Why Buttercream Melts in Winter Sunlight: Know How To Stop It
Written by jheelum basu | December 21, 2025
Melting buttercream is every cake decorator’s worst nightmare.
Imagine decorating a two-tier cake for an hour with a chocolate buttercream frosting. And then seeing it melting away as winter sunlight has decided to play a spoilsport. Isn’t it absolutely frustrating? Yes, it is.
Buttercream is best defined as a sweet, creamy frosting to decorate or fill cakes and pastries. Made with creamy butter, sweet powdered sugar, and flavorings, buttercream frosting is known for its creamy texture and rich flavor. Based on the ingredients and flavors, several types of buttercream frostings can be prepared. However, butter are sugar always remain constant.
While adding buttercream frosting on top of a batch of cupcakes adds a splash of color to the dessert table, dealing with buttercream melting issues is truly difficult. However, the problem can be solved with a proper understanding of how it happens and what can be done to fix it.
Winter Sunlight Melts Buttercream: Know The Reasons
For several reasons, winter sunlight can melt buttercream. Firstly, due to high butter content, buttercream has a very low melting point of around 90-95°F or 32-35°C. Unfortunately, the winter sunlight in India is therefore warm enough to melt the buttercream. The winter sunlight breaks down the fat and sugar structure of buttercream, which leads to a softened consistency. Moreover, the winter sunlight also carries infrared radiation, which directly heats the cake warmer than the surrounding air. Also, moving a cold, refrigerated buttercream-coated cake to the outdoors leads to condensation, which makes the frosting prone to melting.
5 Tips & Tricks To Stop Buttercream Melting
From using shortening and cornstarch to using refrigeration and air conditioning, there are several ways to prevent buttercream from melting. Here’s a comprehensive guide on how to deal with buttercream melting issues.
Add Shortening
Adding shortening to the buttercream mixture is the best way to stop buttercream from melting, as shortening has a higher melting point. To do this, replace half of the butter with shortening as the 1:1 butter-shortening ratio works really well in making the creamy frosting more heat-resistant and stable. One may also opt for a higher shortening ratio to ensure maximum stability.
Add Cornstarch
Besides shortening, cornstarch is another ingredient that helps. Cornstarch often absorbs moisture and stiffens the buttercream mixture, particularly in hot weather or for condensation issues. For best results, it is recommended to use about 2 tablespoons of cornstarch for every 3 cups of icing. Mix it well and lightly spray it on chilled cakes before serving.
Add Extra Confectioner’s Sugar
To make sure the buttercream doesn't melt, one may increase the amount of confectioner’s sugar in the recipe. This makes the buttercream stiffer. While this makes the mixture stiffer, the butter balances it out with its smoothing property.
Refrigerate the buttercream
Refrigeration is always key to keeping the buttercream in its right form and texture. It stops buttercream from melting by firming up the butter. To put in the refrigerator, keep the buttercream in an airtight container for short-term storage. In case of a buttercream-frosted cake, refrigerate the entire cake. However, just before serving, don’t forget to bring it to room temperature.
Air Conditioning
Besides refrigeration, air conditioning is crucial as well to prevent buttercream from melting. Air conditioning keeps the entire surrounding cool, which in turn prevents the sweating of the buttercream. It is therefore ideal to keep the air conditioner on to keep the cake chilled. This works even better when the buttercream recipe also includes shortening or any other kind of stabilizer. stabilizing recipes with shortening or meringue powder for hot conditions.
Conclusion:
As pretty as they look, buttercream frosting often becomes a serious headache for cake decorators as it tends to melt with a slight hint of heat, humidity, or sunlight. However, with the above-mentioned trips and tricks, make sure the creamy smooth buttercream this time stays intact and makes the dessert table the center of attraction like never before.