Strawberry Buttercream Ingredients  ½ cup freeze dried strawberries5-8 fresh strawberrie

Strawberry Buttercream

Ingredients

•  ½ cup freeze dried strawberries
• 5-8 fresh strawberries
•  ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened, (12 tablespoons)
•  3 cups powdered sugar, sifted if lumpy, plus more if needed
•  ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
•  1 generous tablespoon strawberry jam

Instructions

• In a small food processor, blend freeze dried strawberries until they turn into powder. Pour the powder into a fine mesh sieve, discarding the solids and seeds, keeping the fine powder that came through the sieve. Set the powder aside.Add the fresh strawberries to the food processor (no need to clean it out) and process until smooth (you will need 3 tablespoons of strawberry puree).
• With a hand mixer, or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter until smooth and creamy, scraping down the sides of the bowl and the beater as necessary. Add the powdered sugar, ½ a cup at a time, beating until combined.
• Add freeze dried strawberry powder, 3 tablespoons strawberry puree, vanilla extract and jam, and beat on medium speed until fully combined, being sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl and beater as needed. If necessary, adjust the consistency by adding more powdered sugar to thicken, or more strawberry puree to thin it out. Place in a piping bag, or use an offset spatula to frost cake or cupcakes.