BEST No-Fail German Buttercream Recipe
This German buttercream is silky smooth and buttery with the taste of vanilla pastry cream. My no-fail recipe with step-by-step picture tutorial is all you are ever going to need to make this perfect custard buttercream every single time. Frost it on cakes, pipe it over cupcakes, or fill it in macarons and other desserts. And with tips, tricks, and troubleshooting this buttercream is one of the easiest to make.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
Have you ever been in a mood for a good buttercream other than sweet American buttercream? And yet you don't want to go thru the fuss of boiling sugar syrup with a thermometer or using a double boiler to cook eggs and egg whites? So what buttercream can you still make? A German buttercream!
I believe that German buttercream is one of the easiest to make, other than American buttercream. I mean when you compare it to other similar buttercreams like an Italian meringue, Swiss meringue or French buttercream. Because there is no boiling syrup, no cooking eggs and sugar over a double boiler. This is pretty straight forward. You prepare vanilla pastry cream and then whip it into butter to make this wonderful silky smooth, rich and glorious buttercream.
Now, I must warn you though. This is highly addictive and one that can be eaten by the spoonfuls. As a rule of thumb in my kitchen, we make more. I once had to make a second batch for an order because the kids could not get enough.
What are the different types of buttercream?
I know that the number of buttercream and frosting recipes can be overwhelming and sometimes confusing. In general, we can categorize them as:
- Butter-based buttercream - Simple all-purpose buttercreams like my velvet American buttercream, Vanilla buttercream (eggless).
- Decorators buttercream - Often with all or some vegetable shortening to prevent the frosting from melting easily. For example, my Bakery style frostings - Vanilla and Chocolate Frosting.
- Cream cheese based - Made with cream cheese and with or without butter. For example, my classic cream cheese is made with butter, which adds more stability. And my no-butter cream cheese frosting is perfect when you want a more luxurious dessert type frosting.
- Meringue buttercream - Made with the addition of whipped egg whites. Less sweet than the classic butter-based buttercream. For example, my Swiss Meringue or Italian Meringue.
- Egg-based buttercream - Like the French Buttercream and German Buttercream made with egg yolks then whipped to make a light and fluffy frosting with the addition of butter.
- Whipped Cream Frosting - The lightest of them all is, of course, simple whipped cream. I shared 5 different methods to make whipped cream at home. As well as a whipped cream buttercream frosting.
- Meringue buttercream with Meringue powder - There is Italian meringue buttercream with meringue powder as well as Swiss Meringue Buttercream with Meringue Powder.
What is the difference between French buttercream (FBC) and German buttercream (GBC)?
Well, both FBC and GBC are egg-yolk based buttercreams or custard based buttercream. The difference between the two is in the method used. In French buttercream, we use the method of boiling sugar syrup to 240 F then pour it over whipping eggs. While in a German buttercream, we first make the vanilla pastry cream using egg yolks and then combine it with butter whipping it until we have a luscious buttercream.
So if you don't have a candy thermometer I highly recommend you make this German Buttercream, not a French Buttercream. Again it's similar buttercream just a different process.
How do you make perfect German buttercream?
While this may look complicated it’s actually quite simple. And I explain it in detail below with progress pictures for you to follow. In addition, here is the process at a glance.
- Prepare vanilla pastry cream (custard).
- Cool the pastry cream completely in the fridge.
- Cream the butter.
- Add cooled pastry cream.
- Whip some more.
- Add flavoring.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
Can I make an eggless French buttercream?
A request for eggless French or German buttercream is often surprising because both FBC and GBC are made with egg yolks. Both are custard based buttercreams. So how?
Well, you can't make a French buttercream eggless, and yet you can still have eggless custard-based buttercream. All you do is make this German Buttercream using eggless vanilla pastry cream instead of classic vanilla pastry cream. Voila! Now you have an eggless French or German aka custard-based buttercream.
Let's talk ingredients and substitutes (Save/Pin)
- Eggs - A German buttercream is ideally made with all egg yolks. Use large fresh eggs to prevent any eggy taste in the vanilla pastry cream.
- Sugar - I highly recommend using a fine grain sugar, so it dissolves quicker in the egg whites. And yet, if regular thick sugar is all you have, mix it on the double boiler a litter longer.
- Butter - I like using unsalted butter. Since butter is a key ingredient it is highly recommended that you use good quality butter. If salted butter is all you have, go ahead and use it but omit any additional salt in the recipe.
- Cornstarch - This helps thicken the vanilla pastry cream. It is not optional. And if you don't have cornstarch a good substitute would be arrowroot powder or tapioca powder.
- Flavoring - Vanilla is always my first flavor of choice. It's highly recommended to use the scrapings of a vanilla bean for best flavor but you can also add vanilla bean paste instead. You can also add any other flavoring in combination with the vanilla.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream,
Classic German buttercream recipe - No-fail recipe (Save/Pin)
Useful tips and tools
- A candy thermometer is essential to make this buttercream.
- Also, a heavy based saucepan works best when boiling sugar since it conducts heat more evenly. Unlike me, try using a light color or aluminum-based pan, so you can see the syrup better.
- If you are making this buttercream, please remove that K-Mix or KitchenAid from the back of your kitchen cabinet. You don't have to buy an expensive stand mixer, a simple hand mixer works great too. But use it, because you have to whip the egg whites to stiff peaks and the mixer works best for this process.
- After the buttercream is prepared, always keep it sealed well in the fridge. This will prevent any odor from the other foods to attach itself to the buttercream. I place my buttercream in a stainless steel storage (we try to avoid using plastic in our home). And I also cover the top surface of the buttercream with cling wrap.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
Method
Prepare the vanilla pastry cream
- Pour milk in a heavy bottom saucepan over medium heat.
- Cut the vanilla bean in half length way, open the pod and scrape the seed.
- Add the pod and the seeds to the milk.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
- Let the milk come to an almost boil.
- Use a bowl large enough to accommodate the milk.
- Place egg yolks, sugar, salt, and cornstarch/cornflour.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
- Whisk until light and almost foamy. You want to get the sugar to almost dissolve.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
- Once the milk is ready, reduce heat. And remove the pot of milk from the heat.
- When the milk has reached an almost boil, lower the heat and remove the saucepan from heat.
- Carefully and gently - pour some of the milk into the egg mixture while still continuously stirring or whisking to prevent the eggs from curdling.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
- Once more than half the milk has been poured into the eggs mixture the eggs have been tempered.
- Now transfer all the milk and egg mixture back into the saucepan.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
- Place the pan back on medium-low heat and continue to cook the pastry cream stirring all the time.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream,
- The liquid will transform from a foamy liquid to a thick custard with no foam at all.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
- When the pastry cream is thick and coats the back of a wooden spoon or spatula you can take it off the heat.
- Pour through a sieve and discard the vanilla bean and scrapings as well as any curdled eggs.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
- Let cool completely before you store in the fridge or use as stated in the desired recipe.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
Whip into buttercream
- Cream the butter in a mixer bowl with paddle attachment.
- This is an important process of making this buttercream so it is important that you cream this butter until light and fluffy (3 to 4 minutes).
- Then add the cooled vanilla pastry cream and combine well.
- Add any other flavoring or additions (see flavor options below).
- Again whip for 3 to 5 minutes until you have a soft, creamy, buttery yet light and fluffy buttercream.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
Storage
- German buttercream is highly perishable and needs to be refrigerated because it contains eggs and milk.
- You can keep a cake frosted with GBC for a few hours (3 or 4 hrs) in good weather.
- It should be treated just like butter. If left out in high temperature or humidity it will melt like butter.
- It can be kept refrigerated for up to 3 to 4 days or frozen for up to 15 days
- When frozen it is best thawed in the fridge overnight.
- Whip with a paddle attachment for about five minutes to restore consistency.
No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream
Here are some more buttercream flavors you can create from this basic German buttercream (GBC) recipe
Dark, milk or white chocolate German buttercream?
Add 200 grams melted and cooled chocolate to 4 cups of GBC, and combine well.
Caramel German buttercream or salted caramel GBC?
Add 1 cup caramel sauce to 4 (to 6) cups of GBC. And for salted add a tbsp of rock salt, and combine well.
Butterscotch German buttercream?
Add 1 cup butterscotch sauce to 4 (to 6) cups of GBC.
Lemon German buttercream
Add 1/4 tsp lemon juice to 4 (or 6) cups buttercream. You can also add up to 1/2 if you want a very lemony buttercream. And, 1 tsp of zest can also be added if you don't mind the zest in the buttercream. Also, 1/4 tsp lemon extract will enhance the flavor even more.
Orange German buttercream
Add 1/2 cup orange juice, 1/4 tsp orange extract to 4 (or 6) cups buttercream. Also, 1 tsp orange zest can be added too.
Fruit flavors - blueberry German buttercream, or try raspberry GBC, blackberry GBC, strawberry GBC
Add 1 cup fruit puree to 4 (or 6) cups buttercream. And, I love adding a fruit filling instead, which makes it slightly sweeter, and yet also more rich and vibrant in color.
Dulce de leche German buttercream
Add 1 cup dulce de leche to 4 (6 cups) buttercream.
Coffee or espresso GBC
Dissolve 1 tbsp coffee in 1/4 cup hot water, or use 1/4 cup espresso. Cool completely then add to 4 (or 6) cups buttercream.
Mocha German buttercream
Add 200 grams melted and cooled chocolate to 4 (or 6) cups coffee GBC.
Peanut butter German buttercream
Add up to 2 cups peanut butter to 4 (or 6) cups buttercream.
For more buttercream flavors and recipes check out my post. One Buttercream Recipe - Many Different Flavors
Frequently Asked Questions
How long can you store buttercream outside the fridge? or how long can a German buttercream sit out?
German buttercream is highly perishable and needs to be refrigerated because it contains eggs and milk. You can keep a cake frosted with GBC for a few hours (3 or 4 hrs) in good weather. It should be treated just like butter. If left out in high temperature or humidity it will melt like butter. It can be kept refrigerated for up to 3 to 4 days or frozen for up to 15 days. When frozen it is best thawed in the fridge overnight. Whip with a paddle attachment for about five minutes to restore consistency.
Can you use German buttercream under fondant? (images above)
Yes, absolutely. One of my favorite buttercream to use under fondant is a meringue-based buttercream either Swiss or Italian as well as French or German. The trick to covering an IMBC, SMBC, FBC or GBC covered cake with fondant is to make sure you chill the cake really well, more than a few hours. I love to keep my cakes overnight so when it's ready for fondant its' chilled thru and thru given me a nice firm surface to work with.
Why does buttercream separate? Can I prevent German buttercream from separating?
Do not beat buttercream while it is very chilled. The cold fat in the butter separates from the liquid and the emulsion you just created breaks. Ideally, you can just let the buttercream rest outside the fridge for a while until it's not hard. Or you can use a hair dryer to gently warm the outside of the bowl until you see the edges of the buttercream soften a bit. Then whip it with a paddle attachment.
How do I color German meringue buttercream?
Always use gel or powdered food colors for any buttercream. The food colors available at the grocery store are liquid based and not suitable for cake decorating purposes. Hence, they will alter the consistency of your buttercream giving you a runny icing or sometimes even break the buttercream when you add too much.
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No-Fail German Buttercream Frosting, Classic German Buttercream Recipe, Custard Buttercream,
German Buttercream Recipe No-Fail Recipe
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Ingredients
Makes enough for 2 x 8 inch round cakes or 24 cupcakes
- 6 large (6 large) Egg yolks
- 150 grams (0.75 cups) White sugar
- 3 tbsp (3 tbsp) Cornstarch
- 500 ml (2.00 cups) Whole milk
- 1 med (1 med) Vanilla bean vanilla bean paste
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) Salt
- 450 grams (1.00 lb) Unsalted butter (4 sticks) room temperature
Instructions
Prepare the vanilla pastry cream
- Pour milk in a heavy bottom saucepan over medium heat.
- Cut the vanilla bean in half length way, open the pod and scrape the seed.
- Add the pod and the seeds to the milk.
- Let the milk come to an almost boil.
- Use a bowl large enough to accommodate the milk.
- Place egg yolks, sugar, salt, and cornstarch/cornflour.
- Whisk until light and almost foamy. You want to get the sugar to almost dissolve.
- Once the milk is ready. Reduce heat. Remove the pot of milk from the heat.
- When the milk has reached an almost boil. Lower the heat and remove the saucepan from heat.
- Carefully and gently - pour some of the milk into the egg mixture while still continuously stirring or whisking to prevent the eggs from curdling.
- Once more than half the milk has been poured into the eggs mixture the eggs have been tempered.
- Now transfer all the milk and egg mixture back into the saucepan.
- Place the pan back on medium-low heat and continue to cook the pastry cream stirring all the time.
- The liquid will transform from a foamy liquid to a thick custard with no foam at all.
- When the pastry cream is thick and coats the back of a wooden spoon or spatula you can take it off the heat.
- Pour through a sieve and discard the vanilla bean and scrapings as well as any curdled eggs.
- Let cool completely before you store in the fridge or use as stated in the desired recipe.
Whip into buttercream
- Cream the butter in a mixer bowl with paddle attachment.
- This is an important process of making this buttercream so it is important that you cream this butter until light and fluffy (3 to 4 minutes).
- Then add the cooled vanilla pastry cream and combine well.
- Add any other flavoring or additions (see flavor options below)
- Again whip for 3 to 5 minutes until you have a soft, creamy, buttery yet light and fluffy buttercream.
Storage
- German buttercream is highly perishable and needs to be refrigerated because it contains eggs and milk.
- You can keep a cake frosted with GBC for a few hours (3 or 4 hrs) in good weather.
- It should be treated just like butter. If left out in high temperature or humidity it will melt like butter.
- It can be kept refrigerated for up to 3 to 4 days or frozen for up to 15 days.
- When frozen it is best thawed in the fridge overnight.
- Whip with a paddle attachment for about five minutes to restore consistency.
Equipment
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
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Elina
Veena, thank you so much for this wonderful recipe! It tastes heavenly! I'd like to.use it on cupcakes for customers, but I am puzzled - I usually recommend they keep cupcakes at room temperature, but with this type of frosting it is impossible, how do you recommend one should go about it? Tell them store cupcakes in the fridge? This buttercream will only last 2 hrs at room temperature, right? I really really want to use it in my recipe...
Veena Azmanov
Yes, Elina. You will have to tell them to keep the cupcakes in the fridge and take them out about 2 hours before serving. In good cool weather, it can say out for 3 to 4 hours too. But, always be careful with perishable frostings as they can go bad if kept out for too long. Thanks.
Andrea Metlika
I am really enjoying all of your tutorials on the different buttercream's.
Veena Azmanov
Thank you Andrea.
Caitlyn Erhardt
Love all the info and tips, you make it really easy to follow! Great recipe!
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Caitlyn
krissy
I love that you gave different flavor options. this looks creamy and delicious! i cant wait to use this recipe for my next baking project!
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Krissy.
Jill
I had no idea there were so many types of buttercream. My horizons have been broadened! 🙂 Really great, informative post!
Veena Azmanov
Yeah, lots of choices.
Mary Bostow
I love the texture and flavor of this buttercream, and that it isn’t too sweet. Thanks so much!
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Mary No its' definitely less sweet.
Danni Simes
I need help with buttercream recipe consistency for American Buttercream
If I am doing a layer cake and going from crumb coat to covering cake to then decorating do I have to make three batches of buttercream to get the right consistency for each step?
Veena Azmanov
Nah, why three batches - just make one batch - separate them into the three bowls you need and then work on consistency. I only make as much as I need for that project and save the original batch in the prepared consistency.
debjani
Thank you maam.
Veena Azmanov
Anytime Debjani
debjani
Thank you so much for all your advice. Worked perfectly
Veena Azmanov
You are welcome Debjani
debjani
Hi maam,I'm from India. I have checked the packet of powder sugar its written that refined sugar and cornstarchonly, so I'm unable to understand its cane sugar or beet sugar. please help.
Veena Azmanov
Sorry, Debjani. I know that the quality of sugar used to make your powdered sugar is usually responsible to make grainy buttercream. The other way to melt some of that sugar is to use extra liquid but then again it can become too soft in consistency.
debjani
Thank you very much maam. I really appreciate your help. Thanks a lot. I like your work very much. Any other tips for getting my buttercream right?
Veena Azmanov
Your welcome Debjani. I have all the tips and troubleshooting in the recipe. Read them and see what works best with your circumstances