Swiss meringue buttercream

Egg whites from 6 eggs
Granulated sugar 300g
Unsalted butter 500g
Cream of tartar 1/4tsp
Vanilla extract 1 tsp
Combine egg whites and sugar in the bowl of your standing mixer set over a pan of simmering water and whisk until the sugar has dissolved
Attach the bowl to the mixer and whisk using the whisk attachment. Start whisking on low speed and gradually increase the speed until stiff peaks form. Continue mixing until the mixture is completely cool (about 10 minutes)
Reduce the speed of the mixer and start adding the butter in little bits (the butter should be cut up to cubes and allowed to soften at room temperature). Mix thoroughly between additions. Once all butter has been added, whisk in vanilla. The mixture may curdle a bit. Continue whisking until the mixture is smooth and silky.

The buttercream can be coloured to any desired colour. It can be used to create beautiful piped decorations, borders or swirls

Italian Meringue buttercream

Recipe:
Egg whites from 6 eggs
Granulated sugar 300g
Water 1/3 cup
Unsalted butter 500g
Vanilla extract 1 tsp
In a small, combine sugar and water and boil over medium heat until the syrup reaches 120 degrees centigrade on your sugar thermometer. This is also called the soft ball stage. If you don’t have the thermometer, test by dropping a drop of the solution into cold water, the syrup will form thick threads that when removed from the water and rolled between your thumb and forefinger it will form a soft ball that can be easily flattened when pressed between your fingers.
While the sugar syrup is cooking, whisk the egg whites with an electric mixer on low speed until foamy. Increase the speed and continue to whisk until stiff peaks form.
With mixer still running, pour syrup down the side of bowl into egg whites in a steady stream, and beat on high speed until the mixture cools down (about 3 minutes)
Reduce the speed of the mixer and start adding the butter in little bits (the butter should be cut up to cubes and allowed to soften at room temperature). Mix thoroughly between additions. Once all butter has been added, whisk in vanilla. The mixture may curdle a bit. Continue whisking until the mixture is smooth and silky.

The buttercream is light and silky and produces beautiful swirls with a smooth finish.

When combed, it produces a smooth finish, this buttercream is easier to work with than regular buttercream (the American buttercream or butter icing).

It can be coloured as desired and will keep at room temperature.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream (SMBC) vs. Italian meringue Buttercream (IMBC)

Meringue is a frothy mixture made by beating egg whites and sugar. It is the base for the meringue buttercream which begin with the formation of the meringue and addition of butter to the mixture.

There are 2 major types of meringue buttercream, the Swiss meringue buttercream and the Italian meringue butter cream. The buttercreams are prepared using the same basic procedures, beating sugar and egg whites to form the meringue; some level of heating is involved to ensure any bacteria in the egg whites are destroyed. The buttercreams differ in the heating process.

SMBC starts by hearing the sugar and egg whites over boiling water to 71degrees centigrade, then whipping till the meringue is formed, while the IMBC, syrup is made with sugar and water and then cooked till the sugar melts; the syrup is then slowly poured into a mixing bowl of egg whites to cook the egg white.
It has been claimed that meringue was invented by the Swiss but improved by the Italians. There are tons of arguments for superiority of both buttercream but fundamentally both buttercreams are similar in appearance and taste. Most chefs have concluded that SMBC is simpler to make than the IMBC while IMBC though more technical to make is argued to be more stable. Food safety wise, SMBC is considered superior being that the egg is heated to 71 degrees centigrade which provides more assurance that harmful bacteria that could be in the egg are destroyed. However, the level of sugar that goes into the buttercreams combined with the heating involved the IMBC is sufficient to achieve food safety being that sugar is antimicrobial

Buttercream

Although there are different buttercream frosting this is the most common probably because of it is easy to make. In Nigeria, this is commonly referred to as butter icing but more conventionally as American buttercream

Recipe:
400g butter
1kg confectionary sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 – 4 tbs milk

In your stand mixer,  cream butter for about 5 minutes, add confectionery sugar 1 cup at a time and cream until light and fluffy. Add milk and vanilla extract and cream until well combined.

Vary the quantity of milk used to get the desired consistency.  A stiffer consistency can be created for piping borders and designs.

The frosting is quite versertile and stable for the Nigerian weather.  It can be left at room temperature without melting.
This recipe will give you a stable buttercream with which you can create several designs such as the combed buttercream

You can also create piped designs such as rose swirls or star tips designs.