Charlotte Buttercream
Charlotte is not butter beaten with sugar but butter whipped with a cooked syrup of milk and egg. The syrup is what gives that smooth density, so the cream holds the thinnest piped petals and does not melt in the hand. The key is the same as in every buttercream: syrup and butter must meet at the same temperature, somewhere around twenty-two degrees. Warmer syrup melts the butter; colder syrup curdles it.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 10 min
- Rest
- 1 h
- Total
- 1 h 30 min
- Servings
- 12
- Level
- Medium
- Per serving
- 210 kcal
Ingredients
Makes: About 450 g
Shopping list
The ingredients for the servings you chose — copy them or send them to a messenger. Tick what you already have at home: only the rest goes on the list.
Method
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Step 1: Rub egg with sugar
Whisk the egg and sugar together in a saucepan until even. There is no need to beat air in; the sugar only has to be evenly distributed through the egg.
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Step 2: Add the hot milk
Bring the milk almost to the boil and pour it into the egg mixture in a thin stream, whisking constantly. Tip it in all at once and the egg scrambles.
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Step 3: Cook the syrup
Return to medium heat and cook, stirring along the bottom, for 8–10 minutes. The finished syrup is as thick as condensed milk and falls off the spoon in a slow ribbon.
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Step 4: Strain and cool
Push the syrup through a sieve, press cling film onto the surface and leave it on the counter to reach room temperature, about an hour. Do not use the fridge.
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Step 5: Beat the butter
Beat the soft butter for 5–7 minutes, until pale and doubled in volume. Under-beaten butter is the usual reason for a dense rather than a light cream.
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Step 6: Combine in stages
With the mixer running, add the syrup a tablespoon at a time, letting each one disappear. Beat in the vanilla sugar and brandy at the end.
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Step 7: Use it now
Fresh Charlotte is at its most workable: this is the moment to smooth a cake with it and pipe flowers. After the fridge it needs warming and rebeating.
Tips & variations
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Tip
Split? Take out two spoonfuls, warm them and beat them back into the rest. The temperature evens out and the cream comes together.
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Variation
For chocolate Charlotte, add 20 g of sifted cocoa along with the vanilla sugar at the end.
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Tip
The brandy is for aroma rather than alcohol: it takes away the eggy note that buttercreams show most.
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Storage
Five days in the fridge, a month in the freezer. Give it 2 hours at room temperature and beat it again before use.
Nutrition
| 1 serving | Whole dish 12 servings | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 210 kcal | 2,520 kcal |
| Protein | 2 g | 24 g |
| Fat | 15 g | 180 g |
| Carbohydrates | 18 g | 216 g |
Approximate values calculated from standard ingredient data.
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