This is my family favorite BEST cream cheese frosting recipe! It goes great on Carrot Cake, Red Velvet Cake, and just about any other flavor cake or cupcake you can imagine. I’ve been making this cream cheese icing for years!
If I had things my way, every cake and every cupcake would be be buried beneath a mountain of cream cheese frosting.
Not buttercream — Never rarely buttercream — always and only cream cheese. For someone with such a rampant sweet tooth, it’s alarming the number of times I’ve turned down a slice of cake or a sky-high frosted cupcake because the buttercream just makes my teeth hurt (OK full disclosure I have a buttercream recipe coming up on the blog next month, and it’s delicious, but cream cheese frosting will always win over my heart, even over my favorite chocolate frosting).
While buttercream frostings are usually too sweet, cream cheese frosting I could eat with a spoon, and this recipe is every bit as versatile as buttercream — it’s sturdy, pipe-able, can be dyed, and, most importantly, it’s delicious.
Tips for Making Cream Cheese Icing:
- Make sure that you are using full-fat brick cream cheese, not low fat or spreadable cream cheese (which is usually sold in a tub rather than in brick form).
- I always like to use unsalted butter and add a dash of salt so that I have complete control over the flavor of the frosting. However, if you only have salted butter on hand then just omit the salt called for in the recipe.
- Make sure you allow your cream cheese and your butter to soften before making your frosting! Softening the butter and cream cheese ensure that your ingredients will combine well and be lump free.
- If you intend to pipe your frosting, I recommend sifting your powdered sugar before mixing it into your butter/cream cheese mixture, as small lumps of sugar can clog up your piping tips, especially if you’re using a smaller tip.
Can cream cheese frosting be used for piping?
- Yes! Especially with this recipe because it is nice and thick. Now, this frosting (as with most) is prone to melting in hot weather, but it pipes nicely and as you can see in the photos it holds its shape neatly as well.
How do I make my cream cheese frosting thicker?
- What I love about this recipe is that it already makes a nice thick frosting, but if needed you can add more powdered sugar to make your cream cheese frosting even thicker. I recommend adding about 2 Tablespoons at a time until the desired thickness is reached. Alternatively you can add cornstarch… see more on that below.
Can I add cornstarch to my cream cheese frosting?
- Yup! While this recipe does not call for it, if you need a particularly stiff frosting or are looking to make your frosting thicker without making it sweeter, you can add cornstarch (in fact, I use this technique for my carrot cake cookies). I don’t recommend adding more than a few Tablespoons, so start with just one Tablespoon at a time until desired thickness is reached.
Alright, while (in my humble opinion) cream cheese frosting goes great with everything, there are certain cakes and cupcakes that complement it particularly well. Wednesday I’ll be sharing one of my favorite cupcakes with you — the exact cupcakes seen in the photos above.
Can you guess what flavor they are???
How to Make Cream Cheese Frosting
Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter softened (113g)
- 8 oz cream cheese softened (brick-style, not spreadable) (226g)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 4 cups powdered sugar* (500g)
Instructions
- Combine butter and cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer (or you may use an electric mixer) and beat until creamy, well-combined, and lump-free.
- Add vanilla extract and salt and stir well to combine.
- With mixer on low, gradually add powdered sugar until completely combined.
- Use to frost completely cooled cake or cupcakes.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Cherrie
My frosting is ALWAYS like glaze, NEVER even remotely close to frosting or pipable. I’ve been baking cupcakes for 20yrs but, for some reason, cream cheese frosting defeats me 😭 I even try to do it from cold because it gets runny instantly. But nothing works. More sugar is way too sweet. It’s a wild issue!
Sam Merritt
I’m so sorry to hear this, Cherrie! Are you using brick style cream cheese? Are you reducing the sugar? The sugar really creates the structure here.
Beverly
Is there a way I can print this recipe without all the distractions?? ADHD mom here🤭
Sam Merritt
Hi Beverly! There’s a print button in the purple box right above the recipe, when you actually print the recipe there should be no ads. If there are please let me know because I need to get that fixed. 🙂
Kate
I’ve made this several times and it always came out beautifully. Any recommendations on how to turn it into a chocolate frosting? Add cocoa powder and some milk?
Sam Merritt
I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed it so much, Kate! I actually have a chocolate cream cheese frosting recipe. 🙂
Krystal Calderon
I made this for a wedding on red velvet and carrot cake cupcakes and it came out delicious! I did make a little too much. Is it freezable??
Sam Merritt
Hi Krystal! You can freeze this frosting without any issue. 🙂
Susan
Too sweet for me, but it worked out. I added milk and treated it as a glaze that I poured over a gingerbread cake. Yummy!
Amaya
Followed recipe exactly- my kiddo requested Oreo cupcakes and everyone loved! Used whole amount of sugar because why not??! Thanks for the recipe!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy everyone enjoyed them, Amaya! 🥰
Alecia Bigon
Perfect ratio of fat to sugar! As a more “seasoned cook” (lol) I wonder why recipes calling for powdered sugar never say to sift it first. Any ideas? Thanks for testing all your recipes so we can trust that they will turn out great!
Sam Merritt
I’m so glad you enjoyed the frosting, Alecia! Sifting the powdered sugar doesn’t really do much for the recipe here. You can typically mix the powdered sugar in without issues. 🙂
Jaime Twiggs
how long can this be left out at room temp?
Casey @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Jaimie! We’re personally comfortable leaving it out 24-48 hours if it’s not too warm in the kitchen. However, official recommendations are to keep it refrigerated.
Charlotte
Very creamy and delicious however I did take out some sugar and added some extra vanilla extract
Charlotte
Turned out great! Was creamy and delicious! However I did leave out some sugar
Pam
Very good recipe and easy to work with! It made my most beautiful cake yet – a different cream cheese frosting I tried was hard to smooth and didn’t look that great. BUT when you say “covers an 8” 2-layer cake”, you mean it! I didn’t even use it in between layers and there wasn’t a ton enough left after the crumb coat (was a taller 8” cake). I made 50% more and next time will double from the start.
Nicole
Hello,
I’m going to be using this lovely recipe but with a 3 tiered 8 inch cake. What measurements would be good for this size?
Thank you!!!
Sam Merritt
Hi Nicole! I would increase the recipe by 50%. If you want to pipe lots of decorations on it you may want to double it. 🙂
Pam
I’d double but be prepared to make even more! I didn’t use it between the layers of my two 8” cakes and after the crumb coat I knew I wouldn’t have enough! I made 50% more and had just enough for the two coats and a little piping.
But it was very easy to work with! Next time I’m doubling from the start.
Jon
I made this for my friend’s birthday cake yesterday. This was a big, big hit. The best frosting this guy has ever made, and I worked as a baker for years. Very simple but great.