How to Make Buttercream Flowers

For the American Buttercream:

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the room temperature butter until smooth.

Sift in the confectioner’s sugar. You can add the sugar in two batches.

Beat until you get to a thick consistency. Add a few drops of rose water.

Save a small amount of buttercream in a bowl. Add more confectioners sugar and mix by hand until you get a play dough consistency. This will be used for the base of your flowers.

Separate and dye a few batches yellow, blush and darker pink. Use some matcha powder to dye some buttercream a natural green for the leaves.

Transfer the green to a bag fitted with a 68 tip.

For the Assembly:

Cut 2.5- inch squares of parchment paper.

Transfer the yellow buttercream to piping bag. Snip off the tip.

Add the 127 tip to a piping bag. Transfer the blush and darker pink buttercreams to one bag. Work out the air bubbles and give it a test.

Use a dash of buttercream to glue down the square of parchment paper to a piping nail or turntable.

Mold a small cone of the thick base buttercream in the middle of the square.

Add bits of yellow in the middle.

Pipe a spiral, then add arcs to the spiral, curving up. Add more petals until you’ve reached a desired rose look.

For a peony or closed rose, start off with a smaller base, pipe tight arcs and close off in a round shape.

When you’re ready to use the roses, cut the bottom with scissors and transfer to your cake, cupcake or cookie.

Pipe leaves with the green buttercream to create some dimension.