Today, I’d like to share a recipe with you. Not just any recipe… a cream cheese frosting recipe I have used dozens (maybe even hundreds) of times, and I love it each time!
There are two reasons I love this recipe… one is that it’s really, really easy, and the second is that it’s really delicious!
While I do also enjoy other styles of frosting, like Swiss Meringue Buttercream, Fluffy 7 Minute Frosting, or Whipped Ganache, this cream cheese frosting recipe is easier than any other. This is basically American style buttercream (which is butter, powdered sugar, milk), but with the addition of cream cheese.
The cream cheese is really the key ingredient, since it helps off-set the sweetness of the powdered sugar, and adds to the creaminess of the butter while also removing the greasy, pure butter flavor.
Another thing I really like about this recipe is that if you use these proportions, the frosting is not over powered by the cream cheese, it takes on the flavor of whatever extract or additional flavorings are added.
Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
½ cup (1 stick/8 Tablespoons) unsalted butter (set at room temp about 10 minutes, but should still be cool)
8 oz. Challenge cream cheese (directly from fridge)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (always use pure vanilla extract if possible)
4 cups powdered confectioners sugar
1 to 4 Tablespoons heavy cream, heavy whipping cream (or milk- although I do like the richness that cream adds)
Directions:
*Place butter in a large mixing bowl and beat until smooth. Add cream cheese and blend until fully combined and smooth, about 30 seconds.
*Add vanilla extract and powdered sugar and blend on low speed until combined. Increase to medium speed and beat until it begins to get fluffy.
*Slowly add the heavy cream, a little bit at a time until desired consistency is met. (Don’t add too much if you want the frosting to stay in place when piped on cupcakes.)
*Beat until fluffy, about 1 minute.
*Use at once or keep refrigerated. (This frosting will keep well in the refrigerator for several days, but you may need to re-beat it for the best texture.)
The recipe above will produce a delicious VANILLA flavored frosting, here are a couple of other options to try…
For a Stronger Cream Cheese Flavor: Use an additional 4 oz. (½ block) of cream cheese. This is good for any cake/cupcake recipe that is traditionally topped with Cream Cheese Frosting, like Carrot Cake, or Red Velvet Cake.
For Chocolate Frosting: (my favorite!) add ½ cup unsweetened cocoa (I use Ghirardelli brand, it’s really good). Add the cocoa powder before adding the powdered sugar, so it gets fully incorporated into the butter and cream cheese.
Strawberry, Blackberry, etc: Add 2-4 tablespoons of preserves. Depending on how chunky or seedy the preserves are, you may want to blend it in the food processor, and/or strain it through a fine strainer before adding it to the frosting. Add the preserves to the frosting mixture before adding the heavy cream. Depending on the amount of preserves you add you may need very little or no cream, especially if you want the frosting thick enough to pipe. A final option would be to add a drop of food coloring to add to the color of the preserves (for example, pink coloring for the Strawberry flavor).
* This recipe will frost about 22-24 cupcakes if you are piping a nice swirl, or even more if you just spread it on. If you’re making a cake, this will frost and fill a two layer 9″ cake.
How To Make Cream Cheese Frosting
Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter set at room temp about 10 minutes, but should still be cool
- 8 oz. cream cheese directly from fridge
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract always use pure vanilla extract if possible
- 4 cups powdered confectioners sugar
- 1 to 4 tablespoons heavy cream heavy whipping cream (or milk- although I do like the richness that cream adds)
Instructions
- Place butter in a large mixing bowl and beat until smooth. Add cream cheese and blend until fully combined and smooth, about 30 seconds.
- Add vanilla extract and powdered sugar and blend on low speed until combined. Increase to medium speed and beat until it begins to get fluffy.
- Slowly add the heavy cream, a little bit at a time until desired consistency is met. (Don't add too much if you want the frosting to stay in place when piped on cupcakes.)
- Beat until fluffy, about 1 minute.
- Use at once or keep refrigerated. (This frosting will keep well in the refrigerator for several days, but you may need to re-beat it for the best texture.)
Notes
Nutrition
Hi Glory, will this cream cheese frosting crust at all? Thanks!!
Yes, left out at room temperature, it will crust just a bit.
Hi! I must say I really love your site and everything looks gorgeous! ♥
I just need a professional advice though. There’s a party tomorrow’s evening and I want the cupcakes to be fresh and yummy.. I might be a little short on time tomorrow, so I wondred if making the frosting today and refrigerating it until tomorrow would destory the frosting’s / cupcakes’ taste or anything?
I saw that you wrote in most comments that you bake the cupcakes the night before… If I do so, the cupcakes, without frosting, would be alright not being refrigerated?
Also, one last question- how long does it usually take for the cupcakes to cool completely, so I could frost them safely? XD
Sorry for writing too much and thanks in advance! ♥
I am curious if I used 1/4 cup butter shortening and 1/4 cup butter and continue with the remainder recipe would this help with the frosting softening ? My biggest issue is the Texas heat and the frosting softening.
If anyone has any suggestions or has attempted to use butter and shortening in this recipe I would love to hear from you!
Do you have any suggestions for how to teach two school-age (6 and 8) boys how to decorate cupcakes with the swirl on top. I can show them how, but I was hoping to turn this task over to them at a party and I am concerned about frosting oozing out of the top of a bag. Do yo think an 8-oz icing bottle with a Wilton 1A tip work?
What can I use if Challenge butter is not sold in my country ?
Hi Glory –
You are such a creative lady. I love your blog. I really want to try the American Cream Cheese Buttercream Frosting. I can’t imagine what the calorie count is, but will try anyway. Thank you so much for making it available to us.
Great frosting!! Forgive me if you’ve already covered this, do you have to refrigerate the cupcakes once you ice them since you’re using cream cheese?
Hi Jennifer,
You do not need to refrigerate the frosted cupcakes if you keep them at room temperature. The sugar in the frosting acts as a preservative. On the other hand, if your house is super warm, then you can keep them in the fridge if you prefer, but that can tend to dry out the cake.
I have a 3 tiered graduation cake, and also a 3 tiered wedding cake to make. Both will be outside, elements and all. I was wondering how well this frosting stood up to heat and added decorations, and if it was just as successful on a tiered cake as it was on cupcakes? Thanks
Hi Charity, Yes, this frosting can be used on a cake as well as cupcakes. In general I would not put a cake or cupcakes with any frosting (including this one) in an overly hot area, as the butter and/or cream cheese will cause the frosting to soften. If you have to keep the cake in a warm room, you can replace some of the butter with shortening, but I usually find a way to avoid this as I prefer not to eat or serve shortening.
I have tried this frosting twice and my biggest challenge is that it quickly softens. Any thoughts ? The last time I did not add any cream or milk just vanilla extract.
I would suggest that your butter and/or cream cheese should be cold or cool at all times. This can only be accomplished with a large stand mixer. If you only have a hand beater, and therefore have to use slightly warmer ingredients for them to become smooth, then you’ll need to refrigerate the frosting for a bit before piping onto cupcakes.
Hi glory, don’t know why my question keeps disappearing. Would desperately like to know if the butter used in this frosting is salted or unsalted. Thank u.
Charlotte, I almost always use unsalted butter for any baking project. For this frosting I bet you could use salted since there is a lot of sugar to off-set it, but I have never used salted in this recipe so I can’t say what the results would be for sure.