difference between buttercream icing and frosting

here we call it icing

our buttercream is a bit different from American style buttercream in that we tend to use all butter rather than shortening

This is what Alton Brown calls Buttercream Icing

Buttercream by Alton Brown

Show: Good Eats
Episode: The Icing Man Cometh

4 eggs, room temperature
1/2-cup sugar
1/2-cup dark corn syrup
10 ounces butter, cubed and at room temperature

In a large mixing bowl, whip the eggs until light and fluffy.

In a small saucepan bring the sugar and the corn syrup to a boil. Lubricate the inside of a metal baster with a small amount of vegetable oil and dispense it completely. Then use this to drizzle the sugar mixture into the mixing bowl with the eggs. The mixer should be on low speed until you finish drizzling in all of the sugar mixture.

Once the entire mixture of the sugar is incorporated, slowly add the butter pieces. Only add more butter when you can no longer see the previously added pieces. It will go fast at first and then slow down. Continue to whip until the mixture is creamy.

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This is what I call Buttercream Frosting.

Butter Cream Frosting

1 stick butter (1 stick = 1/2 cup)
1/4-cup milk
1/4-teaspoon salt
1-teaspoon vanilla
1 pound powered sugar


Allow butter to soften slightly, place in a large bowl with milk, salt, vanilla, and about half the sugar.

Mix slowly so that sugar doesn't fly everywhere. Gradually add the rest of the sugar.

Beat on high speed until the mixture is light and fluffy. It will be an off-white color and creamy. Cover the frosting with a damp towel until you're ready to use it.
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This is what Wilton calls Icing.... I don't like this recipe because there is too much fat in it.... In my opinion you might as well sit down with a spoon and dig into a can of shortening.

Wilton: Recipe Box: Buttercream Icing

Buttercream Icing

(Medium Consistency)
Ingredients:
1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon Clear Vanilla Extract
4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar (approx. 1 lb.)
2 tablespoons milk

In large bowl, cream shortening and butter with electric mixer. Add vanilla. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth until ready to use. For best results, keep icing bowl in refrigerator when not in use. Refrigerated in an airtight container, this icing can be stored 2 weeks. Rewhip before using.

YIELD: Makes about 3 cups.

For thin (spreading) consistency icing, add 2 tablespoons light corn syrup, water or milk.

For Pure White Icing (stiff consistency), omit butter; substitute an additional 1/2 cup shortening for butter and 1/2 teaspoon No-Color Butter Flavor. Add up to 4 tablespoons light corn syrup, water or milk to thin for icing cakes.
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There is at least one more recipe that I know of that uses egg whites that is called a Frosting.... I don't happen to have the recipe where I can lay my hands on it but if you do a google search for Italian Style Buttercream Frosting I think you will find the recipe.

All of the above recipes are designed to go with cakes, cup cakes and the like…. the one you would choose would depend on personal preference.

I’m not really sure what you mean by a crust…. if you are talking about the icing drying and making a slightly more solid surface then most of the recipes that use powdered sugar will do that…. but they are supposed to do that.

I think the best thing for you to do would be to make several different kinds of Buttercream and choose for yourself, which one you prefer.

Betty R provided you with A Brown's recipe, there is no powder sugar in that.
Give it a try.

not a problem.

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The difference is the main ingredient. Cream cheese frosting has a base of creamcheese, although it uses a tad bit of butter. Butter Cream frosting has a base of butter, no cream cheese. Butter cream is extremelysweet, as oppossed to cream cheese icing has more of a tangy flavour.

I thought I'd step in to further confuse things!

While the use of "frosting" versus "icing" is mainly semantic, the terms often mean something different depending on where you live. In America, butter cream frosting/icing is usually a powdered sugar/butter/vanilla/pinch o'salt/maybe a bit of liquid concoction. As someone else mentioned, it is generally very sweet and has a bit of a chalky mouth feel due to the cornstarch in the powdered sugar.

In Europe, butter cream frosting/icing is generally either whole eggs, yolks or whites with a sugar syrup that has been taken to about 240-244 degrees F whipped until cool. Then, you add in a bunch of cool butter a bit at a time. This type of frosting/icing is incredibly creamy and smooth and truly melts in your mouth.

The American version is sturdy and works better for use in warm environments--it holds well, especially if there is some shortening in it. What you gain in convenience and ease, you lose in consistency and flavor. I almost always opt for a European-style buttercream unless I need a cream cheese frosting or unless it is really hot out.

I also saw that someone had asked what causes icing to crust. The corn starch in the powdered sugar can do that, but you can also add in some dried meringue powder or dried egg whites to help a crust form. This can be useful when trying to do a lot of piping on the surface of the cake. Again, I'm not a huge fan of American-style frostings, so I don't usually take that route.

Whatever you choose to make--have fun with it. There are so many ways to modify a basic butter cream recipe, American-style or otherwise, and so many flavor combinations between cake and frosting that you should have a ball experimenting for a long time to come:bounce: