How to Make the Best Butter Cream Frosting - Mom's Recipe !!!

My Mom is the best cook ever. She is not a fancy chef or college educated, she is just a down home cook from the south. Her fried chicken can't be beat, her chicken and dumplings are to die for. She makes a chicken casserole that everyone asks for the recipe and the church never fails to contact her for baked goods whenever there is a church function. You see, even though my mom is a great cook, she is even a better baker. Her homemade cookies and brownies are an experience unto themselves. However, the one thing that my mom is the most famous for is her butter cream frosting. This frosting is drop dead delicious ! Smooth, creamy, tasty and it never gets hard, no matter how long it is left out at a party. It is always soft and delicious.

It is also awesome on many different kinds of cake. Banana nut is my favorite, but chocolate is also really yummy. It is so versatile, you can put coconut in it, or slivered almonds. Many kinds of flavoring are also very tasty, however, putting fresh fruit in it is not a good idea, as it make it too runny. If you want fruit, slice it and put it on top.

~photo courtesy of Flickr.com

1. Prepare to Bake. An hour or so before you plan to bake, take out the eggs and any fat (like butter) and liquid (like milk) out of the refrigerator and set them out to let them warm up. Using chilled ingredients can cause your batter to curdle.
2. Preheat your oven at least 15 to 20 minutes before you will need to use it.
3. If you use glass cake pans you should lower the heat, as they cook more quickly. 20 to 25 degrees is good.
4. Do not over fill your cake pan. It should only be filled 1/2 to 2/3 at the very most.
5. Always beat the batter a little more than the recipe calls for. It tends to make the cake a bit lighter and fluffier.
6. If you find your cakes are dry, it usually means you are baking at too high a temperature. If your cooking at the prescribed temp, then your oven may need to be calibrated.
7. Don't open the oven door until the cake is nearly done. Opening the door too many times can actually cause a cake to not bake properly, since the oven cannot maintain temperature if the door is constantly opened.
8. Make sure the cake is totally cool before you begin to frost it. If it's not, it will change the consistency of the frosting and it can be a runny disaster.
9. Make sure to "dust" the top of the cake with a paper towel to get rid of the crumbs, so they don't get mixed in with the icing and spoil the smoothness. If you find your cake "crumbing," it may be overcooked, and you may have to wipe the spatula clean, every time you dip it back into the bowl for more frosting.

Mom's Mixer Recommendation

My mom has been cooking since she was a child. She was raised on a farm down south and learned to cook from her mother, on a wood burning cook stove. Can you imagine ? Just regulating the temperature would be a nightmare! If a person could learn to cook well with equipment like that, imagine what they could do now.

Over the years, my mom has used a lot of different kinds of mixers for baking. For the last thirty years, she has used nothing by KitchenAid stand mixers. She says she feels they do the best job, and while they are expensive, they last a very long time and are definitely worth it. She swears by them and has bought KitchenAids for me and both my sisters.

~photo courtesy of Amazon.com

Comes with three attachments:

1) a flat beater for making batter, meat loaf, and all textures in-between

2) a wire whip for egg whites, mayonnaise, and more air-infused creations

3) a hook for mixing and kneading yeast doughs

14 inches tall this mixer includes a spiral-bound instruction guide with mixing tips and 67 recipes.

Secret Family Recipe !

Ingredients:

1 egg white

1 cup white granulated sugar

1 pinch of salt

1/2 cup of Crisco

1 stick of real butter

1 and 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla

1/2 cup of lukewarm milk (whole or 2%)

With a mixer on medium, beat the egg white until foamy

Slowly add sugar and a pinch of salt

Slowly add Crisco, butter and vanilla

When well mixed, very slowly add the lukewarm milk

Beat until smooth and all the sugar is melted and frosting is no longer grainy

~photo courtesy of Flickr.com

Mom prefers a straight spatula for spreading frosting. She said she feels the curved ones are awkward to handle and more difficult to control when frosting the sides of a cake. She also prefers a wooden handle over plastic, as it is easier to keep a grip on and less slippery.

Perfect base to put your cake so you can turn it as you frost. It makes it much easier !

After your frosting is made, switch the mixer to low and add your flavoring. One to three teaspoons, depending on how strong you want the taste. Add slowing, taste testing frequently.

Have you ever wanted to learn how to decorate cakes ? This is the book for you. Easy techniques for beginners !

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