Cream Cheese Buttercream Frosting

How to Make
Cream Cheese
Buttercream Frosting

Cream cheese buttercream frosting has such a delicious combination of a light sweet vanilla and a creamy, tangy taste. Pair it traditionally with red velvet cake and cupcakes, or it tastes great with chocolate, vanilla, or fruity flavors too!
Make sure to read all important notes below.

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), softened
1 cup cream cheese (1 block), softened* please read notes on dairy ingredients below
¼ tsp salt (plus more to taste as desired)
1 Tbsp vanilla extract (plus more to taste as desired)
5 cups powdered sugar

Directions

In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (I prefer the paddle attachment with the flexible/spatula edge), beat the butter alone on medium speed for several minutes until the color lightens. Add the cream cheese and beat this on medium speed for a few more minutes. A hand mixer with the beaters will work as well. Avoid using the whisk attachment when making buttercream, as this can whip in extra air.

Add the salt and vanilla, then mix until well combined.

If your mixer has a shield, add this on to prevent powdered sugar from escaping while mixing. Add the powdered sugar, then pulse the mixer (alternating turning it to the first/lowest speed, and then stopping) to prevent ingredients escaping. Pulse this just until the powdered sugar is combined with the butter mixture.

Mix on lowest speed (higher speeds can whip the cream and thus cause an increase in air bubbles) for a few minutes until the buttercream stars to look smooth.

Stop the mixer and taste test using a clean spoon each time. If it tastes too sweet, add a pinch of salt and/or another drop of extract and mix again on low speed. Repeat this until you find a taste you prefer.

Yield

This recipe makes 7 cups of cream cheese buttercream, which is approximately enough to:

Frost 2.5 dozen cupcakes in a flat/short design
- OR -
Frost 2 dozen cupcakes in a tall/swirl design
- OR -
Frost a 3-layer 6-inch cake, with some left over
- OR -
Frost a 2-layer 8-inch cake, with some left over

Make more buttercream to pipe borders, flowers, and further decorations to cakes and cupcakes. I frequently make double and even triple batches of this for various cake sizes and quantities of cupcakes. Follow the directions in the same way for larger batches as well.

Important Notes

Consistency
This ratio of ingredients is for a medium consistency buttercream frosting. If you wish to thin the consistency slightly in order to frost and cover a cake, add a dash of heavy cream. If you wish to pipe cupcakes, borders, flowers, and other decorations that need to hold their shape, add more powdered sugar and mix on lowest speed until desired consistency is reached.

*A Note About Dairy Ingredients
This recipe is intended for home use and consumption. If intending to sell baked goods, be sure to verify approved recipes and ingredients with your state’s cottage foods governing entity. The cottage food laws where I live only allow one approved recipe for cream cheese buttercream, which must be purchased.

Storage
Cream cheese buttercream will crust and set just like my other American buttercream style frostings, but cakes and cupcakes frosted with cream cheese buttercream should not be out of the fridge for more than 2 hours due to the extra dairy content. Store cream cheese American buttercream frosting in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1 weeks, or in the freezer for 1 month. Climate/humidity/temperature may affect this. After buttercream has been sitting, whether this is on the counter, in the fridge, or in the freezer, air bubbles will begin to develop. Allow the buttercream to come to room temperature, and then gently stir back and forth with a rubber spatula to gently press these out.

Ingredients Temp
I’ve found that the ingredients mix and emulsify together better if they are all at room temperature (or near room temperature). Ingredients of similar temperatures will mix more easily than ingredients of differing temperatures from one another.

Coloring
Cream cheese buttercream frosting does color well with gel-based colorings. I’ll link brands and types that I frequently use below. Vibrant colors require time to develop and saturate, so often times bright and deep colors like red, black, navy, purple, etc will need a day or two in the fridge.

As with any recipe, results may vary by brand/types of ingredients and humidity/temperature/climate.

Supplies, Materials, and Ingredients Links

Stand mixer, hand mixer, and attachments: KitchenAid: Amazon Storefront
Mixing bowls and spatulas: KitchenAid and various brands: Amazon Storefront
Vanilla extract: Watkins: Amazon Storefront
Gel coloring: Chefmaster liqua-gels and Americolor gel-pastes: Amazon storefront
Heavy Cream: Kemps: Retailer Locator

I would love to see what you make with your cream cheese buttercream frosting!
Tag me @erin.cakesandcupcakes on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook!