Italian Meringue Buttercream Workshop with Vinny Buzzetta!

I belong to a cake decorating meetup group. Not because I'm some decorating wunderkind (I never graduated past the Easy Bake Oven school of decorating), but because I want to learn to make beautiful cake-like artistic expressions. Most of the members are pretty proficient so I never really go to the meetups because I'm more of a rank amateur. I understand the science. I can make everything taste good, but I have horrible decorating habits. And, I develop the shakes whenever it's time for me to put frosting to cake.

Hm...maybe "belong to a cake decorating meetup group" is too strong an expression.

Did I mention that Vinny is cute? I learn best when the teacher is cute. Looking at you Mr. Magnuson...

BUT! The Italian Meringue Buttercream Workshop was perfect for me. We would be learning about the nuances of buttercream and some basic cake decorating techniques! And, I'm happy to say, those things happened, and they happened well.

Apparently, Vinny Buzzetta has a tv show on the WE network. Something I wasn't totally aware of because I'm one of those crazy people that only watches tv via the internet. But,Vinny's a good teacher. To misquote (and take out of context) that great philosopher Keith Sweat,'He may be young, but he's ready.' The room was a mix of amateurs and hardcore hobbyists, which can be a tough crowd to teach. You don't want to leave the newbies behind, but you don't want to bore the more experienced folks.

More experienced folk.

So, on a Thursday night a bunch of people got together in the kitchen of Aunt Butchie's Bakery and learned about Italian buttercream. 

Yes, that is a blow torch. All baking should involve a blow torch.

He started off by giving us the difference between American buttercream, French buttercream, and Italian buttercream. There was definitely an Italian meringue buttercream bias in the room, but I went with it because when in Rome's bakery...

One thing that can be very difficult for the amateur cake decorator is a getting a flat cake, but Vinny recommended using  rings to shape your cake. 

"One ring to rule them all."

He also made a good case for being diligent with your crumb coat. I'm lazy about a crumb coat. If I do one (bad habit!), I do one half-assed coating and hope for the best. Vinny did four coats, and that cake looked nearly perfect in its smoothness. By taking his time he's prepped the cake for whatever design he wants to throw at it. His cake is a smooth canvas. Mine is usually a piece of burlap that I found in the remnants bin.

There was also talk of fondant. Ugh. Fondant.

Image courtesy of Rosen Georgiev/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Vinny took us through the steps of making Italian meringue buttercream. One of the keys to great buttercream is something I preach, but would do well to practice more: Patience. Good buttercream should not be rushed.


He also showed us how easily the buttercream takes on flavors. The overall taste isn't as sweet as your usual powdered sugar and butter concoction (American buttercream), but that allows the taste of your cake to shine through. You can mix in vanilla, chocolate, peanut butter, jams, fruit purees, and Oreos. Oh, Oreos. Oreo buttercream has to be a reward for doing good deeds in life. 

I tried to take a clear picture, but my eating kept getting in the way.

Towards the end of the workshop he demonstrated how to make shell and heart designs with the buttercream. Let's just say that some people were better at it than others. And, by others I mean me.

She looks so happy here...

Vinny ended the evening by giving us cake. Banana spice cake with Nutella flavored buttercream. Vinny is a kind man and will be rewarded with Oreo buttercream in the afterlife.

If you're in the New York area and interested in taking classes with Vinny at Aunt Butchie's you can email either Vinny (vbuzzetta@gmail.com) or Aunt Butchie's (classes@auntbutchies.com).   

 Vinny has a fondant class coming up next week on May 29th.