A glaze is different than icing or frosting. Normally it’s not super think, in fact, depending on how much liquid you add, a glaze can almost be translucent. Icings and frostings are pretty much mutually exclusive and are great for spreading and not so great for drizzling.
To me, there are a couple great things about a glaze. In addition to being super quick and easy, a glaze can really brighten up a baked good’s appearance. Drizzle a glaze over-top a cake with lots of nooks and crannies and voila, a perfect and beautifully finished cake. Like magic my friends.
Vanilla Glaze (adapted from Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook)
Makes 1 cup
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
2 to 8 tablespoons heavy cream
½ teaspoon good vanilla extract
In a small bowl, combine icing sugar, 2 tablespoons heavy cream and vanilla. Using a spoon, mix to the glaze until all the confectioner’s sugar has been moistened. Begin adding additional heavy cream, one tablespoon at a time until the desired consistency of glaze has been achieved.
Use immediately. Enjoy.
I’m always on the hunt for a good frosting recipe: so many of the ones that I find taste the same and frankly, are a little disappointing.
Though this recipe is by no means the perfect buttercream, I thought I’d post it because the method of making it is terribly strange. I mean come on, you use a saucepan to make a thick paste of milk and flour — it’s not exactly a normal frosting recipe my friends, but as weird as it is, it works.
As a note, immediately after this frosting is made, it might have a slightly grainy sugar-like texture but if given a few minutes to set, the graininess should disappear and the frosting will become quite scrumptious and also pretty easy to work with — what else can you ask for?
Milky White Frosting (The New Saint Louis Symphony of Cooking Cookbook)
Makes enough for 2 –dozen cupcakes or 2 8-inch cakes
1 ½ cups milk
½ cup cake flour
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
1 ½ cups unsalted, softened
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
In a medium size saucepan, whisk the milk and the flour over medium heat. Once the flour has dissolved, switch to stirring with a wooden spoon. Watch the mixture closely – once it begins to boil, it thickens almost instantly and will need to be removed from the heat and stirred vigorously to remove any flour lumps that may have formed. Allow to cool.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the sugar and butter till light and fluffy. With the mixer on medium speed, slowly add the cooled and thickened milk/flour mixture, about a tablespoon at a time. Continue to beat the icing until smooth, about 2 minutes.
Add the vanilla and continue beating the icing for an additional two minutes – when finished, the frosting will be the consistency of whipped cream. Though the icing can be used immediately after the vanilla has been incorporated, if given a few minutes to “set up”, the slight texture of sugar granules which might be present after mixing will disappear.
After a batch of cupcakes or cake have been frosted with Milky White Frosting, be sure to keep the baked goods in the refrigerator.
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