The recipe for White Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream is incredible! So voluptuous and flavourful with white chocolate, it's perfect for smoothing, topping and decorating all your cakes and cupcakes.
If you already know the great recipe of SMBC aka Swiss Meringue Buttercream, then you won't resist this one made with white chocolate! We already love it for its ultra smooth creamy texture perfect for covering a cake.
And its strength and stability which makes it a very popular icing for cakes and cupcakes.
The particularity of this frosting compare to others buttercream recipe is that it is composed of a meringue which makes this cream voluptuous and silky.
The whites are heated in a double boiler with the granulated sugar, which will then dissolve completely in the mixture.
Then we use a powerful mixer to beat the meringue into firm peaks to which we then add the butter and white chocolate.
Why choose this frosting
This buttercream frosting is perfect for :
- Topping your cakes
- Smoothing the outside (see how to coat a cake)
- Decorating your cupcakes with a piping tip
More buttercream recipes
You may also like: 10 best cake decorating tools for beginners
Ingredients for this recipe
- Eggs: Egg whites (not necessarily at room temperature)
- Granulated sugar: white sugar, not refined or flavored sugar
- Butter: Unsalted butter, take it out 30 minutes before starting the recipe.
- White chocolate: quality chocolate will be less sweet, it must be melted and slightly cooled.
- Vanilla and salt: to bring out the flavors and perfume the cream.

How to make the White chocolate Swiss meringue buttercream recipe
- Place the egg whites and granulated sugar in the bowl of your stand mixer and over a saucepan containing a little water.
- Heat in a double boiler over medium heat while stirring constantly and check the temperature with a thermometer which should read at least 55°C.
- Place the bowl on the base of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat at high speed for about 15-20 minutes. (Until the meringue is firm and cooled)
- Reduce speed of mixer and add softened butter.
- Resume high speed and mix until the meringue is firm and smooth (the mixture will go from a fluid to a grainy texture and finally creamier)
- Add vanilla, salt and melted white chocolate and mix again for 2 minutes
- Replace the whisk with a flat spatula and mix for 2 minutes at slow speed to soften the buttercream.
Conservation
at room temperature:
This icing is stable at room temperature and can be kept for up to 48 hours. This is why it is often used to decorate cakes that must be kept for a long time on a buffet at birthday parties or for a wedding.
In the fridge:
If you don't use it then keep it in the fridge in a container covered with cling film. You can keep it for 1 - 2 weeks.
In the freezer:
The great thing is that this buttercream can be kept for a very long time in the freezer, up to 3 months. Place it in a storage box with a tight fitting lid and place it in your freezer.
To defrost: You can either let it come back to room temperature, or warm it up a bit in the microwave or double boiler and then you'll need to whip the cream again to give it its creamy texture.
Tips for making a successful meringue buttercream
- Use softened butter (take it out of the fridge about 30 minutes before starting the recipe)
- Whisk the egg whites and granulated sugar in a double boiler to prevent the whites from coagulating.
- Use fine granulated sugar, it must be completely dissolved in the whites (touch with your fingers to make sure you don't feel the sugar grains)
- Beat the meringue for at least 15 minutes until it is firm and completely cooled.
- After adding the butter, the cream will first have a soupy consistency and then become grainy. Continue beating until it is creamy and smooth.
- Smooth the cream by mixing it at slow speed with a flat spatula.
You will also love
- Best buttercream recipes
- Whipped chocolate frosting recipe
- Chocolate ganache recipe
- Kinder bar ganache frosting
- Chocolate mascarpone frosting
- Chocolate rocher glaze
- Vanilla birthday cake
Did you like this recipe? Don't forget to rate it and leave me a review in the comments! And to not miss any recipes follow @sweetlycakes on Instagram and tag me to share it if you make this recipe 😊!
Print
White chocolate Swiss meringue buttercream
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings
Description
How to make white chocolate Swiss meringue buttercream. An easy and delicious recipe (to decorate about 10 - 12 cupcakes or cover the outside of a 6 inch / 15 cm cake)
Ingredients
- 5 Egg whites (About 165 g)
- 150 G Granulated sugar
- 247 g Butter (softened and cut into pieces)
- 100 g white chocolate (melted)
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- 1 pinch Salt
Instructions
- Place the egg whites with the granulated sugar in a container and heat them in a double boiler over a saucepan containing a little water.
- Mix with a whisk and check the temperature with a candy thermometer, which should read at least 131°F / 55°C (the sugar should be completely dissolved).
- Pour the mixture into the bowl of a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat at high speed for about 15-20 minutes until the meringue is white and has firm peaks. (Meringue should be completely cool)
- Lower the speed of the mixer and add the butter piece by piece, then resume high speed and mix for at least 5 minutes. (the mixture can go from liquid to grainy, so keep beating until you have a thick, smooth cream)
- Add vanilla, salt and melted white chocolate and mix again for 2-3 minutes.
- Change the whisk to a flat spatula and mix again for 2 minutes at slow speed to loosen the buttercream and remove the excess air that has been incorporated to make a smoother cream.
Notes
Storage:
Leave it at room temperature to use it during the day or place it in the fridge to keep it for up to 1-2 week.
After a cold storage, it will harden and you will have to bring it back to the right temperature, either by heating it slightly in a double boiler or microwave or by leaving it outside the refrigerator. Then it will have to be whipped again to give it a creamy texture.
In the freezer:
You can freeze it in a storage box for up to 3 months.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Category: cream, Dessert, frosting
- Cuisine: Suisse
Keywords: SMBC, Swiss meringue buttercream, white chocolate, White chocolate buttercream
Lovely recipe however I was doing x 3 and read the “about 165g” for egg whites which hadn’t been adjusted for 3 x the amount.being a newbie this caught me out and so had to start again as my sugar did not dissolve and my egg whites thickened up too much as obviously I didn’t have enough egg whites required for 3 x the amount
Thank you for your feedback Sabrina ❤️,
Yes indeed it is necessary to be careful because the additional indications added in the body of the recipe card are not multiplied with the scale, only the quantities of the ingredients.
I have updated the recipe card to avoid this error
Thanks
Can I double or triple this recipe?
Hi Melinda, yes you can double or triple this recipe with no problem.
Is the white chocolate compound or couverture
Hello, preferably use baking chocolate such as couverture chocolate.
can his be used for macaron filling? is it firmer than a regular swiss meringue buttercream?
Hi, yes it is as firm as the basic Swiss meringue buttercream recipe and you can also use it to fill your macarons.
Does the cake that gets iced with this need to be refrigerated or can it sit out at room temperature? I will be making this to go on a wedding cake but I’ve never used Swiss Meringue buttercream before!
Hi, Yes, this meringue buttercream can stay at room temperature for about 24-48 hours, once finished, leave the cake in the fridge overnight to harden the frosting and then you can store it in a cool place.
Could I use meringue powder in place of eggs? If so is there a need for double boiler?
Ciao, grazie per questa ricetta, la proverò presto. Posso usare gli albumi pastorizzati e riscaldarli comunque a bagnomaria per far sciogliere lo zucchero?
Hello, yes it is possible to use pasteurized eggs to make this recipe, it will still be necessary to make the double boiler to melt the sugar.