French Buttercream that is silky, custardy, and completely reliable - this is the French Buttercream recipe I perfected after countless tests, and it's the only one I use in my kitchen.
French Buttercream Recipe Snapshot
What it is: Silky meringue buttercream made with egg yolks instead of whites for a rich, custard flavor.
Why you'll love it: It's just as smooth as Swiss meringue buttercream, but has a much richer flavor. This version also pipes beautifully and holds its shape.
How to make it: Whip the egg yolks, then drizzle in a hot sugar syrup. Whip to stiff peaks, then incorporate the butter.
French Buttercream has a bit of a reputation: delicious, yes, but also fussy, unstable, or too soft to work with. That's exactly why I developed this version. After years of testing and troubleshooting, I found the method that gives you all of the richness and satin-smooth texture French Buttercream is known for, but without the common mishaps. I'll show you exactly how to make French buttercream that pipes beautifully, holds its shape, and never breaks on you.
I've used it everywhere from frosting cupcakes to filling fancy dacquoise, and it always performs. It's also incredibly versatile - you can infuse it with flavors like espresso, pistachio, or fruit purées for a rich and luxurious frosting or filling.
Reader Review:
This French buttercream icing is unbelievably delicious! I am a French teacher and so of course what caught my eye was the name of this tasty icing. I made it exactly as directed and it came out PERFECTLY YUMMY, just as described. Next step is to ice all these cupcakes for my Club Français members to enjoy tomorrow…Oh là-là, they will love it! Merci… Thank you for sharing your amazing recipes!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Madame S.
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What is French Buttercream?
French Buttercream is a luxurious frosting that uses the same method as Italian meringue buttercream, but with egg yolks instead of egg whites. This means it has the beautiful, smooth texture of meringue buttercreams, but with the rich, custardy flavor from the egg yolks (like crème pâtissière)
This shouldn't be confused with German Buttercream, which is actually made by mixing custard (crème pâtissière) into whipped butter.
French Buttercream vs American Buttercream
Frankly, American buttercream and French buttercream aren't even in the same league. American buttercream may be quick and easy, but it's overly sweet, a little grainy from all the powdered sugar, and just doesn't deliver on flavor. French Buttercream, on the other hand, is luxuriously smooth and glossy, with a rich custard depth from the egg yolks. With just a few extra steps, you can create a professional-style frosting that looks stunning, pipes beautifully, and has true wow factor.
Ingredients
- Egg Yolks - This recipe uses egg yolks instead of egg whites, like in other meringue buttercreams. Don't throw away the egg yolks; use them for another recipe.
- Superfine Sugar - (Caster sugar). This fine granulated sugar will be dissolved in the sugar syrup, so you don't need to mess with clouds of powdered sugar at all.
- Unsalted Butter - The butter must be softened, but not too warm. For best results, I like to take my butter out of the fridge about an hour before I start making the buttercream.
- Vanilla Extract - This is the main flavor you're adding to the buttercream, so it's best to use pure extract or vanilla bean paste. Or if you want to go all out you can use an actual vanilla pod.
- Salt - A pinch of salt brings out flavor and enhances sweetness, so it's key to give this recipe a full flavor.
See the recipe card for quantities.
What You'll Need
- Stand mixer with whisk attachment - Since traditional French buttercreams require so much mixing and take a long time, I highly recommend using a stand mixer (not a hand mixer).
- Small saucepan - You can use whichever type of pan you have! Stainless steel, nonstick, etc.
- Candy thermometer - This is essential! The hot sugar syrup must reach the precise temperature of the softball stage. If you heat it too much or not enough, you won't get the silky smooth buttercream you're looking for.
- Piping bag and piping tips (optional)
How to Make French Buttercream
Some bakers are intimidated by meringue-based buttercreams, but the process is honestly a lot simpler than you think and the results are just so much better. I promise once you start making new frostings like this French buttercream, you'll never want to go back to traditional American vanilla buttercream again!
Whip Egg Yolks
Place the egg yolks into the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment fitted. Whip them on medium-high speed until they are very pale in color (about the color of butter). This should take about 5 minutes. You can do this in a large bowl with a hand mixer but it takes a long time so your arms may get tired.
Make Sugar Syrup
Meanwhile, heat the sugar and water in a small saucepan on medium heat and bring to a boil.
As the sugar dissolves, use a candy thermometer to track the temperature, we want it to get to exactly 240°F / 115°C (This is also known as the soft ball stage. Be careful not to go past 240°F!)
Pour Syrup into Yolks
Once the sugar syrup reaches the right temperature, turn the mixer down to low speed and carefully pour the hot syrup into the egg mixture in a slow and steady stream.
Be careful to keep it a thin stream and not to hit the sides of the mixing bowl or the whisk as you do it.
Whip
The bowl of the stand mixer should feel hot to the touch once all the sugar syrup is in. Turn the mixer up to high speed and let it whip until the bowl feels room temperature again. This may take about 10 minutes.
Don't rush the process; be sure to let it keep whipping as long as needed.
Add Butter
Once the side of the bowl no longer feels warm, add the softened butter to the mixer one small chunk at a time, letting it whip until it is incorporated in between each addition.
As you add the butter, the consistency of the frosting will change. At first, it will look soupy and runny. Don't panic, just keep going. Eventually, the frosting will thicken up and look lovely and glossy.
If you don't have a smooth and silky buttercream, see my guide about how to fix broken buttercream.
Add Flavor
Once all the butter is added, add the vanilla and salt and whip for one more minute. If you are adding any other flavorings, such as pistachio paste or strawberry puree, add them at the same time as the vanilla.
Note: Because of the egg yolks, classic French Buttercream has a subtle, pale yellow color. I think it's pretty, but if you need a bright white frosting then stick to Swiss or Italian Meringue Buttercream, which uses egg whites instead.
Flavoring and Coloring
Add coloring - For a brightly colored frosting, add a few drops of your favorite gel-based food coloring.
Adjust the flavor - Replace the vanilla extract with any other extract for a totally different flavor profile! You can also add pastes, puree, nut butter, cocoa powder, and more to transform the flavor profile however you'd like. I use a delicious coffee French buttercream in my Opera cake recipe, and a pistachio French buttercream in my Pistachio Dacquoise.
Ways To Use It
- Fill or Frost Cakes - This creamy buttercream pairs beautifully with a multitude of cake flavors. I use it to elevate my French Vanilla Cake, it also goes beautifully with a chocolate cake or any flavor of cake really.
- Pipe on Cupcakes - This French buttercream pipes like a dream and makes stunning swirls of frosting on your cupcakes.
- Use in Desserts - It can also be used a delicious filling, particularly when paired with other flavors like in my Pistachio Dacquoise. It's also a popular filling for macarons.
Serving Tip
For best results, remove from the fridge 1 hour before serving to allow the French buttercream to come back to room temperature, where the flavor and texture will be at its best.
How To Store French Buttercream
If you have leftover frosting, store it in a covered container in the fridge for up to 3 days. For longer storage, freeze the buttercream in an airtight container for several months. Thaw it in the fridge before frosting your cakes or cupcakes.
Once the French buttercream is on a cake or dessert, it can sit out at room temperature for a few hours but should be stored in the fridge overnight or for anything longer than 4 hours.
FAQ
There are quite a lot of differences between these two buttercreams as they are made in entirely different methods. American buttercream is made by whipping butter until it's very light and fluffy, then adding a lot of powdered sugar, milk, and flavoring. It's notoriously sweet and a little sickly in my opinion, but it's the easiest to make and pipes very well.
French buttercream is more like Swiss or Italian buttercream in that it starts by whipping eggs (specifically egg yolks in this case), then whipping a hot sugar mixture directly into the whipped eggs, adding room temperature butter, then adding any flavorings. French buttercream is really creamy and has a yummy custardy flavor from the egg yolks. The two methods couldn't be much more different while still fitting in the same category!
I highly recommend using gel food coloring if you want to give your buttercream a lovely pop of color! It is much more concentrated than the regular liquid food coloring from the store, and you'll get much better color saturation without weakening the buttercream. Aim to use as little as possible (usually less than ¼ teaspoon).
Since this recipe contains raw eggs, it's best to leave it at room temperature for no more than a few hours. Store it in the fridge between servings.
More Frosting Recipes
Looking for more delicious ways to top your bakes? Try some of these frosting recipes:
Recipe
French Buttercream
Ingredients
- 8 g (8) Large Egg Yolks (medium in the UK) roughly 145g
- 150 g (¾ cup) Superfine Sugar (caster sugar)
- 280 g (2½ sticks) Unsalted Butter
- 75 ml (5 tablespoon) Water
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract or vanilla bean paste
- 1 pinch Salt
Equipment
- Stand Mixer with whisk attachment
Instructions
- Place the egg yolks into the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment fitted. Whip them on medium-high speed until they are very pale in color (about the color of butter). This should take about 5 minutes.8 g (8) Large Egg Yolks
- Meanwhile, heat the sugar and water in a small saucepan on medium heat and bring to a boil. Use a candy thermometer to track the temperature, we want it to get to exactly 240°F / 115°C.150 g (¾ cup) Superfine Sugar, 75 ml (5 tbsp) Water
- Once the sugar syrup reaches the right temperature, turn the mixer down to low speed and carefully pour the sugar syrup into the egg yolks in a slow, steady stream. Be careful not to hit the sides of the bowl or the whisk as you do it.
- The bowl of the stand mixer should feel hot to the touch once all the sugar syrup is in. Turn the mixer up to high speed and let it whip until the bowl feels room temperature again. This may take about 10 minutes.
- Once the bowl no longer feels warm, you can start adding your butter in small chunks. The butter must be softened, but not too warm. For best results, I like to take my butter out of the fridge about an hour before I start making the buttercream. Add the butter to the mixer one small chunk at a time, letting it whip until it is incorporated in between each addition.280 g (2½ sticks) Unsalted Butter
- As you are adding the butter, the consistency of the frosting will change. At first, it will look soupy and runny, don't panic, just keep going. Eventually, the frosting will thicken up and look lovely and glossy. If it doesn't, turn the mixer up to maximum speed and whip for a further minute. (Or see my troubleshooting guide in the post above).
- Once all the butter is added, add the vanilla and salt and whip for one more minute. If you are adding any other flavorings, such as pistachio paste or strawberry puree, add them at the same time as the vanilla.1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract, 1 pinch Salt
Madame S.
This French buttercream icing is unbelievably delicious! I am a French teacher and so of course what caught my eye was the name of this tasty icing. I made it exactly as directed and it came out PERFECTLY YUMMY, just as described. Next step is to ice all these cupcakes for my Club Français members to enjoy tomorrow…Oh là-là, they will love it! Merci… Thank you for sharing your amazing recipes!
Jules Grasekamp
Yay! I'm so glad you loved the French buttercream! Thank you for taking the time to let me know - I hope your cupcakes go down a treat!
Thank you,
Jules