Frosting also tends to separate when it’s been stored.
Since this method is so easy, you can always try it first to see if it helps.
When you take the frosting out of the fridge, use a hand mixer to beat it again until it’s smooth. This method works the best on frosting with a butter base or whip cream frosting. If you know your frosting hasn’t gotten too warm, you can skip this method.
This technique works best for frosting that has already been heated up during the cooking process, like boiled-milk frosting. Note, however, that you should exercise caution while trying this technique. If you cook frosting too long, it may burn or break down. Stir the frosting frequently as it cooks, and if it does not appear to start thickening after a few additional minutes, remove it from the heat and try a different tactic.
If you add too much at once, the frosting will become too sweet and may become too thick. If this happens, you will need to add more liquid to balance it out, and the consistency problem may only continue from there. Powdered sugar contains cornstarch. Starches absorb liquid, and the cornstarch present in powdered sugar prevents the powdered sugar from caking. Adding powdered sugar works best on cream cheese frosting.
Typically, if you are adding more than 1/2 cup (125 ml) of powdered sugar to thicken a runny royal icing recipe, you should also add 1 to 2 tsp (5 to 10 ml) of meringue powder. This is especially true if the recipe already contains meringue powder. Meringue powder is made from dried egg whites, sugar, and gum. The sugar can absorb some of the liquid and the gum is a natural thickener. If used in excess, however, you might end up with a frosting that is too heavy or stringy.
Cornstarch is probably the most popular starch to use in frostings since it has low gloss, little flavor, and works well with dairy. It congeals when exposed to low temperatures, though, so it is not ideal for use with frostings that need to remain refrigerated. Arrowroot produces a high gloss and works better with acidic liquids. It tends to become slimy when added to dairy, but if your frosting contains dairy products with a higher acidity, like sour cream or buttermilk, arrowroot is a good choice. It also thickens at a fairly low temperature, making it suitable for frostings that will need to remain cool. Tapioca also has a high gloss, but it stands up well to cold temperatures and thickens at a fairly low temperature, as well, making it a better option if you have a frosting that will need to remain cold.
Cocoa powder is a starch thickener, as well, but does not need to be cooked in order to thicken liquid. As a result, cocoa powder is a better addition than melted chocolate when you are trying to thicken your frosting. Unsweetened cocoa has more thickening power than bittersweet chocolate. The former contains more starches than the latter.
Try to use gelatin in cold water. That way, you won’t have to wait for it to cool down before you add it in.
You can buy coconut pre-shredded from the grocery store, or you can shred it yourself with a cheese grater.
Do not use flour in cold frosting recipes, however. Flour has a distinctive taste when eaten raw, and the only way to get rid of this taste is by cooking it out. Flour will not reach its maximum thickening capability if it is not heated. Remove the frosting from the heat as soon as it begins to thicken. Cooking flour in for too long can cause the frosting to become thin and runny again.
This works best with frostings that already contain cream cheese or those that could benefit from less sweetness.
Note that adding butter to the frosting may not seem to help immediately. As the frosting heats up from being mixed, the butter will melt, making the consistency thinner. Refrigerate butter-based frostings to get an accurate picture of how thick the frosting really is.
Cream will provide a thick, rich texture. This works best if you plan on heating or whipping your frosting after you add the cream. Heating cream causes it to reduce down, becoming thicker as a result. Whipping cream causes it to fluff up, which also makes it thicker and causes the frosting to become lighter in texture.
Marshmallow fluff is super sweet, so you should only add more if you don’t mind an intense flavor.
It’s pretty tough to balance out your ingredients if you’ve added too much of something. Better safe than sorry!
You can find heavy cream and whipping cream in the dairy aisle of your grocery store.
White chocolate will usually make your ganache much thinner than dark chocolate.
If you do this after your ganache is cold, your chocolate won’t combine and you’ll end up with lumps in your ganache. If you need to heat your ganache back up, put it on a double boiler and heat it slowly and carefully. If you warm it up too much, you could separate the oils in your mixture.
Unsweetened chocolate will make your frosting thicker than bittersweet or milk chocolate. Cocoa solids have starches in them, and unsweetened chocolate has a higher amount of cocoa solids in it while sweeter chocolates have more sugar and less starch. As a result, if a recipe calls for unsweetened chocolate and you use semi sweet, your frosting may turn out thinner than expected. Cream cheese and milk are other examples. Generally, there will not be much difference between frosting made with 2% milk and whole milk, but if a recipe calls for half-and-half or heavy cream, do not substitute milk in its place. Similarly, low-fat cream cheese has been known to produce thinner frostings when a recipe calls for standard cream cheese.
If the sugar and butter (or shortening) are mixed first, add other liquids like water and milk afterward. In this instance, these ingredients are only added to make the frosting easier to whip and spread and should be added cautiously to prevent the frosting from becoming runny.
This is especially important when you’re adding ingredients to thicken up your frosting. Less is more!
If you’d still like to add in lemon juice, mix it in at the very end. That way, you can see how the frosting looks before and after.
