This recipe is from my grandmother, and I’m pretty sure she got it from her mother. It’s a variation on the Ermine Icing recipe and has a rich butter-cream taste without being over sugary.
Ingredients:
For cooked part:
2 1/2 Tablespoons flour
½ cup milk
For cold part:
8 Tablespoons butter @ room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (OR ½ teaspoon anise extract)
¼ teaspoon salt (I add this even when I use salted butter, but feel free to omit as your needs dictate)
1 ½ cups powdered sugar (the original recipe calls for ½ cup granulated sugar, but I find this leaves the icing with a grainy texture.)
Procedure:
- Mix the flour and milk in a small pan and cook over medium heat until thick, about 5 minutes. Set aside and allow to cool completely before the next step.
- Mix all of the cold part ingredients in a medium sized bowl, using a hand mixer.
- In a separate bowl, add 1/3 part of the cooked part to about 1/3 part of the cold part and mix with mixer until completely blended.
- Alternate adding more of the cooked part and then more of the cold part, blending between each step, until both parts are completely blended.
The icing will be an off-white color. If you wish, you can add a few drops of food coloring to create the desired color.
Use on a completely cooled cake. Store for about 5 days, covered.
Enjoy!!
