Cream Cheese Frosting

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Old-fashioned cream cheese frosting is sweet with a subtle tang, ultra-creamy, and just plain luscious.

While plain vanilla buttercream can be tooth-achingly sweet, cream cheese frosting is more balanced with a subtle, pleasant tang. The acidity in the cream cheese offsets the sweetness of the sugar, and the cheese’s dense texture makes the frosting ultra-rich and creamy. The best cream cheese frosting is made with 5 simple ingredients — cream cheese, butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and salt — and it comes together in just a few minutes. It has a soft, luscious consistency, making it best swirled onto cakes and cupcakes with a butter knife or offset spatula. It is not suited to piping, unless you add extra confectioners’ sugar to make it thicker (in which case, you may find it too sweet).

Pair cream cheese frosting with vanilla/yellow cake, red velvet cake, pumpkin cake, carrot cake, or coconut cake. The recipe makes about 3 cups, which is enough for 24 cupcakes, one 8 or 9-inch layer cake, or one 9×13 sheet cake.

What You’ll Need To Make Cream Cheese Frosting

For best results, use full-fat, brick-style cream cheese, preferably Philadelphia brand. Avoid the cream cheese that comes in a tub (it is made with more water to give it a thinner, softer texture, and air is mixed in to make it fluffier) as well as low-fat or non-fat cream cheese. Similarly, use real butter.

Be sure the cream cheese and butter are both at a soft room temperature before making the frosting – you should be able to easily press your finger into both and make an indentation. If your cream cheese and butter are too cold, you can warm them up by putting them in the microwave separately in 5-second intervals, but be careful not to melt them.

Feel free to play around with the balance of cream cheese and butter in the frosting. For more tang, reduce the amount of butter and increase the cream cheese; for less tang, increase the butter and reduce the cream cheese. You can also adjust the sweetness of the frosting by increasing or decreasing the confectioners’ sugar. However, keep in mind that the amount of sugar will affect the consistency of the frosting; the less sugar you use, the thinner the frosting will be.

Step-by-Step Instructions

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or large bowl if using a hand mixer), combine the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and salt.

Mix on low speed until combined, then increase the speed to medium-high and beat until aerated and light, about 2 minutes.

Gradually add the confectioners’ sugar, mixing on low to combine.

Once all of the sugar is mixed in, increase the speed to medium-high and beat until fluffy, about 1 minute.

Use a butter knife or offset spatular to spread the frosting over cake or cupcakes.

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