The Best Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe
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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
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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FROSTING WAS REALLY GREAT I WOULD SUGGEST WHEN USING A HAND MIXER I GOT POWDER SUGAR EVERYWHERE IT BLEW INTO ME AND THE COUNTER I WOULD SUGGEST TO FIRST WITH A SPOON MIX BY HAND TO SATURATE SOME THEN USE THE HAND MIXER. I WANTED TO GRATE SOME GRATED RAW CARROTS EITHER MIX INTO FROSTING OR SPRINKLE ON TOP MY CAKE. TO GIVE IT COLOR.
Not sure if this has already been mentioned
European bakers out there (lacking the brick style cream cheese)
200g butter
200g cream cheese (spreadable only option)
250-300g icing sugar
I was so excited to try this recipe after using EU cream cheese without any doubts in cheesecakes but icing sugar is very different (of course)
struggled a lot with keeping the nice thick structure (not dropping off the cake) then finally found an answer (a little too late)
round 2 coming in
Thanks again for the AMAZING recipes
you’re my go to for everything Woaw 💜🤍
Easy to make. Velvet texture and very spreadable!
OK, I’m admitting that I’m probably the only person on earth who’s not crazy about cream cheese frosting UNTIL this recipe! I had made some banana bread muffins and wanted a frosting for them but something less sweet. I didn’t want buttercream, I didn’t want Swiss or Swiss meringue. So I thought well, I’ll try a cream cheese recipe that has a higher butter to cream cheese ratio and this was PERFECT! Even my husband who professes to hate cream cheese frosting liked this frosting. I still haven’t told him it had cream cheese in it, lol!! This frosting is smooth, holds its shape, mildly sweet and absolutely delicious! I used my homemade vanilla bean paste in it, and it was just crazy over the top delicious!
If I could give this recipe 10 stars I would!! This is now going to be my go to frosting recipe! Thanks so much!
Sam I am so grateful for this recipe, my husband loves cream cheese frosting. The stuff you buy that is already made is horrid! Guess I will be making a carrot cake now, thanks to your recipe. Have a blessed day!! Love and hugs from Ohio 🤗
Thanks for the review, Judy! Homemade is SO much better! If you need a carrot cake recipe, we have an excellent one 🙂
Just had to say I’ve made this and your biscuit recipe. both have come out amazing, recipes were both easy to follow, and turned out delicious! I feel like I can actually BAKE!!
Just made this and it’s perfect! Truly the best!!! I didn’t need the 4 cups of powdered sugar personally. I just used 3 cups. It was chilled enough to work perfect.
So glad you enjoyed it, Madison! Thanks for giving our recipe a try 🩷
Great & easy recipe! Can I freeze this ?
We’re so happy you like it, Hanna! Yes, this icing can be frozen 🙂
Can this frosting successfully be used with printed edible frosting sheets without the image bleeding? I want to apply a printed design to the sides of my round layered cake.
Also, can fondant be applied to the frosting, or will it turn it into a gooey mess?
Hi Adrianne! I think it’s possible to use this under fondant, but you will want to be careful. The moisture content of the cream cheese frosting could cause some issues. I also worry about the moisture and the printable image bleeding. I don’t have much experience doing this so I can’t say for sure how it would work though.
I want to make this ahead of time and refrigerate it so I can use it with my grandchildren to surprise their father with a red velvet cake for his birthday. How much time will it need to sit outside the refrigerator before it will be usable for frosting?
Hi Vicky! It really depends on how you are trying to use it, how warm your kitchen is etc. It’s typically pretty workable within a half an hour I would say. 🙂
Sam, Thanks for your excellent recipe for cream cheese frosting. My grandchildren and I made it yesterday to ice a red velvet cake for their father’s birthday. It really is a user friendly recipe. My grandson said it tastes like cheesecake, which is a high compliment from. I found it to be not as sweet and much better than buttercream frosting and will me my new go-to recipe. They surprised their father with the cake on his return from his birthday trip to Nashville, and surprised he was, as this was the first time they had made him a cake. He also said it was a delicious cake. Lastly, thank you for your prompt reply to my question. It helped me feel confident this was something the kids and I could do successfully.
Thank you so much for trying my recipe, Vicky! I truly appreciate your feedback and support. I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much. It’s definitely less sweet than a traditional buttercream. I’m so glad I was able to help you. It’s always such a joy to have things to make with kids. 🙂
What sprinkles did you use to top the carrot cupcake ?
They were just a pastel colored quin. 🙂
Great recipe! The frosting is spot on delicious. Please, what brand hand mixer are you using in the video? My old mixer doesn’t work well on slow setting. Thanks!
Thank you so much for trying my recipe, Annette! I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much! The mixer there is a KitchenAid mixer. 🙂
Does this need to be refrigerated once cupcakes are frosted? Thank you!
I would recommend refrigeration with this frosting. 🙂