Easy Buttercream Icing

In my family, there is a delicious little treat my Grandma Janie has made for years. A fun little twist on morning pastry, called Buttercreams. We bake up some of our families sourdough bread in a cake pan instead of a bread pan, once it's cooled, slice in half like a cake, and spread Grandma's buttercream frosting in the middle, stack it back together, and spread more on the top. I think this would work on any sourdough, however, ours is very soft and pretty sweet. Well, every year the whole family gets together for a big reunion! We rent out a row of cabins at a state park, and just about everyone comes...grandparents, aunt and uncles, cousins, and cousins spouses and children! It is such a blast! Games, meals, canoe racing, bonfires, just so much fun. Buttercreams are a part of this gathering, and a few years ago I took over making them for my sweet Grandma who's hands are eaten up with arthritis. 

As I began making them this year, I realized I had lost her recipe for the frosting, and when I called her, to our surprise, she had lost it as well....so, we began searching the Internet for a similar recipe, knowing that seeing the right one would jog my memory. As I searched I realized no one makes it like Grandma does...they all call for milk, shortening, and sometimes regular sugar. So I decided to experiment, with the ingredients I knew we're in ours, and I decided it was necessary to share our amazing recipe with the rest of the world!!

Grandma's 4 Ingredient Buttercream

•3 sticks salted sweet cream butter    (softened)

•2 cups powdered sugar

•1/2tsp vanilla extract

•1/8tsp salt

*Yields enough for probably 12 cupcakes..to ice an entire cake, I would double this. 

1. With an electric mixer(with the whisk attachment on)beat the butter until it's smooth. 

2. Add powdered sugar(this may get a little thick and stiff, that's okay)

3. Add the vanilla(it is very important that you do not add it sooner, because the powdered sugar will make it lump up, not spreading evenly through the mixture) blend this well.

4. Add salt and blend well. 

5. Spread on slice of bread, cupcakes, cookies, whatever you like, and enjoy!!

A couple of notes:

•I don't own a stand mixer, so this time I whipped mine up in my food processor, which worked fine, but the heat from the motor made it very thin, so I let it sit out about 30 min to let the butter set up a little and regain its normal constitution. 

•I like the consistency yielded by these measurements, if you'd like it a little thicker, add powdered sugar by 1/4c increments until you reach your desired consistency!

•As with most icing/dip recipes, this gets better the longer you let it sit, so all of the flavors can meld(especially the salt). So I normally mix it at least the night before. 

Absolute deliciousness!!