Buttercream

Delicious and versatile, a good buttercream can make a good bake great. Its creamy and luscious texture provides a superb base for a show-stopping visuals, layers or some piping touches, and the buttery flavour brings out the best in so many cakes, cupcakes and cookies. Just quietly, it also has the hidden superpower of disguising a multitude of baking errors.

Since the assembly process and ingredient list is simple, it's best to make sure you've got your basics right. Room temperature butter and sifted icing sugar will work best for whipping to a fluffy and smooth finish. Sifting icing sugar is one of my own personal bugbears, and I freely admit it is a royal pain in the butt, but if you avoid it here you'll get a lumpy end result that is decidely suboptimal. If you see packets titled soft icing sugar, choose them over the hard option - that's for royal icing.

Try to use real-deal vanilla if you can. It's a few more dollars, but totally worth it. Not only does it enhance the overall the flavour of the frosting, it also tweaks the sweetness of the sugar. Speaking of balancing acts, the salt will perform a similar flavour enhancement role, and temper the sweetness. Milk will be your guide to achieving the right consistency for your frosting. Add it in a little at a time until you think to yourself, "Now that's looking pretty damn good!"

Buttercream works best when you make it just before you need it, so try to start whipping it up it as soon as you pull your baked treat out of the oven.

Variations

Chocolate: Sift in a 1/4 cup cocoa with the sugar and salt.

Pistachio: Process 1/4 cup roasted unsalted pistachios and 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract in a food processor until they become coarsely ground. Stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add 1 teaspoon of oil if the pistachios aren't breaking down easily. Continue to blend for 25-30 minutes, stopping and scraping down the sides as needed throughout the process until smooth and creamy. Add to the mix after all the sugar is incorporated.