How do you make a less sweet buttercream icing (frosting)?
How to make buttercream icing less sweet is to add cornstarch. Yes, you can add corn flour to buttercream icing, this stiffens the buttercream without having to add more sugar. Like many people, I find buttercream frosting too sweet, but I worry that if I changed the ratio of powdered sugar added the buttercream would not pipe as well as usual. I looked at length for a recipe to make American buttercream recipe that was less sweet, but I could only find recipes that reduced the amount of powdered sugar added, or added additional salt to counterbalance the favour of the sugar on ones palette.
These recipes were not what I wanted, so I decided to create my own recipe. I wanted to figure out how to make frosting less sweet. A recipe that actually removed the amount of sugar added into the buttercream frosting all together; that made buttercream less sweet without adding salt, and also kept the buttercream frosting to have a fluffy, easy to pipe texture. I thought about the role icing sugar (powdered sugar) plays in making butter cream icing – it builds bulk when whipping the icing up with the butter. I looked through the cupboards and weighed up my options: rice flour, glutenous rice flour…… ah ha! Corn flour! (corn starch).
Buttercream frosting that is not too sweet, fluffy and pipes beautifully!
-Nourished Heritage Home, 2022.
By replacing some of the powdered sugar with corn starch, this buttercream is a perfect balance of sweetness with ‘pipeability’, a perfect buttercream that is not too sweet. Enjoy!
As this recipe for buttercream icing is not too sweet, I use it to top my favourite three cake recipes: my Super moist pumpkin spice cake, my Pumpkin Spice Latte Cake Recipe, or my The best super moist chocolate cake. Especially when I use the The best super moist chocolate cake recipe as a basis for the kids birthday cakes, because I always try and lower the amount of sugar I give the kids when and where I can. I have also made this buttercream recipe with rice flour (I used Asian glutenous rice flour – which doesn’t actually contain gluten) and it is also wonderful – so good my teenage niece asked for the recipe!
Tip: To make a chocolate version of this not too sweet buttercream icing, simply replace 1/3 cup of the corn flour with 1/3 cup of cocoa powder. For an indulgent adult version, try adding a dash of your favourite coffee liqueur, good espresso coffee and cocoa (you may have to add a dash more icing sugar or corn flour to adsorb the extra liquid from the coffee or liqueur). Delicious.
Not too sweet buttercream icing
Equipment
- 1 Stand mixer
Ingredients
- 500 grams unsalted butter
- 250 grams icing sugar (powdered sugar)
- 250 grams corn flour (corn starch)
- 2 tsp vanilla
Instructions
- Beat butter and vanilla with a hand beater or in your stand mixer until pale and fluffy.
- Once the butter is pale and fluffy, add 2 to 3 tablespoons of icing sugar and beat until incorporated.
- Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of corn flour and beat until incorporated.
- Continue to add alternating tablespoons of icing sugar and corn flour and beating to incorporate them until you have added all of the icing sugar and corn flour.
- While the icing is still soft, using a spatula, ice your cake or cupcakes.
- This icing stores in the fridge well and also freezes well. If using from stored, allow to soften at room temperature and re-mix using either a hand beater or stand mixer until the icing has become fluffy again.
Notes
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