Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

Some of you have been making my chocolate cream cheese frosting and lemon cream cheese frosting for ages. I had sort of an aha! moment when I realized I didn’t have a plain cream cheese frosting recipe on my site. Whoops! So here it is and you’re going to love it. 

You’ll find that cream cheese frosting is easy to make. There’s nothing tricky about it. Pretty much anything goes and it will taste good. You really can’t go wrong. 

Amazing Cream Cheese Frosting

Only 5 ingredients. This is a classic whipped cream cheese frosting. The recipe is easy with no fancy ingredients, and no additives or preservatives. Once you’ve tried this frosting, I guarantee you’ll never buy canned frosting again. 

Foolproof recipe. My grandma, who was a fine baker, always used melted butter and stirred up her cream cheese frosting by hand. It wasn’t nearly as light and fluffy as this whipped frosting, but guess what? It tasted great on her homemade cake. Seriously, you cannot go wrong with cream cheese, butter, and powdered sugar.

Makes a big batch of frosting. This recipe makes 3 cups, enough to frost a two layer cake. For a 9 x 13-inch cake, if you like a LOT of frosting, go ahead and make a whole batch. Sometimes, if I’m feeling conservative and self-controlled (this rarely happens when it comes to frosting), I make a half batch of frosting for a 9 x 13-inch cake. It’s totally up to you.

Can be made ahead (refrigerate or freeze). Keep reading for helpful tips.

Ingredient Notes

• Cream Cheese: Full-fat or reduced-fat cream cheese works best. Fat-free cream cheese isn’t recommended because it has a lot of added ingredients that aren’t found in regular cream cheese. Philadelphia is a popular brand but store brands work fine. The cream cheese should be softened (see tip below).
• Unsalted Butter: You’ll need a half stick of softened (room temperature) butter. I usually use unsalted butter. Some people add a pinch of salt to their frosting to balance the sweetness but I usually don’t. It’s up to you.
• Milk: Any kind of milk will do. Just a few drops are added to thin the frosting as needed.
• Pure Vanilla Extract: Vanilla adds flavor to your frosting. Vanilla bean paste adds lovely little flecks to your frosting. Other flavoring extracts could be substituted. Grated nutmeg or ground cinnamon are good additions, too.
• Powdered Sugar: You may know it as “confectioner’s sugar.” Regular granulated sugar won’t work in this recipe because it affects the texture of the frosting and makes it feel grainy.

How to make Cream Cheese Frosting

Use an electric mixer. You’ll need a mixer and a large bowl. The process is really easy and it shouldn’t take you more than a few minutes to make perfect frosting. 

Beat cream cheese and butter. Beat the softened cream cheese and butter until the mixture is creamy and well-blended. Sometimes I forget and throw everything into the bowl at once and that works, but for the best texture, it’s best to beat the cream cheese and butter together first.

Add remaining ingredients. Measure the vanilla, milk, and powdered sugar into the bowl.

Beat the frosting. Blend the ingredients together and beat for another minute or so until the frosting is fluffy and light. It’s easy to adjust the consistency of cream cheese frosting. If your frosting seems too thin, beat in more powdered sugar. If your frosting is too thick, beat in a few more drops of milk.

That’s all it takes to make totally yummy homemade frosting!

What to put cream cheese frosting on

Cakes and cupcakes: Is there a better topping for carrot cake? I don’t think so. It’s wonderful on banana cake, chocolate cake, or apple spice cake. For this easy rhubarb cake, I add a bit of freshly grated nutmeg to cream cheese frosting which complements the nutmeg in the cake. And don’t forget cupcakes!

Cinnamon rolls: Try cream cheese frosting on cinnamon rolls. If necessary, thin the frosting just a little with milk.

Graham crackers: What doesn’t taste better with cream cheese frosting? My kids love it on graham crackers (Mom does, too). It’s so creamy, rich, and delicious.

Storage & Make Ahead Ideas

Refrigerate: Store cream cheese frosting, whether it’s on a cake, cupcakes, or just plain, in the refrigerator. It will keep for three days. The frosting will harden slightly. If you prefer, take your frosted cake out of the refrigerator an hour before serving so it has a chance to come to room temperature.

Freeze: Store extra cream cheese frosting in zip top freezer bags, removing any extra air as you seal the bag. Label the freezer bag and use the frosting within a month. Defrost the frosting overnight in the freezer. Snip a corner from the bag and pipe the frosting right from the bag onto cupcakes or cake. If the frosting separates slightly, remove it from the bag and stir or beat the frosting until it’s creamy.

Make ahead idea: Make the frosting up to a day ahead and refrigerate. Take the frosting out of the refrigerator an hour before you want to use it so it comes to room temperature. It will soften slightly and be easier to spread. Give it a good stir before using.

More toppings for your cake

Frostings and sweet sauces are the crowning glory of cakes and cupcakes. Try:

• Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
• Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
• Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
• Bourbon Caramel Sauce Recipe
• Hot Fudge Sauce Recipe
• Whipped Cream Recipe
• Peanut Butter Frosting