Flour Frosting

Flour Frosting. Weird name huh? How about Cooked Flour Frosting? Wait what? You’re going to cook flour to make frosting? This boiled-milk or Ermine frosting was the original frosting used to frost red-velvet cakes before cream cheese became mainstream. The science behind this frosting is that cooking the flour in the milk will suspend the gluten particles and lead to a lighter end product.

Trust me, the end result is so amazing. It’s light and fluffy, despite the butter, but doesn’t taste anything like those hard, overly sweet and dense frosting on cakes you buy from the market. Nor are they like the processed frosting in a can junk. No, this cooked flour frosting has the consistency of whipped cream but has that distinct butter-y flavor that all cakes need in their frosting. The light, airy-ness of this frosting will astound you, but once you try it, you’ll never be satisfied with buttercream anymore!

I used this frosting and beat it with a couple of tablespoons of smooth natural peanut butter for a peanut butter frosting for my layered chocolate cake and it was absolutely perfect. It’s not cloyingly sweet or heavy on the tongue or oily either. For my perfect chocolate cake, I didn’t want a smooth finish or a thick layer of frosting, so I just lightly spread on the frosting, tapered off any odd ends and edges and let it be. For a smoother finish, clean your spatula well after every smoothing and don’t be afraid to be liberal with the icing!

There are a few things to watch out for:

• Whisk the flour, sugar, and salt together well before adding in the milk and turning on the heat to ensure an even mix.
• Pour the milk in SLOWLY at intervals while constantly mixing so you don’t get any lumps.
• I tilted my pot while mixing to make sure I got all the lumps out because no one likes icing with lumps of flour in it!
• Don’t overheat the mixture or the milk will burn. It should take 3-4 minutes total and the mixture will become thick like a roux.
• Beat the mixture slowly at first and then go to medium speed and ensure the butter is well-incorporated and the frosting is beat to a fluffy stage, about 4-5 minutes.

Pretty simple right? 6 ingredients for the best frosting you’ll ever make, now bake a cake or cupcakes so you can taste this frosting!

Note*** This version of the recipe is solely mine. When reposting, please cite me and my website.

Copyright may 2016 ©

Light and buttery frosting made with 5 simple ingredients
>>> Yields 2.5 cups or 12 cupcakes worth

Time:
-Prep: 10 min

Ingredients:

• 1 C unsalted butter, softened to room temp
• 4 tbsp AP flour
• 1 C white sugar
• 1 C milk, whole or half-half
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp salt
• flavoring: 1/4 C peanut butter; 2 tbsp ground coffee, 3 oz melted chocolate, etc

Instructions:

1) In a pot, whisk together the salt, flour, and sugar together. Turn the burned to medium-high and add in the milk.
2) Whisk constantly until the flour melts and the mixture becomes thick and opaque. Remove from the heat and let cool.
3) In a mixer, beat the milk roux and add in the butter, 1 tbsp at a time and beat until fluffy. Add in the vanilla and any other flavorings and beat well.
4) Frosting can be stored in the refrigerator up to a day in a sealed container before use. For best results, beat the frosting before use or let come to room temperature.

Happy eats!