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.
Cherokeepheonix
This recipe was SO crucial for me finding my perfect peakness ;p… THANK YOU for NOT using (4 dadgum oz ) of cream chezzzzz! FINALLY a full brick user! I tweaked mine a teensy bit…. Added almond extract and lime zest on half and lemon zest on the other half and OMG…also i did the 3 cups of sugar with an added half stick of butter and 2 tspoons of corn starch and bing-bong, delicious creamy heaven… Thanks lady cakes <3
Amy
Just made this. I only used 1.5 cups of sugar and it’s plenty sweet. I tasted it at 1 cup and totally could have left it at that. Thank you for this easy and delicious recipe! exactly what I was craving!!
Lils
Can I use this for red velvet cookies? Like crumbl?
Sam
This would go great on top of a red velvet cookie. 🙂
Sue
Must it be refrigerated?
Sam
Hi Sue! Since it has cream cheese in it, it is recommended that it be refrigerated. 🙂
Maria
Can you double the recipe?
Sam
Sure thing! 🙂
Maria
Thank you, it was delish. Saving it to use again!
Susan T.
Super easy and tasty!
Aaron
So easy and soooo yummy!
Brink
I dialed back sugar to 410 grams. It was absolutely delicious!
Nicole
How long will this last in the fridge?
Sam
Hi Nicole! This will last about 5 days in an air tight container in the refrigerator. 🙂
Naomi
I used this recipe for topping my pumpkin bars. I followed it to a T and it is perfect! Thank you for the recipe!
Lisa
If using dye what type? Is gel okay?
Sam
Gel is a great option and what I would recommend 🙂
Angie
absolutely the best cream cheese frosting
nileina
only used 2 cups of sugar and still very sweet…good basic frosting recipe.
Jimmy Flores
Love it always make it
MiMi
Hi,
I’m excited to try this recipe but waved to know if I could substitute monk fruit sweetener instead of powdered sugar?
thank you💕
Sam
Hi MiMi! Unfortunately I do not have any experience with monk fruit sweetener, but I’m hoping if someone else has tried it they can chime in!