How to Make black

buttercream

buttercream i use - base recipe

1 batch Italian meringue buttercream
- I start with plain white buttercream, and occasionally add a splash of vanilla
- Make buttercream according to recipe, then follow the steps below...

Step 1:

Decide if you would like the icing to be vanilla (or any other flavor) or chocolate

I usually make my black buttercream chocolate, because it takes less food coloring, but you can start with any flavor you like

Step 2:

Make your white buttercream dark.

If you chose to make a chocolate buttercream:
- Add cocoa powder to your buttercream until you like the taste and it becomes a dark color
  - I usually use Black Cocoa Powder, since it makes the icing start off grey instead of brown. When I use traditional brown cocoa powder, I prefer Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa Powder because it's darker [and yummier in my opinion] than the Original version.
  - I don't measure the cocoa powder, I do it to taste (I added about 4 spoonfuls if you'd like to reference what I've done) -- please note that adding a ton of cocoa powder may slightly change the texture of the buttercream, so add it in small increments and mix in between
  - I recommend using a mixer to get the smoothest results
If you chose to make a vanilla (or other flavor) buttercream:
- Add some brown food coloring to get a darker starting point for your buttercream
  - I like Wilton Gel Icing Color in Brown

Step 3:

Add black food coloring.

Once your buttercream is brown, add black food coloring.
- I prefer to use Wilton Gel Icing Color in black. It comes in a 1 oz. container, which is about what I use to color 1 batch of my buttercream recipe, but you can use more or less depending on your preference.

Final step

Let buttercream rest. (Optional)

If you have time, let your buttercream sit overnight or for a day at room temperature. This will deepen the color so you don't have to use as much food coloring.
- While coloring, if you think it can be close you may want to let it sit for a while before adding more food coloring because it may not be needed.

Tips

Tips and alternative options:

Add colors!
- Depending on how much cocoa powder or brown food coloring you used, your buttercream may have a slight brown hue to it. To color correct this, you can add blue food coloring.
If you want to avoid using a lot of food coloring, you can also try airbrushing your cake black. This will make the outer layer of buttercream black without having to color the whole batch of buttercream. If you don't have an airbrush machine, you can try Wilton Color Mist in black.
- I would recommend starting with a dark icing, rather than white, so it won't be as noticeable if you miss a few spots.

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