This French Buttercream has no grittiness because it’s made without confectioner’s sugar! It’s luscious, fluffy and perfectly whipped.

Almond Buttercream Frosting Cupcake on Plate with Sprinkles

Almond Buttercream Cupcakes with Sprinkles on White Plates

If you’ve never tried making a true buttercream, these cupcakes deserve it. Give it a try, you’ll find yourself never going back to those quick buttercreams (butter whipped with confectioner’s sugar…blah. Gritty and boring).

For the cupcakes, I made these White Velvet Cupcakes.

To make the French buttercream, start with 5 egg yolks in the bowl of a stand mixer:

Egg Yolks in Stand Mixer Bowl

Whip on high speed for about 8-10 minutes. They will start to lighten up:

Whipped Egg Yolks in Stand Mixer Bowl

And after a full 10 minutes, they’ll be a very pale yellow, like this:

French Style Buttercream in Mixer Bowl with Whisk Attachment

Pour in a sugar syrup cooked to the soft ball stage (238 degrees F on a thermometer), and whip this for 5 minutes. It will start to turn white in color:

Whipped and Fluffy Almond Buttercream Frosting in Mixer Bowl

Little by little, whip in the butter and add the almond extract:

Fluffy and Creamy Almond Cake Frosting in Bowl

It’s now ready to be piped or spread onto cooled cupcakes!

Vanilla Cupcake with French Almond Buttercream Frosting

French Almond Buttercream

 This French Buttercream has no grittiness because it's made without confectioner's sugar! It's luscious, fluffy and perfectly whipped.
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Ingredients

  • 5 egg yolks
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 2 sticks butter cut into cubes
  • 3/4 tsp almond extract

Instructions 

  • In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg yolks on high speed for 10 minutes until they are very pale.
  • In the meantime, combine the sugar and water in a heavy bottomed saucepan over medium heat, and let the sugar syrup simmer to the soft ball stage (238 degrees on an instant read thermometer).
  • When both the egg yolks and the sugar syrup are ready, pour the sugar syrup into the mixing bowl (the mixer should still be on high speed), aiming as best as you can to pour between the wire whisk and the side of the bowl.
  • Now if you touch the bottom of the bowl, it will be very hot. Beat the egg yolk sugar mixture until the bowl feels neither hot nor cold (about 5 minutes).
  • Turn the mixer down to medium and add the butter, a couple cubes at a time to the bowl, over the course of 10 minutes. Wait until each installment of butter is absorbed until you add the next batch. Add the almond extract, then pipe or spread your buttercream on your cupcakes. If the buttercream is too loose, refrigerate until it reaches your desired consistency.

Nutrition

Calories: 109kcal, Carbohydrates: 8g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 8g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 51mg, Sodium: 3mg, Sugar: 8g

Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.