Rich, lightly sweet frosting with a hint of white chocolate, this buttercream is my go-to when I want to let the flavor of my cake or filling take center stage.

The story

Guys, I have the day off today. Like, the whole day. In fact, I get a four day weekend. Four whole days off. Thank you, Jesus. This semester is going pretty well, but I’m still incredibly thankful for some time to be with my baby, take her on brunch dates, maybe workout or take a walk.

Man, I’m such a grownup.

When did working out become a luxury? In fact, I think I may try to find a used jogging stroller just so I can get make better use of the narrow window of free time I have each day. Walking just doesn’t cut it with losing the baby weight, unless I go for hour long walks. Ain’t nobody got time for that…especially my poor daughter who already goes on walks each day with her grandmas.

Anyway, this recipe. It’s the opposite of getting fit. When I first started making it, it was so elusive, yet so delicious. Each time I made it, the chocolate was more and more finicky. I don’t know how many batches of melted white chocolate I threw out. Plain white chocolate chips would usually either separate or seize up. I tried making it more like the ganache in my double chocolate cake, with heavy cream, which I discovered tasted better, but half the time that seized, too. Adding shortening or butter usually just made it oily. The only times I got it to work were when I stirred like a madwoman until my arms ached.

It took me forever to realize that white chocolate chips DON’T WORK. They have oil, not cocoa butter, which is why they turn oily and don’t like to mix with heavy cream.

The key is baking chocolate.

Maybe that’s very “so what?” or old news to you, but it was revolutionary to me.

Once that part was solved, this was once more a frosting I loved.

It’s not as sweet as regular buttercream and has a richer flavor than plain vanilla frosting. It can still be manipulated to be almost white-white.

Tips for this recipe

Use white baking chocolate

At the risk of being redundant or in case you skipped the first section (no judgment if you did), baking white chocolate is formulated differently and is the only kind I’ve successfully melted. I’ve heard melting wafers work, but I they won’t work with my addition of heavy cream. Plus, they have a different taste than white chocolate.

Beat longer and/or add a tiny drop of violet to make truly white

If you want the white chocolate flavor but also need a truly white frosting, first use clear, imitation vanilla (if using—it’s optional depending on the white chocolate you use) and the teeniest, tiniest drop of violet gel food coloring (we’re talking grain of quinoa or smaller) then beat the frosting for about 5 minutes at high after you like the sweetness. Beating that long will whip air into it, and the violet will counter the yellow tones of the butter and white chocolate.

Let the melted chocolate cool to room temperature

Adding butter to warm chocolate will cause the butter to melt, which will result in a separated, greasy frosting. If you’re in a pinch, you could place the bowl in a larger bowl of ice and stir constantly to cool it faster.

Stir chocolate as it cools

Along with the previous note, you want to stir as the chocolate cools either way. The slow way gives you freedom to stir occasionally, but you still gotta stir sometimes to prevent a skin from forming or the edges from hardening.

Don’t add melted chocolate directly to butter

Often times, you add your non-traditional ingredient, like cream cheese or peanut butter, to the butter and blend it before adding powdered sugar. However, I learned the hard way that this kind of recipe works best if you add the chocolate into buttercream (butter and sugar). Otherwise, it might separate. The powdered sugar helps it all bind together, for science-y reasons I haven’t researched but believe based on experience.

Add powdered sugar to taste and/or decoration needs

Yeah, I couldn’t think of a decent way to say “or however stiff you need it.” If you’re building a tall cake, live somewhere humid, or will have your cake/cupcakes outside in moderate heat, you may want more powdered sugar. Or, you may just want more powdered sugar. This isn’t a super sweet frosting, as-is. If you want a sweeter frosting, add more sugar no more than 1/2 cup at a time, but be sure to beat it well between additions then taste it to avoid going overboard.

Before you say this is in conflict with my previous tip, I promise it’s not! You only need to add the minimum amount of powdered sugar (1 cup) then you can add the chocolate followed by additional powdered sugar to taste.

Pair with vanilla cake!

I LOVE this frosting on my bakery style vanilla cake. Who knew this chocolate fiend would love vanilla cake with white chocolate frosting (which is, in it’s own way, kinda vanilla-y). I also like it on my chocolate cake, for a fun, inverse classic birthday cake.

White Chocolate Buttercream

cook time: 5 minutes, plus about an hour to cool
total time: 15 minutes, plus cooling time

Servings: about 2-3 cups, or enough to frost 24 cupcakes or a two-layer 8” cake

Ingredients:

6 ounces white baking chocolate (not chocolate chips)
2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream (optional, adds smoothness)
1 cup (8 ounces, or 2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1-2 cups powdered sugar (see note)
couple pinches fine ground sea salt, optional
1-2 teaspoons vanilla (optional--it depends on the white chocolate you use, so taste first to decide if vanilla is needed)

Instructions:

Melt white chocolate and heavy cream in a double boiler or the way basically everyone without infinite space for single-use items does it: in a small glass bowl set over a small saucepan so about half the bowl sits in the pan. Add 1-2” water to the pan, bring to a boil, and turn heat to medium-low-ish so it maintains a simmer. Stir chocolate frequently with a rubber spatula until completely melted and smooth. Remove the bowl from the pan and set aside to cool to room temperature. To prevent a skin from forming, stir every 5-10 minutes.
Once the white chocolate is cooled to room temperature, add butter to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat butter on medium-high until smooth and lightly fluffy, about 1 minute. Add 1 cup of the powdered sugar and beat on low until incorporated then increase speed to medium-high until smooth.
Add white chocolate and salt and beat until smooth. Taste, adding more powdered sugar to your desired sweetness (or structure—I wouldn’t go beyond 4 cups powdered sugar). At this point, you can add vanilla extract if you feel it needs more flavor. It depends entirely on the white chocolate you use. Once you’re happy with the taste, beat on high speed 1-2 minutes to create a fluffier frosting, followed by 1 minute on lowest speed or 1 minute vigorous stirring by hand with a spatula, to remove any large air bubbles.

If not using immediately, store covered at room temperature overnight or tightly sealed in the fridge 2-3 weeks. Freezing isn’t recommended as the white chocolate could separate during thawing. Store frosted cakes in airtight container at room temperature 3-5 days or in the fridge up to a week (but know that refrigerating cut or exposed cake will dry it out).

Enjoy!