Pudding Ermine Buttercream: Easy, No-Cook, Light & Creamy with Your Favorite Flavors
Pudding Ermine Buttercream is a simple variation of my Classic Ermine Buttercream. While traditional Ermine frostings involve cooking a sweetened flour paste mixed into whipped butter, my pudding version incorporates instant no-cook pudding to reduce preparation time significantly. This shortcut not only streamlines the process but also allows for pre-flavored variations, such as chocolate, all while maintaining the superb texture and stability of traditional Ermine Buttercream.
When developing my True Buttercreams, I experimented with instant pudding as a variation of my German Buttercream, which traditionally uses pastry cream. However, since pastry cream is a custard made with eggs, and the use of custard defines German Buttercream, I decided that this instant pudding version would fit better in the Ermine Buttercream category. Ermine Buttercream uses a flour-based paste, similar to pudding, in texture and composition.
I recommend exploring my comprehensive Ermine Buttercream Guide to better understand this buttercream, including its scientific background, suitability for your baking needs, and potential modifications.
Let’s get into the specifics of this variation of Ermine Buttercream:
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What is the texture, taste, and stability of Pudding Ermine Buttercream?
Pudding Ermine Buttercream retains the smooth, creamy, and deceptively light texture of traditional Ermine Buttercream. This version has slightly less butter and a bit more sugar. While flavor options are limited to available pudding varieties, there are some tasty choices for your cakes. In terms of stability, it matches traditional Ermine made with wheat flour, which is excellent for piping and stacking cakes. However, achieving a smooth, bubble-free finish might require a few extra passes with a scraper or knife.
What ingredients do you need for Pudding Ermine Buttercream?
1 | WHOLE MILK
Milk is the liquid that contributes water and flavor to the pudding mix. It allows the starch granules to swell and helps dissolve the added white sugar. Milk proteins add a bit of bulk and flavor. Ensure you add cold milk from the fridge, allowing the flour to distribute more evenly.
2 | INSTANT PUDDING (any flavor)
Instant pudding is a shelf-stable dry mix available in various flavors, commonly used for puddings and pie fillings, with Jell-O being the most popular brand in the U.S. The key ingredients in instant pudding that enhance this buttercream are sugar, modified starches, flavorings, and colorants. "Modified" means the starches have been altered through physical or chemical processes, allowing the pudding to set (or gelatinize) without heat.
There are two types of pudding mixes: “Cook & Serve” and “Instant” or “No Cook.” For this recipe, you’ll want the Instant version. You can choose any flavor you like, and I’ve highlighted my recommendations in the graphic below.
3,5 | POWDERED SUGAR
Powdered sugar is added twice in this recipe. The first, larger portion is mixed with the pudding to slightly increase the buttercream's overall sweetness. The second, smaller amount is added to the butter to enhance flavor and help create a light, fluffy texture. Using powdered sugar is key because its fine granules dissolve completely, ensuring a smooth buttercream.
4 | UNSALTED BUTTER
Unsalted butter is the primary source of fat and, therefore, is the stability of this buttercream. It is key to any of my emulsion-based frostings because it contains a key component inside the butter called an emulsifier. This ties together ingredients; in this case, it’s bringing together the sweetened flour paste and fat in the butter.
I always use unsalted butter in all my frostings because that allows you to customize the salty flavor at the end. Not all salted kinds of butter contain the same amount of salt, so that the frosting may become too salty.
What flavors of pudding can you use in this buttercream?
Here are the flavors of Instant Jell-O Pudding that I’ve tested with the frosting:
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Step by step:
STEP 1 | MAKE INSTANT PUDDING.
WHY:
We will use the instant pudding mix to make a thickened flour paste, much like you would in traditional Ermine Buttercream, but without cooking. The ratios of liquid to pudding mix are different than the instructions on the box because we need to ensure we don’t add too much liquid that overwhelms the buttercream emulsion. Be sure to use cold milk to ensure the pudding mix distributes evenly before the thickening process begins. Extra powder is added to supplement the sweetness of the buttercream.
HOW:
In a bowl or measuring cup, add the Instant pudding and cold milk (1a). Whisk until completely combined (1b). Continue whisking vigorously until you see no traces of powder (1c).
Allow the buttercream to sit for a few minutes, which should cause it to thicken a bit (1d). Pour in the first amount of powdered sugar (1e).
Whisk until you see no traces of sugar (1f), and the pudding is slightly runny (1g). Set this aside for now.
STEP 2 | AERATE THE BUTTER.
WHY:
A common complaint about True Buttercreams is their overly buttery taste and feel. To address this, I've developed a pre-conditioning method for the butter called "Frosting Butter." This technique aerates, pre-sweetens, and flavors the butterfat, ensuring an optimal creamy texture and temperature for emulsification, which is crucial for all True Buttercreams. The final buttercream is silky smooth and doesn't taste overly buttery. Additionally, frostings made with Frosting Butter are easier to re-whip without curdling after refrigeration or freezing.
HOW:
For proper aeration, ensure the butter temperature is around 60-70°F/15-21°C (2a). You don’t need a thermometer, but when the butter is at this temperature, you should be able to slide the whisk attachment into it with moderate pressure (2a, inset).
Add the butter to your mixing bowl and whisk on high speed for about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides at least once (2b,c). Aerated butter will still be thick and ball inside the whisk (2d).
Add the second and smaller amount of powdered sugar to the whipped butter (2e). Whisk on high speed for about one minute; the butter mixture should be lighter in color and texture (2f).
STEP 3 | MIX IN THE PUDDING.
WHY:
In True Buttercreams like this one, emulsification is the key process, especially in this step. It enables us to create stable mixtures with a thick, creamy buttercream texture that won’t separate. The magic of emulsification lies in combining ingredients that typically don’t mix, such as oil (or fat) and water. Here, we’re emulsifying the aerated butter with the instant pudding. The emulsifiers are naturally present in butter and help bind the fat and water-based ingredients. We can slowly build the emulsion by gradually adding the instant pudding, resulting in a smooth and creamy final texture.
HOW:
The pudding should be thick but at a pourable consistency. Mix the instant pudding in 4 to 5 additions. Add the first amount, then whisk on high speed for a few seconds before adding the next (3a). Once all the pudding has been added, mix on high speed for 2 minutes. The frosting will have huge air pockets (more than you may be used to seeing) and look uneven (3b). It’s ok, so long as you don’t see any patches of pudding.
STEP 4 | SMOOTH OUT FOR BETTER TEXTURE.
WHY:
With all its wires, the whisk is much more efficient at emulsifying than a paddle. However, during the mixing process with a whisk attachment, we’ll inevitably mix in air, which can collect into larger air pockets. Switch the paddle attachment (one with a silicone edge, if possible) to smooth the frosting against the bowl. You can repeat the smooth step as much as possible, as it’s great to do this for any frosting applications.
HOW:
The whisk introduces many air pockets, so switch to the paddle attachment to smooth things out. If you have the one with the silicone edge, that works fantastic for frostings, but a regular metal paddle works great, too (4a). Mix on low speed for at least 2-3 minutes. The frosting will look smoother but may have a few air pockets; that’s ok (4b).
Because this frosting has a lower ratio of butterfat and uses a flour paste, it doesn’t get 100% smooth until you manually use a spatula or piping tip with it (see the cupcakes earlier in the post for examples). If you run a metal spatula continuously over the top of this buttercream, it will have a smooth surface (4c).
Potential Pitfalls
Compared to most other buttercreams, this frosting may feel looser. It has a lower butter content than my other buttercreams, so it will feel less dense. Also, the water-based component of this emulsion is a paste or gel of sorts, so it may have that squishy texture if it’s not completely emulsified. So, just keep mixing until you achieve a smooth consistency.
Even after this, the emulsion is likely unbalanced if your finished Ermine Buttercream is still very loose, wet, or curdled. Sometimes, if the paste is too runny (and contains too much water or mismeasured ingredients, like sugar), the butterfat is not high enough to emulsify the paste into a smooth buttercream. In other words, you have to add a bit more butter.
Take softened butter, add one tablespoon (14g) at a time, and mix on high speed with the whisk attachment until the texture smooths out.
Make Ahead and Storage Tips
Leftover Swiss Meringue Buttercream stores well in the fridge or freezer. It can also be made ahead of time for larger cake projects.
For a detailed tutorial, check out my How to Store Buttercream Guide.
Video
Read this before you begin
Measure by weight, if possible.
Measuring by weight is the best way for you to replicate my recipes. I develop recipes using ingredients (even liquids) measured in grams, which is why you see them listed first in the recipe cards. For measurements under 5 grams, I will typically only list the volumetric measurements (teaspoons, etc.), as most home scales are not precise for such small weights.
In most cases, I have converted grams to volumetric measurements (aka US customary units) for bakers who prefer this method. However, the measurements are not as precise and may have awkward proportions. The recipes should still work, but for the ultimate precision, try to use weight.
This is the OXO scale I use daily. I also purchased this budget version of a good scale, which I keep at my Mom’s house for baking. If you’re interested in other tools I use for my baking, I’ve compiled a list here.
Use room temperature ingredients.
All my ingredients should be used at room temperature, or 65-75 °F/18-24 °C. I will always indicate if you need something outside this range. If no details are given, room temperature is the default.
Pay attention to the ingredient descriptions.
I try not to be brand-specific, but I will always note an interesting result from a type of ingredient, be it negative or positive.
A specific note regarding salt: I use Diamond Crystal Kosher salt for everything on this site except for frostings. In frostings, you want the salt to dissolve more easily, and kosher salt tends to leave granules behind. If you substitute table salt (more finely granulated) for recipes that list kosher salt, you must use half the volume indicated in my recipes.
Substitutions are hard.
That’s not to say they’re impossible, though. For instance, in many cases, substituting reduced fat for whole milk (and thus reducing fat by less than 2%) will probably be fine. Using applesauce for oil or even Greek yogurt when sour cream is listed will definitely alter the fat content and adversely affect the crumb texture and density of the cake.
I experiment for hours to get these recipes to work for us. First, try to make them as written or use one of my tested substitutions, which I often dedicate a section to. Then, if necessary, you can make modifications afterward. Even then I would be pretty cautious, as substitutions are one of the hardest things to investigate in recipe development.
Read all the recipe instructions before beginning.
I’m in the “Pre-read the Chapter before Class Lecture” club... and I invite you to join! Baking new recipes can be intimidating, so let’s set you up for success. I want you to think about timeframes. Most fillings and frostings can be made ahead of time, and give you an extra day for mental space. Also, as you become a more proficient baker, you can anticipate and recognize steps. (“Oh, this has a meringue step, so I’ll need an extra clean bowl…” etc.) Ensure you go down the ingredient list and have everything at the right temperature.
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Pudding Ermine Buttercream
- 102 g (6 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons) whole milk, cold from fridge
- 32 g ( 2 ½ tablespoons) instant pudding, any flavor*
- 40 g (⅓ cups) powdered sugar (1), unsifted is fine
- 75 g (5 ⅓ tablespoons) unsalted butter
- 20 g (2 ⅓ tablespoons) powdered sugar (2), unsifted is fine
For larger quantities or to pair with a cake recipe, go to my Cakeculator and choose “Pudding Ermine Buttercream”.
- 102 g (6 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons) whole milk, cold from fridge
- 32 g ( 2 ½ tablespoons) instant pudding, any flavor*
- 40 g (⅓ cups) powdered sugar (1), unsifted is fine
- 75 g (5 ⅓ tablespoons) unsalted butter
- 20 g (2 ⅓ tablespoons) powdered sugar (2), unsifted is fine
For larger quantities or to pair with a cake recipe, go to my Cakeculator and choose “Pudding Ermine Buttercream”.
- 305 g (1 ¼ cups) whole milk, cold from the fridge
- 96 g (8 tablespoons) instant pudding, any flavor*
- 120 g (1 cup) powdered sugar (1), unsifted is fine
- 226g (1 cup) unsalted butter
- 60 g (½ cups) powdered sugar (2), unsifted is fine
For larger quantities or to pair with a cake recipe, go to my Cakeculator and choose “Pudding Ermine Buttercream”.
- Make the instant pudding.
Whisk together the cold milk and pudding in a bowl or measuring cup. Allow the pudding mixture to sit for about 5 minutes, then whisk in the powdered sugar (1). Set this aside for now.
- Prepare the Frosting Butter.
Add the slightly softened butter to the stand mixer bowl. With the whisk attachment, mix on high speed for about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides at least once. After mixing, the butter will be lighter in color, smooth, soft, and ball inside the whisk.
Add the powdered sugar (2) to the butter and whisk again at medium-high speed for another 1-2 minutes. - Add the instant pudding to the butter.
The pudding should be slightly thickened. Mix the pudding in at 4 to 5 additions. Add the first amount, then whisk on high speed for a few seconds before adding the next.
- Adjust buttercream for texture.The whisk introduces many air pockets, so switch to the paddle attachment for smoothing. Run the mixer on low speed for a few minutes until most of the air pockets are smoothed out. Taste test the frosting for optional salt and a splash of vanilla. Instant pudding comes pre-salted and highly flavored, but if you like, add more salt and vanilla to balance the sweetness.
Recipe Card - Adriana's Notes
*You can use any flavor of instant pudding; please see the chart in my introduction for suggestions. Note that the Cookies n' Cream flavor contains more pudding mix in a single box due to the added cookie pieces. For this variation, use 40 grams of pudding mix per cup of frosting or an entire 120-gram box for 3 cups of frosting. I recommend adding a pinch of cream of tartar to balance the alkaline flavor of the Oreo cookies, which you can incorporate during the final taste-testing in step 4. Additionally, this version may require extra sweetness; feel free to add up to 50% more powdered sugar during this stage if a sweeter frosting is desired.
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