Fluffy White Frosting
I have been dreaming about cupcakes for about a week now…literally. I woke up one morning with a huge craving for cupcakes…no particular flavor, just a petite bit of cake and a scrumptious icing. I didn’t want the usual chocolate or vanilla, oh and I wanted to make it all from scratch. I decided to experiment with lemon cake, so I whipped up a batch and added raspberry jam to half and frozen blueberries to the other. They were both heavenly by themselves but they could be even better with a nice frosting. I didn’t want to have to pull out the butter and powdered sugar for this one, I liked the clean taste of the lemon and didn’t want it overshadowed by a mound of sugary frosting. After a bit of research I found this recipes for what seems to be pretty much a meringue. It was so easy to make, only took about 10 minutes and is fat free!
This icing was perfect for the lemon cupcakes…adds the perfect amount of sweetness and a nice creamy texture. This would be a great addition to an angel food cake (which I plan to try later on this week!)
Easy Fluffy White Frosting
1 cup white sugar
1/3 cup water
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I used lemon for my lemon cupcakes)
1. In a saucepan, stir together the sugar, water and cream of tartar. Cook over medium-high heat until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is bubbly.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, whip the egg whites and vanilla to soft peaks. Gradually add the sugar mixture while whipping constantly until stiff peaks form, about 7 to 10 minutes. Frost the cake of your choice.
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January 14th, 2006 20:52
Jennifer the cupcakes look so cute! I’m definitely going to try your frosting recipe. I feel the need to lose a few pounds, so I’m starting to look for lower fat recipes for my baking - I can’t cut the sweets out all together lol
January 16th, 2006 20:38
Jen–It’s cool that these started in your dreams and then led to a from-scratch cupcake and the inventiveness to find the frosting you wanted for them. And the way you frosted them looks cool! Tell me, what do you do when you back a big batch of sweets…do you and Evan eat them all, or what? I try to give some away to neighbors, because I just don’t want them sitting around here tempting me!
January 17th, 2006 08:21
LOL…It’s hard when I get in a baking mood since neither Evan or I work at an office anymore! I take some to friends or give thjem to my sister when she is in town but alot of times they sit on our counter! Yikes!
April 26th, 2007 08:04
elow… can i ask if there’s an alternative for cream of tartar. it is not available here in oman and i would like to try to make the icing for my cupcakes thank u so much
April 26th, 2007 08:25
You should be able to substitute the same amount of white vinegar and get the same results, so just add 1/4 teaspoon of white vinegar instead of the cream of tartar.
October 2nd, 2007 23:39
Memories from childhood include my mother’s wonderful chocolate fudge cake with fluffy white frosting. But, alas, I am now a diabetic and have to really watch the sugar. Do you think this recipe would hold true with Splenda?
November 19th, 2007 19:37
Thankyou! I have a young daugter who is allergic to all corn products and making frosting without corn syrup or confectioners sugar ( which contains corn starch) was nearly impossible. We are going to use this on Angel food cake. As a mom of four kids I don’t have time to mess with a double boiler and exact temps. Five five year olds will be testing it tomorrow!
December 11th, 2007 21:50
Thanks!! I was looking for a fluffy icing that wouldn’t require me to run out and get more ingredients, and this one fits nicely!