All of the tangy cream cheese flavor you love in the classic frosting, but sturdy enough to be piped and hold it’s shape. This decorator’s cream cheese frosting is the best parts of buttercream and cream cheese frosting combined.
It has been at least a week since I last shared a frosting recipe with you, so it is overdue! This frosting is worth the wait. It has the tang of cream cheese but it is perfect for piping into swirls, rosettes, shells and more.
There are a few kinds of cake that just beg to be slathered with cream cheese frosting. Carrot cake and banana cakes are two obvious choices, but cream cheese also goes well with chocolate cake and many more.
The problem is the standard cream cheese frosting isn’t great for doing much more than spreading over the cake. It is soft and doesn’t hold it’s shape well.
It is absolutely delicious, but not great for piping. And for frosting lovers like myself, sometimes a little bit of frosting spread on top of a cupcake isn’t enough.
(It’s never enough!) Bring on the fluffy swirls of frosting!
Luckily this recipe allows you to have the best of both worlds. It pipes like and American buttercream dream but has that familiar cream cheese taste we love.
The final product does form a slight crust, especially if chilled, that makes transportation a lot easier. It also helps it hold up to a little more warmth than a standard cream cheese frosting.
For even more stability, you could substitute some shortening in for some of the butter. The higher melting point always helps to keep things a bit more resistant to temperature.
You can definitely taste the cream cheese in the final product without any help. If you feel like it needs a little more though, a teaspoon of cream cheese emulsion will help drive the flavor home.
After several batches of this frosting in the past month, I can assure you that this frosting will be a hit. You’ll see it featured on some pretty cookie stacks I’m sharing and also some super fun summer cupcakes.
Go ahead and make a practice batch of frosting now so you’ll be ready for those when I share them!
Decorator's Cream Cheese Frosting
All of the tangy cream cheese flavor you love in the classic frosting, but sturdy enough to be piped and hold it's shape. This decorator's cream cheese frosting is the best parts of buttercream and cream cheese frosting combined.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, softened*
- 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 pound powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1-2 Tablespoons milk
- optional: 1 teaspoon cream cheese emulsion
Instructions
- Beat together butter and cream cheese until super smooth and creamy.
- Add salt, powdered sugar, vanilla and cream cheese emulsion if using. Mix until combined.
- Add a tablespoon of milk and continue to mix for at least 2 minutes. Adjust final consistency with more milk or powdered sugar.
- Spread or pipe immediately or store in the refrigerator in an airtight container.
Notes
*For added stability, substitute 1/4 cup of shortening for some of the butter
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases. Please view my disclosure page for more information.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
30Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 101Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 12mgSodium: 55mgCarbohydrates: 15gFiber: 0gSugar: 15gProtein: 0g
All nutritional information is estimated and will depend on the exact ingredients you use.
Unknown
Tuesday 6th of October 2020
Hey Carlee, I need strawberry cream cheese frosting. Could I just add a little bit of a strawberry puree reduction or will that totally change the consistency?
Carlee
Tuesday 6th of October 2020
That could definitely work. I would consider cooking them down a bit to make sure there's not too much liquid. I like getting some freeze dried strawberries and turning them into a powder and then adding them into the frosting.
Krisskross
Saturday 9th of May 2020
Does this color well? Do you think it will hold up for a small wedding cake?
Carlee
Saturday 9th of May 2020
It does and it would! You'll have to let me know how it goes!
Anonymous
Wednesday 26th of February 2020
This recipe looks delicious. How much frosting does this actually make? TIA
Carlee
Monday 2nd of March 2020
I've never measured it after I whipped it, but I would guess about 3 cups.
Big Rigs 'n Lil' Cookies
Sunday 16th of June 2019
I don't do a lot of piping, but looking at this glorious frosting makes me want to make cupcakes just so I can pipe!
Carlee
Thursday 27th of June 2019
A nice swirl on top of a cupcake is certainly easy enough to do and gives them that extra panache!
Amy
Wednesday 12th of June 2019
I think that you should just make frosting and sell it!!! This frosting looks so pretty. I could just eat it like an Ice Cream Cone!
Carlee
Thursday 27th of June 2019
I like the way you think! I would totally eat an ice cream cone of frosting too!