Swiss Meringue Cream Cheese Frosting - Better Than The Original

Frankly, this frosting is my favorite frosting in the world. Here are my reasons why:

1. It tastes like floating cheesecake, so light and airy but tangy.
2. It frosts like swiss meringue buttercream, but is even softer and fluffier.
3. It does not solidify to the extent that other straight buttercreams will and will never taste "refrigerated".
4. It will never grow an offensive crust.
5. It takes to smoothing as well as textures beautifully.

I used it to frost a wedding cake, and I would use it as an accoutremont for my everyday pastry. It can beused in a stacked wedding cake without looking dowel-up-the-butt stiff.

I got this magnificent recipe off Happy Flour, so please take a toke pass!

Swiss Meringue Cream Cheese Buttercream Frosting (Makes Around 2 cups)

- 2 large egg white (about 80g)
- 70g caster sugar
- 100g UNSALTED butter, cut into small cubes and softened to room temperature
- 100g cream cheese, cubed
- 1 t vanilla
Hardware - Thermometer that registers 140F. This is not very common with candy thermometers. I like to use a steamed milk thermometer. Kitchenaid strength mixer.

1. Set saucepan with 1 inch of water on low heat. Place eggs whites and sugar in a large bowl and set the bowl over the saucepan as to create a double boiler. If your bowl is metal, use a damp dishcloth to line the rim of the saucepan, on which you can place the bowl of whites. This is done because metal has a low heat capacity and will heat up too quickly. This will cause the eggs to scramble. **Resist the temptation to heat on high heat!**

2. Whisk the egg whites and the sugar continuously and begin to heat the egg whites to 140F. It will take about 10 minutes. The sugar will dissolve and you will have a semi-bubbly, clear, viscous liquid. Monitor the temperature with your thermometer. Don't stop whisking and don't allow the egg whites to set.

3. Meanwhile, cube you butter and cream cheese.

4. As soon as the egg whites reach 140F, remove from the double boiler and begin to whisk on high. Continue to whisk on high until the outside of the bowl cools down to room temperature and shiny glossy meringues form, 3-5 minutes.

5. Begin to add in the butter, cube by cube, over the course of the next few minutes. Make sure that the butter is being incorporated and that there are not distinct chunks.

The firs thing you will notice is that the meringue will fall. No need to worry, this is just the butter cutting things up. The frosting will pass through a clotted stage where it looks more like cottage cheese than anything else. You will see an odd amount of clear liquid. This happens in varying degrees. Sometimes you will pass through this stage almost seamlessly. Consider yourself lucky. Sometimes you will pass through this stage for 10 minutes of continuous beating. Consider yourself normal.

6. Once the butter is added, begin to add in the cream cheese as like the butter, bit by bit. Again, the cream cheese will pass through a disgusting clotted stage, but the clots will be even smaller. At is worst, this frosting will look watery, and oddly iridescent. KEEP ON BEATING.

I lost my confidence at this stage and stopped, declaring failure. After leaving the mixture for 15 minutes, I tried re-beating it. To my chagrin, it came together after ten minutes of intense beating. (wow, I sound like an aggressive guantanomo soldier)

7. Beat until the buttercream looks like buttercream and then stop. There is not measurement of time, but visually, you will recognize it when it looks light, fluffy, and homogeneous. Add in the vanilla and beat until just combined.

Use to frost! Alternatively, you can mix it with some Just Strawberries! powder and store it in a Tupperware and pick at it with your finger for the next couple of days.

Here I combined it with strawberry cake and freshed strawberry slivers to create my sister's wedding cake.