Super smooth Connors Lemon Buttercream
This is a beautifully delicious lemon buttercream. Using the Connors Method it creates a stunningly smooth texture, with no air bubbles.
Ingredients
250g Block Butter (Salted Unsalted or half and half, your choice)
500g Sieved Icing Sugar
Zest of 2 Lemons
1-2 Tbsp Lemon Curd ( we have a recipe in our PDF Recipe Book for £5. Below )
1 Tsp Milk Powder
1 Tsp Invert Sugar **Optional ( This gives an even smoother look and a lovely sheen…Purchase in most Cake Suppliers )
Method
Begin by infusing the icing sugar. You can put the lemon rind into the sugar, mix it around, cover and leave it overnight. The rind with be bigger and harder to pipe this way.
Alternatively place the rind into a food processor with half the sugar and give it a good blend. Once it has all infused mix it through the remaining icing sugar. You will smell the lemon……..yummmmmmmm.
Now moving onto the butter, cube your butter up into small squares. You can do this from the fridge or room temp butter. The harder the butter the more time it will need in the microwave. This is a guide, if it is not completely firm or room temp, just do something in between.
From Hard
15 seconds in the microwave, then stir
then a further 10 seconds, stir again
If it is not ready only use 5 second bursts now.
From Soft
10 seconds in the microwave, then stir
then further 5 second bursts until it is ready.
You are looking for the butter to be no hotter than 30C/84F, the butter should look the consistency and colour of thick custard. It should not turn florescent, if it does just keep stirring until it comes under 30C and has that creamy look.
Add the sieved icing sugar, you can do this by hand in a bowl or on the mixer.
By Hand
Add the sugar, milk powder and optional invert sugar over the butter and cut through until it is mostly combined.
Then using the back of the spatula push backward and forwards into the buttercream to smooth it out. This will also push the butter and icing sugar all together. Once it has become very smooth it is ready.
(Use this for the second part of the Mixer method too)
Mixer
Add the sugar, milk powder, optional invert sugar and butter into the bowl and using the paddle mixer on LOW, allow the mixer to partially combine the two. There should be some faint hints of icing sugar around the edges of the buttercream. If you combine it too much, air will begin to be pushed into the mix, causing those pesky bubbles!!!! The mixer should not be on longer than 1 minute.
Now use the spatula like above to make it all come together.
Finally mix in the lemon curd, add 1 to 2 tablespoons according to your taste.
Enjoy
Video to visually help below as well as the PDF link with the lemon curd and over 120 other recipes.
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