Eating Healthier in Today's World

THE ICING ON THE CAKE--AND OTHER FAVORITE FROSTINGS

I have been focusing on some of the soft baking that we can do with the Bosch machines besides making breads.  My last post was about the cakes, muffins and cupcakes and how to make them perfect.  This time I though I would talk about what to put on top.  All good cakes and cupcakes should have a great finish topping or icing that is not too sweet and makes them look wonderful.  Our chef at our training seminar showed us a professional Swiss Meringue Butter Cream topping that is easy to make in the Bosch machine and can be refrigerated up to 3 days before using.  The recipes are all at the bottom of the page.

Egg Whites:  Generally speaking the main way to get a fluffy frosting is to make is with egg whites.  It is important to beat the tar out of them so they are light and fluffy and will hold up when the other ingredients are added.  Don't spare any expense of speed and time.  Turn the machine up to the highest speed and using the French whips that came with the Bosch Machine to add as much air as you can.  If your icing or frosting is going to get much thicker by adding lots of butter or shortening, switch to the cookie paddles and they will do a great job of finishing the job.  If your are doing Royal Icing which is what we use for Gingerbread houses, the whips or cookie whips should be suffient as you still need to get lots of air into the mixture. 

Icing Sugar:  When doing a non-cooked frosting or icing, the powdered or icing sugar is the best choice.  Cooked frostings like the Swiss Meringue can use the regular sugar as the granules are cooked away and dissolved.  To get the best results and the lightest frostings, always sift the powdered sugar to add air and get out any lumps.  Our new Bosch sifters will do the job in a few seconds right into the bowl you will make the frostings in.  We can also make a frosting without sugar at all using our Xagave which has less than 1/3 the calories and makes a great topping for Bundt Cakes.  It usually pours over the cake and makes it look spectacular!

Butter or Shortening:  If the recipe calls for either butter or shortening make certain is at room temperature before using.  Always cut in into 1/4 cup sizes before putting it in with the whips to prevent them from bending when hitting something hard. 

Swiss Meringue Butter Cream Frosting                      Fluffy Chocolate Frosting   

Chocolate Xagave Icing