Does it make sense for a cake icing recipe to call for vinegar but not baking soda?

Question

See the making of icing in this video.

"cream cheese" frosting ingredients:

1/2 C coconut oil (solid but soft at room temperature)

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

2 C powdered sugar

1 tbsp + 1 tsp unsweetened soy milk

Using a hand mixer beat the coconut oil, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, vanilla extract and 1 cup of powdered sugar to start. Once it's mostly combined add in another cup of powdered sugar and beat together. Then add in soy milk and beat until smooth and fluffy. Then ice the cake!

I'm worried that there's some kind of mistake and this will impact the flavour for no reason. Should I leave out the vinegar? Add baking soda? Leave the recipe as is?

Answer 1

It's fine as written.

Combining vinegar with baking soda (or any acid with any base) is usually done in baking to produce gas, which can lighten the finished product. This is an icing, which is applied after the baking process; it's not set to capture air bubbles, so any effect would be largely temporary and more easily produced through beating.

The vinegar here is intended to mimic the tangy flavor of real cream cheese. The lemon juice has the same effect, but apple cider vinegar adds a different mix of acids, better matching the flavor of the real thing.

Answer 2

Vinegar also changes the consistency of a substrate. For example, it makes toffee malleable, or can be used in a pastry to make it stretchy. It potentially affects the texture of the icing too.