Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe
This is my absolute favorite cream cheese frosting recipe, and it requires just five simple ingredients! This recipe is perfect for covering either a two-layer 8" or 9" cake, 24 cupcakes, or generously frosting 12 cupcakes as shown in the photos.
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Servings: 24 cupcakes or 1 8" or 9" 2-layer cake
Ingredients
- 4 cups powdered sugar 500g
- 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
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, or using an electric mixer, blend the softened butter and cream cheese until the mixture is smooth, creamy, and free of lumps.
- Add the vanilla extract and salt to the mixture, stirring thoroughly to combine.
- Gradually incorporate the powdered sugar, keeping the mixer on low speed, until the sugar is fully blended into the mixture.
- Once the frosting is smooth and fully combined, it is ready to be used to frost your completely cooled cake or cupcakes.
Notes
As highlighted in the post, this cream cheese frosting is both sturdy and pipeable, holding its shape well and having a texture similar to buttercream, making it excellent for decorating. Unlike many cream cheese frosting recipes that use less sugar and end up looser, this icing is less sweet than buttercream. However, if you prefer an even less sweet frosting, you can reduce the sugar to taste (you’ll need at least two cups).
Overly thick and sweet frosting is often due to over-measuring the powdered sugar. It should be weighed or measured similarly to flour. If your frosting turns out too thick, you can thin it by adding a splash of heavy cream or milk until you achieve the desired consistency.
*If you plan to pipe the frosting with a small tip, I recommend sifting the powdered sugar after measuring. The cupcakes in these photos were frosted using an Ateco 848 tip.