I is for Icing

I know I should have gone with ice cream but I haven't made it since I was a young adult, so my instructions have been lost and I am not sure where on earth they are.  So suffice to say, we are doing a recipe for icing.

Some cupcakes I made for my husband's niece's wedding.

Nothing boring about icing!  Icing can make or break your cupcakes or cake in one mouthful.  There is nothing worse than having dull, tasteless icing to ruin a beautiful cake.

Ingredients are incredibly important when you make icing.  Real butter, pure vanilla extract are not a luxury, they are a necessity in good icing.  You can also use any liqueur to flavour your icing as well - as they are not extracts, the flavour will not be as pronounced but you can combine them with an extract to make them extra special.



Butter Icing

butter
vanilla extract
almond extract

icing sugar
milk

Put about 2/3 - 3/4 cup butter into a decent sized bowl that has higher sides. I know it is an obscene amount of butter but this icing is for special occasions - I don't use it very often but we all love it!

Start adding in your icing sugar, a little at a time until it starts to get a bit stiffer (not stiff though).

Add a couple tablespoons of milk and continue to mix well.

Add about 2-3 tsp. vanilla and 1 tsp almond extract - depending how much icing you are making. Mix in well.

Add more icing sugar and a wee bit more milk.  Mix well.

Taste the icing - it should feel smooth and creamy - not gritty at all.  If it feels gritty, add a bit more butter - about a tablespoon and about a teaspoon of milk.

Keep trying it until it feels like it melts in your mouth.  Just taste a smidgen - not a whole teaspoon or anything like that.

Cream it gently for about 5 minutes.

Ice your cake or cupcakes.  Leftovers freeze well - just stir well and gently when it thaws out.

Enjoy!