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
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter softened (113g)
- 8 oz cream cheese softened (brick-style, not spreadable) (226g)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 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.
Karina Horst says
Can this be freeze?
Sam says
Yes it freezes well 🙂
Christine says
This is a great recipe. It came out perfectly delicious. Thank you.
Sam says
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Christine! 🙂
Deborah Townsend says
Perfect!
Eileen Long says
I used Philadelphia bar cream cheese and I went according to the recipe but it looks then. Should I refrigerate it for a while?
Sam says
Hi Eileen! If it’s too thin and runny just add more powdered sugar. 🙂
Victoria says
So delicious!
Mine was a tad loose but I think my butter and cream cheese were left out too long before making buttercream. I added a bit of cornstarch but perhaps next time I’ll try when my butter is not as soft.
What piping tip did you use on your pictured cupcakes?
Sam says
I am so glad you enjoyed it, Victoria! I used an Ateco 848 tip for those cupcakes. 🙂
Jay says
Hi. This sounds like a lovely recipe & I’m going to try this out for sure. Is there any way I can replace the refined white sugar with a natural sweetener, like honey. Do you think it would work if I add cornstarch to counter the liquid sweetener consistency?
Sam says
Hi Jay! I’m not sure it would turn out as I haven’t tried it. If you do try it I would love to know how it goes. 🙂
Carrie Lamm says
Super Duper Gonna Try…
I don’t ever join or ask for recipes or share social media or wanting to get further updates.
Well I am going to break all of my rules. I am Going To Share. I Pinned It. Share With My Daughter and 2 Daughter in laws.
I am so gonna try making some of the other frosting recipe. I am gonna try A Lot Of Your Recipes.. You writing this Blog was so perfectly Amazing.
My Mouth is watering. 😁
Your New Fan
Carrie
Sam says
Thank you so much, Carrie! I am so glad you enjoyed it so much! I really appreciate your support. 🙂
Amy says
Perfect explanation of the science of this recipe. Using just a bit more than the minimum of two cups of sugar made a delicious, loose but spreadable icing for our “casual” pumpkin sheet cake. I’d use more if it was for company. We like it more tangy than sweet.
Sam says
Thank you so much, Amy! I hope everyone loved it! 🙂
bakingcake42 says
Can i use this for cake pop icing or will it turn out bad?
Sam says
It should work just fine. 🙂
Terri says
If I’m doubling the recipe, do I need to modify the ratio at all? I know doubling a recipe isn’t always as simple as doubling everything exactly.
Sam says
Hi Terri! You just double all of the ingredients here. 🙂
Charlyn says
Is it safe to put gel coloring to this cream cheeese frosting recipe?
Sam says
That should work just fine, Charlyn! I would stir it in at the end. 🙂
Neha Bansal says
Hi. My frosting was too thin. I couldn’t pipe out on cup cakes.
Sam says
Did you use spreadable cream cheese? That would do it 🙁
Sheila Ocariza says
How long can this last?
Sam says
Hi Sheila! It should last a day or so at room temperature and probably about a week in the refrigerator. 🙂
Nichole says
Does this need to be stored in the fridge? If so, how long can it be left out?
Sam says
Hi Nichole! You can leave it out of the fridge for about a day, but much longer than that and I would refrigerate it. 🙂
Anna says
Hi!
Do you know how long it will last in the fridge? I would assume until the exp dates of butter/cream cheese but is that correct?
Hoping to triple this for 3 things and save my time over the next week.
Thank you!!
Sam says
Hi Anna! It will last about a week in the refrigerator in an air tight container. 🙂
Billie Jo says
My 1st from scratch chocolate cake. My 2nd time ever making frosting. This recipe went much better than my first. Thank u very much.
Sam says
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Dee Flowers says
I just made this to go with my pumpkin spice pancakes and it was DELISH!!!!
Sugar Spun Run says
That sounds like the perfect combination, Dee! Yum! I am happy that it paired perfectly and that you enjoyed it! 🙂