Common Ingredients in buttercream Recipes

We researched the most common ingredients in over a dozen popular buttercream recipes and found the top 15 ingredients.

The most common ingredient in buttercream dishes is sugar.

Butter, confectioners sugar, milk, flour, eggs, baking powder and cream are also common ingredients in buttercream recipes. For herbs and spices, vanilla extract is popular. Variations include:

• heavy cream in place of milk
• buttermilk in place of cream

Salt is in 75% of buttercream recipes.

The average buttercream recipe has about 10.8 ingredients, with a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 28.

In terms of directions, buttercream recipes have about 4.8 steps on average, ranging from 1 to 12 instructions.

Ratios of Common Ingredients in Buttercream

For 2 stick butter (226 g), the median and average amounts of other significant ingredients are below. Some ingredients are potential substitutes for others, meaning they almost never exist together in a single buttercream recipe, and are marked below.

Ingredient	Median	Average	% of recipes with butter	Potential subsitutions
salt	0.49 teaspoon (3 g)	1.5 teaspoon (9 g)	90%
vanilla extract	2 teaspoon (8 g)	4 teaspoon (17 g)	70%
flour	1.7 cup (207 g)	3.4 cup (431 g)	70%
sugar	248.8 g (249 g)	471.8 g (472 g)	70%
eggs	4 large (199 g)	5.8 large (290 g)	60%
baking powder	3 teaspoon (15 g)	2.2 teaspoon (11 g)	60%
milk	4 tablespoon (61 g)	5.3 tablespoon (81 g)	40%	heavy cream
vanilla bean	2.7 (9 g)	2.4 (8 g)	30%

Ingredients by Average Weight in Buttercream

We also found the average content of the significant ingredients by weight in buttercream recipes. This would be: 57% confectioners sugar, 18% butter, 7% egg whites, 5% flour, 4% milk, 4% shortening, 2% buttermilk, 1% heavy cream and 1% sugar.

Here are the top ingredients, listed in order of popularity.

sugar

Sugar is the most popular ingredient in buttercream dishes. In fact, 100% of buttercream recipes contain sugar.

Variations of sugar include:

• confectioners sugar: 76% of recipes
• brown sugar: 12% of recipes

For buttercream recipes, sugar is frequently used with flour, salt, eggs, baking powder and butter. However, shortening is almost never used together with sugar in buttercream dishes.

confectioners sugar

Another popular ingredient in buttercream is confectioners sugar. From the recipes we've sampled for buttercream, over 75% have confectioners sugar.

Sifted is a frequent preparation for confectioners sugar in buttercream dishes.

Confectioners sugar is often included in buttercream dishes in amounts of 4 cups, 3 cups or 5 cups.

In buttercream recipes that contain confectioners sugar, it is on average, 52% by weight.

For buttercream recipes, confectioners sugar is frequently used with vanilla extract, salt, milk, butter and butter. However, egg yolks is almost never used together with confectioners sugar in buttercream dishes.

butter

Another popular ingredient in buttercream is butter. From the recipes we've sampled for buttercream, over 90% have butter.

Buttercream dishes often call for butter to be softened and cubed.

Butter is often included in buttercream dishes in amounts of 2 sticks, 1 cup or 1 pound.

In buttercream recipes that contain butter, it is on average, 14% by weight.

In recipes for buttercream, butter is often used with salt, vanilla extract, flour, sugar and confectioners sugar. On the other hand, butter is almost never used with shortening.

salt

Salt is another common ingredient in buttercream dishes. In fact, over 75% of buttercream recipes contain salt.

Common quantities for salt in buttercream dishes include half a teaspoon, 2 teaspoons or a quarter teaspoon.

In buttercream recipes that contain salt, it is on average, 0.1% by weight.

Confectioners sugar, vanilla extract, butter, flour and sugar are commonly used together with salt in buttercream dishes.

vanilla extract

Vanilla extract is another common ingredient in buttercream dishes. In fact, over 70% of buttercream recipes contain vanilla extract.

Vanilla extract is often included in buttercream dishes in amounts of 2 teaspoons, 1 teaspoon or 1 tablespoon.

In buttercream recipes that contain vanilla extract, it is on average, 0.6% by weight.

In recipes for buttercream, vanilla extract is often used with confectioners sugar, salt, butter, milk and flour.

milk

Another popular ingredient in buttercream is milk. From the recipes we've sampled for buttercream, over 50% have milk.

Variations of milk include:

• whole milk: 6% of recipes

Confectioners sugar, vanilla extract, butter, butter and salt are commonly used together with milk in buttercream dishes.

Potential substitutions for milk in buttercream:

• heavy cream

Also, milk is not often used with baking powder, buttermilk, baking soda, spray, canola oil, cinnamon, pecans, lemon juice and brown sugar.

flour

Flour is another common ingredient in buttercream dishes. In fact, over 45% of buttercream recipes contain flour.

Flour is often included in buttercream dishes in amounts of 3 cups.

In buttercream recipes that contain flour, it is on average, 7% by weight.

For buttercream recipes, flour is frequently used with sugar, salt, eggs, baking powder and butter. However, shortening is almost never used together with flour in buttercream dishes.

eggs

Another popular ingredient in buttercream is eggs. From the recipes we've sampled for buttercream, over 45% have eggs.

Variations of eggs include:

• egg whites: 29% of recipes
• egg yolks: 12% of recipes

In recipes for buttercream, eggs is often used with salt, sugar, baking powder, flour and butter.

egg whites

Egg whites is another common ingredient in buttercream dishes. In fact, over 25% of buttercream recipes contain egg whites.

In buttercream recipes that contain egg whites, it is on average, 18% by weight.

In recipes for buttercream, egg whites is often used with flour, sugar, salt, butter and eggs. On the other hand, egg whites is almost never used with shortening.

baking powder

Baking powder is another common ingredient in buttercream dishes. In fact, over 40% of buttercream recipes contain baking powder.

Common quantities for baking powder in buttercream dishes include 1 teaspoon, 2 teaspoons or 1 tablespoon.

In buttercream recipes that contain baking powder, it is on average, 0.2% by weight.

Salt, sugar, flour, eggs and butter are commonly used together with baking powder in buttercream dishes. Conversely, baking powder is not often used with shortening.

cream

Another popular ingredient in buttercream is cream. From the recipes we've sampled for buttercream, over 35% have cream.

Variations of cream include:

• heavy cream: 24% of recipes

For buttercream recipes, cream is frequently used with butter, salt, eggs, baking powder, sugar and flour.

Potential substitutions for cream in buttercream:

• buttermilk

Also, cream is not often used with butter, baking soda, shortening, cocoa powder, canola oil, cinnamon, pecans and brown sugar.

buttermilk

Buttermilk is another common ingredient in buttercream dishes. In fact, over 20% of buttercream recipes contain buttermilk.

In buttercream recipes that contain buttermilk, it is on average, 5% by weight.

For buttercream recipes, buttermilk is frequently used with flour, eggs, sugar, salt and baking powder.

Potential substitutions for buttermilk in buttercream:

• egg yolks

Also, buttermilk is not often used with shortening.

vanilla bean

Another popular ingredient in buttercream is vanilla bean. From the recipes we've sampled for buttercream, over 20% have vanilla bean.

In buttercream recipes that contain vanilla bean, it is on average, 0.3% by weight.

In recipes for buttercream, vanilla bean is often used with flour, sugar, egg whites, butter and salt. On the other hand, vanilla bean is almost never used with baking soda, shortening, cinnamon, pecans and brown sugar.

shortening

Shortening is another common ingredient in buttercream dishes. In fact, over 15% of buttercream recipes contain shortening.

Common quantities for shortening in buttercream dishes include half a cup.

In buttercream recipes that contain shortening, it is on average, 18% by weight.

Confectioners sugar, vanilla extract, milk, salt and butter are commonly used together with shortening in buttercream dishes.

Potential substitutions for shortening in buttercream:

• canola oil

Also, shortening is not often used with butter, flour, baking powder, egg whites, buttermilk, vanilla bean, spray, baking soda, cocoa powder, egg yolks, cinnamon, pecans, lemon juice and brown sugar.

Other buttercream Ingredients

Other significant ingredients used in buttercream recipes include:

• spray - 15%
• baking soda - 15%
• cocoa powder - 10%
• canola oil - 10%
• cinnamon - 10%
• pecans - 10%
• lemon juice - 10%

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