Why have just one buttercream flavor when you can try so many more. These simple and easy variations to create different buttercream flavors from one recipe will open new and wonderful possibilities for your cake projects. From strawberry to caramel, marzipan or Kahlua, you can use a basic American buttercream, meringue-based buttercream.

Table of Content
The basic recipes
How many buttercream flavors have you tried? I bet many!! And yet, did you know that you can make one basic buttercream and then use that to create different flavors?
First of all, I have already given you a few of my basic buttercream recipes:
- Stiff Buttercream Frosting for piping sugar flowers
- Best Buttercream Frosting (eggless)
- Chocolate Buttercream Frosting (eggless)
- Velvet American Buttercream (ABC) (contains meringue powder)
- Italian Meringue Buttercream (IMBC) (with raw egg whites)
- Swiss Meringue Buttercream (SMBC) (white raw egg whites)
- Classic French Buttercream (FBC) (with whole eggs)
- German Buttercream (GBC) (with vanilla pastry cream)
These are the basic buttercream recipes. And yet, often you get asked to make different flavors. While sometimes you have to start from scratch, often it's easier to use the basic recipe and create new buttercream flavors.
And, you can also use any of the above recipes as your base recipe to create new flavors. And yet, I find that using my stiff buttercream frosting for piping sugar flowers works best as a base to create more flavors. Why? Because, the additional ingredients result in buttercream with the right consistency, and not too soft.
Meringue buttercream recipes
So these flavors work with all types of buttercream. And, in some cases, the consistency may be soft or even too soft. Also, I often prefer to have a soft consistency meringue buttercream for my cakes.
Since you are the cake decorator, I'll leave it for you to decide what consistency you need for your cake. Hence, you can use either my Velvet American Buttercream, Swiss Meringue Buttercream, Italian Meringue Buttercream, Classic French Buttercream or German Buttercream
Step by step instructions
My preferred recipe is my stiff buttercream because it works best in terms of consistency. And, consistency may vary from other buttercream recipes, since it depends on the additional liquid ingredients needed to get the right flavor.
See my chocolate buttercream frosting - recipe video here
More buttercream recipes from scratch
- Best Buttercream Frosting Recipe - Vanilla Buttercream
- Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- Bakery Style Vanilla Frosting
- Bakery Style Chocolate Frosting
- Velvet American Buttercream Frosting
- Swiss Meringue Buttercream
- Italian Meringue Buttercream
- Meringue Buttercream From Meringue Powder
- Stiff Buttercream Frosting for piping buttercream flowers
- Cream Cheese Frosting
- No-Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
- Best Strawberry Buttercream Frosting
- Perfect Pink Champagne Buttercream
- Coffee Buttercream Frosting
- Eggnog Buttercream Frosting
- Caramel Buttercream
- Butterscotch Buttercream Frosting
- Rich Dark Nutella Buttercream Frosting
- Kahlua Buttercream Frosting
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Printable Recipe
Different Buttercream Flavors from One Recipe
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Conversions Used
1 lb = 453 grams, 1 cup = 240 ml, 1 stick = 113g, 1 tbsp= 15 ml, 1 tsp= 5 ml,
Ingredients
4 to 6 Cups - any one of these Basic Buttercream Recipes
Chocolate Buttercream
- 8 oz (225 g) chocolate
Mocha Buttercream
- 8 oz (225 g) chocolate
- 2 tbsp strong Espresso coffee ((liquid))
Caramel Buttercream
- ¾ cup (0.75 cup ) caramel sauce
Salted Caramel Buttercream
- ¾ cup (0.75 cup) caramel sauce
- 1 tbsp ( ) rock salt
Nutella Buttercream
- ¾ cup (0.75 cup ) Nutella
Lemon Buttercream
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- 1 tsp lemon zest
Strawberry Buttercream
- 200 ml (7 oz) crushed strawberries
- ½ tsp strawberry extract ((optional))
Raspberry Buttercream
- 8 oz (7 oz) crushed raspberries
- ½ teaspoon raspberry extract ((optional))
Peanut Butter Buttercream
- ¾ cup (0.75 cup ) peanut butter
Pineapple Buttercream
- 8 oz (200 ml ) crushed pineapple
- ½ tsp pineapple extract ((optional))
Marshino Cherry Buttercream
- ½ cup maraschino cherries
- 2 tsp cherry juice
Baileys Buttercream/Kahlua Buttercream
- ½ cup (120 ml) Baileys or Kahlua
Coconut Buttercream
- ½ cup (120 g) Coconut cream
Marzipan Buttercream
- ½ cup (110 g) marzipan
Boston Cream Pie
- ¾ cup (180 ml) vanilla pastry cream
Instructions
Chocolate Buttercream
- Add melted cooled chocolate to the buttercream.
Mocha Buttercream
- Add melted cool chocolate and espresso to the buttercream.
Caramel Buttercream
- Add caramel to the buttercream.
Salted Caramel Buttercream
- Combine thick caramel to the buttercream - mix well.
- Sprinkle over the rock salt and barely mix.
Nutella Buttercream
- Add Nutella to the buttercream - stir well.
Lemon Buttercream
- Add lemon juice and zest to the buttercream.
Strawberry / Raspberry/ Pineapple Buttercream
- Stir in the crushed fruit and extract to the buttercream.
Peanut Butter Buttercream
- Combine the peanut butter to the buttercream - stir well.
Baileys Buttercream / Kahlua Buttercream
- Stir in the Baileys or Kahlua to the buttercream.
Cherry Buttercream
- Add a few tbsp. canned MC juice + chopped cherries.
Boston Cream Pie
- Stir vanilla pastry cream to the stiff buttercream frosting recipe.
Coconut Buttercream
- Add coconut cream to the buttercream.
- You can add either toasted coconut flakes or toasted desiccated chocolate to add texture.
Marzipan Buttercream
- Soften one cup Marzipan with a few drops of water. Add it to the buttercream.
Nutrition Information
The nutrition information and metric conversion are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee its accuracy. If this data is important to you please verify with your trusted nutrition calculator. Thank you
Sue
If you are adding things to flavor it (example- caramel sauce) do you have to adjust liquids in the recipe? I feel like adding caramel sauce would make it inconsistent for decorating; will it? Thank you!
Veena Azmanov
Yes, if you add other liquid ingredients, you must adjust basic liquid as well. Like caramel sauce, butterscotch, curds, etc.
Imoiseme
Week 2, day 3 done. Thanks.