buttercream in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes to firm up the butter, then whip it again with a stand mixer or hand mixer until it thickens to the desired consistency. If it is still soupy, stick it back in the fridge for longer to cool down.

Make sure to open your aquafaba jar in a dry space, and keep it out of humidity to prevent clumping and hardening of the powder. Additionally, adding cream of tartar to your aquafaba can be beneficial as it helps to reduce the breakdown of texture when whipping the aquafaba, allowing it to stabilize.

Swiss meringue buttercream is either soupy or curdled due to the temperature of the butter; it is either too warm or too cold. Both issues can be fixed either chilling or gently heating the buttercream.

It's essential to sieve your icing sugar (aka confectioners sugar) before adding to the softened butter, so do this first. Then you're going to add little by little to the vegan buttercream frosting, beating between additions. This again stops the buttercream from splitting or becoming grainy.

If the Swiss meringue buttercream tastes like butter you definitely have the wrong ratio. The Swiss meringue buttercream ratio should be egg white as the smallest portion, then sugar is a quarter more than egg whites and butter is the double of the sugar amount.

In a KitchenAid mixer, it usually takes about 20-25 minutes to make a good, stiff meringue from start to finish. If you're at the 20-minute mark and the meringue still isn't at stiff peaks, check your temperature. Is it hot and humid in your kitchen? Then a 15-20 minute meringue timeout in the fridge will help!

This can happen for two reasons - the meringue mixture was too cold before you added your softened butter or your butter was too cold before you added it to your meringue mixture. It's not right but the good news is it can be fixed!

Aquafaba Drawbacks

Needless to say, bean water is saturated with oligosaccharides. Saponins, the part of aquafaba that is responsible for the egg white-like texture and foaming, are a toxic steroid derivatives that disrupt red blood cells. They may even contribute to development of leaky gut by damaging the gut wall.

Aquafaba will freeze well for about 3 months. You will need to defrost the Aquafaba overnight in the refrigerator before using. Always smell your Aquafaba before using it. It will smell like spoiled beans (not pleasant) if it is no longer good.

Powdered sugar: Classic Swiss Meringue Buttercream calls for granulated sugar. Since we are eliminating the cooking in this recipe, we need to use sugar the will easily dissolve. Powdered sugar is perfect for this! Salt: Salt enhances the flavor of the buttercream.

Why does my Swiss meringue buttercream look like cottage cheese? ›

If the buttercream splits and looks curdled, like cottage cheese, it means the mixture didn't emulsify because the temperature of the butter was either too cold or the meringue was still too warm. There's a few different ways to fix this: Remove a few spoonfuls of the buttercream and place it in a heat safe bowl.

Coconut Cream: Whip a few tablespoons with softened, refined coconut oil in a stand mixer or with an electric beater to emulsify the mixture. This is an especially great substitute when making frosting. Nut Butters: Mix with coconut sugar for quick cookie dough.

Coconut oil is a delicious vegan alternative to butter as it behaves similarly to butter compared to other oils. It solidifies when cool and melts at room temperature, making it very versatile. If you use unrefined coconut oil, you can expect a more distinctive taste, but refined coconut oil is basically flavourless.

What butter is best for icing? Salted and organic butter is literally the best butter that you can use. It is the salt that really makes this the best buttercream frosting ever. It's actually a myth that salted butter is an inferior quality – it's not.