Description
Delicious peanut butter buttercream frosting, perfect for cakes and cookies.
Ingredients
Scale
- 8 large egg whites, room temperature (240g)
- 2 1/2 cups granulated sugar (500g)
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature (339g)
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter (250g)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste (8g)
- 1/2 tsp fine salt (3g)
Instructions
- Before making this frosting, be sure to clean your mixing bowl thoroughly. If there’s any grease it can make it difficult to whip up the meringue.
- In a medium-sized pot, add about 1 inch of water and bring to a simmer.
- Add 8 egg whites and 2 1/2 cups of granulated sugar into a large, heat-proof bowl.
- Place the bowl on top of the pot filled with simmering water. The bowl should create a seal over the pot. Make sure the water isn’t touching the bottom of the bowl, or it can cook the egg whites.
- Whisk the mixture constantly for about 3 minutes, until it reaches 160°F / 71°C. You can test the mixture to see if it’s ready by rubbing a tiny bit between your fingertips. The sugar should be fully dissolved, and it should feel super smooth and hot to the touch.
- Once it reaches this stage, lift the bowl away from the pot and dry the bottom with a towel. Pour the mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on a medium-high speed with a whisk attachment. Mix for about 10 minutes, or until you have stiff, glossy peaks that stick straight up.
- While the meringue whips, I like to add something cold around the base of my bowl. I find the meringue stays quite warm while it whips up and placing a bag of frozen veggies around the bottom of the bowl helps cool it back to room temperature. This can prevent your buttercream from becoming soupy in the next step.
- At this point, I recommend feeling the bottom of the mixing bowl with your hand. If it feels pretty much room temperature, then add in 1 1/2 cups or 3 sticks of unsalted butter, 1 stick at a time. If it still feels warm, either wait another 15 minutes to add the butter or pop the bowl into the fridge for 5 minutes to help it cool down. This will help prevent soupy buttercream.
- Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. The frosting should have a thick, whipped consistency once all the butter is mixed in. If it looks lumpy or broken, keep mixing until it looks fluffy and thick. If it doesn’t seem to come together after an additional 10 minutes of mixing, check out the troubleshooting section in the post above.
- Once the consistency is right, swap out the whisk attachment for a paddle attachment and gradually mix in 1 cup of creamy peanut butter 1 Tbsp at a time on a low speed. Then mix in 2 tsp vanilla extract and 1/2 tsp fine salt. Continue mixing on a low speed for a couple of minutes to make the frosting extra smooth.
- Then comes the fun part! This buttercream can be used to frost everything from cakes to cookies. It pipes like a dream and is also great for filling layer cakes. It can sit out at room temperature for up to 2 days or be stored in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
- This frosting can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
- Let the frosting sit at room temperature before using it if it has been stored in the fridge.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Mixing
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 tablespoon
- Calories: 100
- Sugar: 8g
- Sodium: 50mg
- Fat: 8g
- Saturated Fat: 3g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 8g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 2g
- Cholesterol: 30mg