Texas Cottage Food Law > Resources > Recipes

Site Sponsored by CakeBoss

Swiss Meringue Buttercream (SMBC)

The following recipe has been tested by Food Safety Net Services. Its tested pH and water activity(aW) levels qualify it to be a "Non-Potentially Hazardous Food" as defined by Texas law.

You must follow this recipe exactly to obtain the same result. If you use a different recipe for Swiss meringue buttercream that you wish to sell, you must have it tested to be assured that it is a Non-Potentially Hazardous Food that does not require refrigeration. We are not responsible for your results with this recipe. It is provided to you for free, without any guarantee or warranty of any kind.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream - scaled for 6 qt mixing bowl
Recipe provided courtesy of Tracy Auseklis of The Buttercream Studio
pH 7.83
aW 0.85
Tested 12/9/2011 by Food Safety Net Services

1 cup sugar

4 large egg whites

3 sticks + 5 TBS of unsalted butter, room temp

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Whisk egg whites and sugar together in a big metal bowl over a pot of simmering water. Whisk until you can’t feel the sugar granules when you rub the mixture between your fingers. Continue to whisk and heat the mixture until it reaches 160 degrees using a candy thermometer. This will take a while so be patient.

Transfer mixture into the mixer and whip until it turns white and about doubles in size. (Here’s a tip: when you transfer to the mixer, make sure you wipe the condensation off the bottom of the bowl so that no water gets into the egg whites. This can keep them from whipping up properly.)

Add the vanilla.

Finally, add the butter a stick at a time and whip, whip, whip. Be patient, it may not look like it is coming together, but continue to whip! It always does!

These recipes were tested at the personal expense of Texas Cottage Food Law. If you found these results helpful, please consider a donation to help offset our expenses.