Hi Emma! YOu sure can. Here’s the details (you can also find this info in the post in the FAQ section toward the bottom of the post. Make sure your berries are very flavorful. Watery, bland berries will produce bland frosting! You’ll need 12 oz of berries per regular batch of frosting. Puree them, then strain them through a fine mesh strainer to remove most of the seeds. Next, simmer the puree until it reduces to about a third of its original volume. It’s very important to boil off a lot of the water, so you concentrate the flavor and don’t change the texture of the buttercream. Let the puree cool completely before adding it to the buttercream. Add a bit at a time so you can monitor the texture of the frosting and make sure it doesn’t get too loose. You might need to add a bit of strawberry extract to boost the flavor, or pink coloring to boost the color. I hope you enjoy the recipe. All the best to you!

Have you ever done this recipe using fresh strawberries? If so how much should you use?

Hello! You sure can! It will be delicious.

Hi Julia, You can reduce the vanilla extract if you’d like. Having a strong vanilla background is my personal preference for this frosting, but as you say it’s a large amount, so you could start with a teaspoon or two instead, and see if you want to add additional vanilla at the end.

Hi Lesley! So glad to hear that you enjoyed the frosting! And yes, you can make chocolate buttercream with this same base recipe. You can add either cocoa powder or melted chocolate–my preference is chocolate since it provides a richer, creamier result. Melt 8 oz unsweetened chocolate, then let it cool until it is not warm AT ALL, but still liquid. Add this melted chocolate to the buttercream, and mix well. It might be a little soft after you mix it, but as it sits at room temperature it will firm up. Let me know how it goes for you!

This was truly and easy and delicious recipe. A great short cut and simplification of meringue passed buttercreams. Are there other variations? Like adding chocolate.