Welcome to the Cake Decorators Q&A

Probably a really stupid question but here goes……
I’ve printed Paul’s buttercream chart, how do I break down the total quanity to work out butter to I.sugar ratio. It always says “layers filled” so I assume quanity does take in to account covering cake too?

For example a 6″ round 2 filled layers = 1139 g do I divide by 3 to get 380 butter and 760 I.sugar???

Hi sarahtitch77

All the brightly coloured columns of the buttercream guide are for cover and fill. There is a grey coloured column on the right hand side of the chart which is for fill only and can be used when producing naked cakes.

The data for the guide is taken from Paul’s tutorial highlighted in the red link at the beginning of the blog and scaled for the various sizes as seen in the chart. Click on the link to see Paul’s original ratio. The chart’s authors are myself and my husband. Please accept apologies for any confusion and post again if you require further information.

Thank you for clarifying fill and cover query. The link doesnt appear to be working :0(
Is the amount stated the completed weight required?

Yes, the amount stated is the completed weight. Paul’s buttercream tutorial can also be found in the free section here:

Making and using buttercream

Scroll down under the video and click on the ingredients tab to see the ratio.

I’ve just had a look at the red highlighted link in my blog and it does appear to be working. In case you might have missed it, see it here:

How much buttercream do you need to cover a cake?

Hi Madeitwithlove

Thank you for clarifying fill and cover query. The link doesnt appear to be working :0(
Is the amount stated the completed weight required?

Yes, it is the completed weight required. Please could you take a peek at my answer just above your last response. Click on the red highlighted links or go to the free section and see Paul’s free tutorial on using buttercream to see his receipe ratio. He uses 500g butter to 1kilo of icing sugar for filling and covering an 8″ cake.

Many thanks

Link for buttercream chart not working
Thank you

Hi Vicky1234

I’ve just tried the link and it appears to be working for me. Try here:

How much buttercream do you need to cover a cake?

Click on the download button to see the chart. 🙂