Light, silky, and packed with real strawberry flavor, this strawberry Swiss meringue buttercream is the perfect frosting for cakes and cupcakes. Made with freeze-dried strawberries for an intense strawberry flavor without excess moisture, this frosting is ultra-creamy, smooth, and incredibly stable for frosting.
If you’ve ever been intimidated by Swiss meringue buttercream, this post will walk you through the process step by step, with expert tips to help you achieve a flawless batch of lightly sweet and perfectly punchy strawberry icing every time.
This strawberry Swiss meringue buttercream is a super versatile frosting that we love to use in our chocolate strawberry cupcakes, but would also be a welcome addition to:
- strawberry crunch cupcakes
- banana strawberry cake
- strawberry whoopie pies
- strawberry shortcake layer cake
And, it's easily adaptable to make other flavors like raspberry or blueberry using other freeze dried berries! Want to make a chocolate version? Use out silky smooth chocolate swiss meringue buttercream recipe!
Jump to:
Why You'll Love This Recipe
Silky and creamy - This buttercream has a smooth, airy texture that’s incredibly silky at room temperature.
Real strawberry flavor - Freeze-dried strawberries give this frosting a bright, fresh berry taste without making it too runny.
Perfect for decorating - It’s super stable for piping, spreading, and layering cakes and also holds up well to extreme temperatures (both hot and cold).
Lightly sweet - American buttercream can be incredibly sweet and gritty. While this buttercream takes a bit of extra time, the silky smooth and perfectly sweet end result is worth it.
Ingredients
- Egg whites. The base of the meringue, creating a light and fluffy structure.
- Granulated sugar. Sweetens and stabilizes the egg whites when heated.
- Unsalted butter. Adds richness, airy stabilization, and creates the silky buttercream texture. It's important to use true room temperature butter, which is about 66℉. Freeze-dried strawberries. Intensifies the strawberry flavor without adding extra liquid. You can typically find these near the produce section or close to the nuts in the grocery store.
- Vanilla extract. Enhances the overall flavor.
See recipe card for full ingredients list and quantities.
Substitutions and Variations
- Add 1 tablespoon of lemon zest for a fresh, citrusy twist.
- Swap the freeze-dried strawberries for freeze-dried raspberries or blueberries.
- Use European style butter like Kerrygold or Plugra for an extra rich, buttery flavor.
- Add an additional flavor of extract like coconut or lemon for a unique flavor boost.
How to Make This Recipe
One: Add the egg whites, sugar, and salt to a bain marie over simmering water and whisk until warm and the sugar granules are dissolved.
Two: Transfer to a stand mixer and whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form and it stands on the tip of a whisk without falling.
Hot tip! The sides of the mixing bowl should no longer be warm to the touch after whipping to stiff peaks. If it's still slightly warm, let it cool down before adding the butter.
Three: With the mixer running, add 1-2 tablespoons of butter at a time until it's all incorporated.
Four: The mixture will begin to look curdled and grainy when adding the butter - this is normal!
Five: Continue whipping the buttercream until it gets very smooth.
Six: Add the vanilla and freeze-dried strawberry powder and mix until combined.
Hot tip! Pulverize the freeze dried strawberries into powder right before using it to prevent clumping. Sift them through a small fine mesh strainer to remove any tiny seeds, if desired.
Seven: Use a rubber spatula to finish mixing everything together until very smooth and no streaks remain.
Eight: Transfer the buttercream to a piping bag to frost cupcakes, or spread onto cake layers.
Expert Tips
- Heating the eggs and sugar. If the sugar isn't fully dissolved, your buttercream may not whip up nicely and will turn out grainy. Be sure the mixture is quite warm and the sugar is fully dissolved.
- Cool the meringue completely before adding butter. If it's too warm, the butter will melt, making the frosting soupy.
- Room temperature butter. Be sure the butter isn't too cold, or too warm. It should be right around 66℉. You can check it with a digital thermometer!
- Curdled looking buttercream. It will look curdled and grainy after the butter has been added, but will smooth out as you continue whipping.
- Pulverizing the freeze dried strawberries. Do this right before you add them to the buttercream so the powder doesn't clump up from moisture and air.
💌 Save This Recipe
Send this recipe directly to your inbox and stay up to date with new recipes!
How to Fix Broken Swiss Meringue Buttercream
If your buttercream doesn’t turn out as expected, don’t worry! Here are the most common issues and how to fix them:
1. Buttercream is too soupy (looks thin and runny).
Cause: The meringue (or butter) was too warm when the butter was added, causing it to melt.
Fix:
- Place the bowl in the fridge for 15–20 minutes, then whip again until fluffy.
- If it’s still too thin, add 1-2 tablespoons of cool room temperature butter and whip on medium-high speed.
2. Buttercream looks curdled or grainy.
Cause: This happens after adding butter, especially if it was too cold.
Fix:
- Keep mixing! It will come together in about 5–10 minutes of whipping.
- If it’s still curdled, warm the bowl slightly by placing a warm towel around it or dipping the bottom of the bowl in hot water for 15-30 seconds.
3. Buttercream is too stiff or greasy.
Cause: The butter was too cold, or it was overwhipped.
Fix:
- Warm the buttercream slightly by setting the bowl in hot water for about 15 seconds, then mix again until smooth.
- If it's too greasy, switch to the paddle attachment and mix on low speed for 2-3 minutes to smooth it out.
Swiss meringue buttercream is forgiving—if something goes wrong, you can almost always bring it back to life with a little patience!
Recipe FAQs
Yes, but it will take significantly longer. A hand mixer works, but you'll need extra time and a deep bowl to achieve the correct meringue texture.
I don't recommend this, even if cooking most of the liquid out of the strawberries, too much will still remain and will affect the final outcome of the buttercream, making it too soupy and unstable.
Yes! Use a gel-based food coloring to add a touch more pink or red hue to the frosting, if desired.
Let it come to room temperature, then whip with a stand or hand mixer until smooth and fluffy again.
Yes, just be sure it's 100% egg whites with no additives. Use a digital scale to measure out the gram amount listed in the recipe.
Storage
Room temperature: This buttercream can be stored at room temperature for 24 hours.
Refrigerator: Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Let it come to room temperature and rewhip before using.
Freezer: Freeze (tightly sealed) for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight and rewhip it before using.
What to Know When Cooking with The Cozy Plum
- All recipes are created with Diamond Crystal kosher salt, the least salty variety of kosher salt. If using Morton's, you'll need to cut the amount of salt in half as it's 2x as salty. This will be the same for sea salt. Please do not use table salt.
- Switch between Cups vs Metric using the toggle on the recipe card. Baking by weight using a digital scale will always produce the most accurate results.
- Scale the recipe using the '1X' '2X' '3X' buttons on the recipe card. Note that this does not make an adjustment for baking times, only quantities.
Did you make this recipe? Share it with us! Tag @thecozyplum on Instagram & Facebook and leave a star rating ⭐️ below!
📖Recipe
Strawberry Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Equipment
- Whisk
- Pot
- Stand mixer with whisk attachment
- Digital thermometer optional
Ingredients
- 2 large egg whites
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
- ¼ cup powdered freeze-dried strawberries buy whole and grind to a powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Separate the eggs and reserve the yolks for another time. Add the eggs, sugar, and salt to a heatproof bowl. Add 1 inch of water to a saucepan over medium heat and place the bowl on top.2 large egg whites, ½ cup granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- Whisk the sugar and egg whites to combine, then whisk every 15 seconds or so. The mixture will start to turn opaque and will look similar in consistency to a powdered sugar glaze. Heat the mixture until the sugar is completely absorbed.
- Note: This will be about 160℉ on a thermometer. You can also check by rubbing your thumb and finger together in the mixture. If you can still feel sugar granules, continue heating and whisking. The mixture should feel rather warm, but not burning hot.
- Transfer the mixture to a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment mix on high speed for until stiff peaks form. Feel the sides of the bowl - if it's still quite warm, wait until it is room temperature before adding the butter.
- With the mixer running on low or medium low, add one piece of butter at a time. Wait to incorporate a new piece until the first is fully incorporated. After about half of the butter goes in, the buttercream may look curdled or split. This is normal - continue adding the butter until it’s gone, then increase the speed to medium high and whisk until smooth.10 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Pulverize the freeze-dried strawberries into a powder then add it to the buttercream along with the vanilla and mix until combined. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides and bottom, and give it one more mix.¼ cup powdered freeze-dried strawberries, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- The buttercream is ready to spread or pipe onto your baked goods!
Leave a Reply