Cream Cheese Frosting
Smooth, tangy cream cheese frosting made with full-fat brick cream cheese, butter, and powdered sugar. It pipes cleanly, spreads beautifully, and is perfect for red velvet cake, carrot cake, cupcakes, and cinnamon rolls.
Servings: 6 cups
Calories: 239kcal
Equipment
- Stand mixer with whisk attachment (or electric hand mixer)
- Sifter
- Piping Bag
- 1M Piping Tip
Ingredients
Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients
- 8 ounces unsalted butter (1 cup) softened and slightly warm
- 16 ounces cream cheese (2 cups) softened and slightly warm
- 36 ounces powdered sugar (8 cups) sifted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or orange or lemon extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Before you begin: Soften your cream cheese by cutting it into four cubes and microwaving it for about 15 seconds. Soften your butter by leaving it out for a few hours, or cut it into cubes and microwave it for 10 seconds. It should be soft enough to leave an imprint with your finger. Cold does not like to mix with warm, so if one is soft and the other is cold you'll end up with a lumpy, separated mess.
Make the Frosting
- Sift the powdered sugar into a large bowl and set it aside.
- Add the softened butter to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or use an electric hand mixer) and mix on LOW speed until smooth and lump-free.
- Add the softened cream cheese in small cubes and mix on low until smooth and completely combined.
- Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time on low speed. If you want a thicker frosting, add an extra cup of powdered sugar.
- Add the extract and salt. Vanilla is classic with cream cheese, but I love using orange or lemon extract for a unique taste.
- If the frosting is too thick, add a tiny splash of heavy cream. If it's too soft, add a little more powdered sugar. Mix just until combined, because overmixing softens the frosting.
Video
Notes
Ingredients: Use high-quality, full-fat brick cream cheese and the best butter. The better your cream cheese and butter, the better your frosting will taste! Tub-style cream cheese has extra water and makes the frosting runny.
Mixing: Use the whisk attachment on LOW speed. It makes your frosting creamier, with less chance of it breaking or curdling.
Not for fondant: Cream cheese frosting cannot be used under fondant, because it will melt the sugar in the fondant. This recipe will not crust. If you need a more stable frosting for piping flowers or stacked cakes, try my crusting cream cheese frosting recipe.
Chocolate: Add ¼ cup of sifted cocoa powder with the powdered sugar, or more if you want more chocolate flavor.
Color: You can tint cream cheese frosting with gel food coloring. Too many added liquids can break your frosting and make it too soft to use.
Yield: Enough to frost and fill three 8"x2" layers or 24 cupcakes. I used a piping bag with a 1M piping tip for the cupcakes.
Storage: Cakes with cream cheese frosting must be refrigerated but can be left at room temperature for up to 4 hours. Leftover frosting keeps in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days, or frozen for a month or more. Bring it back to room temperature and remix before using.
Nutrition: Calculated per 2 oz serving of frosting.
Nutrition
Serving: 2oz | Calories: 239kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 33mg | Sodium: 88mg | Potassium: 23mg | Sugar: 34g | Vitamin A: 390IU | Calcium: 17mg
