ISO the Best Cream Cheese Frosting

[Chocolate Rose]

I've been asked to make the Cheesecake-Stuffed Dark Chocolate Cake (that I posted last weekend) for my boss's birthday. I'd like to use a homemade cream cheese frosting, but haven't been happy with any of the ones I've tried. What's your favorite recipe?
TIA

[ADM]

"Cream cheese frosting is a baking basic. It's perfect for practically any cake and any leftovers are great dolloped onto some freshly cut fruit. This is the basic recipe, you can reduce the amount of butter if you want a bit more tang, and increase or decrease the sugar according to your taste. Dress up with ginger, vanilla bean, or coconut flakes. I've listed some of my favorite variations at the end of the recipe.

Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

1/2 cup of butter (1 stick), room temperature
8 oz of Philly cream cheese (1 package), room temperature
2 - 3 cups of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1 With an electric mixer, mix the butter and cream cheese together, about 3 minutes on medium speed until very smooth. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure even mixing.

2 Add the vanilla extract and mix. Slowly add the powdered sugar. Keep adding until you get to desired sweetness.

3 Either spread on with a blunt knife or spatula, or spoon into a piping bag to decorate your cake or cupcake.

Variations:

Adding a teaspoon of Chinese Five Spice is always great for exotic chocolate cakes.
Adding freshly ground ginger helps spice up a carrot cake.
Freshly ground chai spice or even the contents of a bag of earl grey tea are heady and aromatic.
The scrapings from a vanilla bean can be very sweet and heavenly for red velvet or dark chocolate cakes.
Freshly grated or dried, flaked coconut mixed in makes it perfect for a coconut cake."

Source: Garrett McCord, guest author - Simply Recipes Blog.

[sneezles]

The one I use is similar but uses 2 8oz packages of cream cheese. I also like to make it with mascarpone.

[cakebaker]

Cream Cheese Frosting

1/2 cup heavy cream
1 stick sweet butter, softened
1 8 oz. package cream cheese,softened
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. lemon extract
1 1 lb. box powdered sugar

Whip cream until stiff peaks form. Set aside. In another bowl cream butter and cream cheese together until smooth & fluffy. Blend in extracts. Beat in sugar a cup at a time until incorporated. Fold in whipped cream.

N.B. You may not wind up using the whole box. I usually eyeball how much and this changes according to weather/room teperature, etc, but you want this frosting fairly dense because when you fold in the whipped cream it will loosen up the frosting and it will be very creamy. If you add too little sugar, when you fold in the cream it will be so creamy, i.e. loose that it might slide off the cake.

[Chocolate Rose]

Thanks for the recipes! It looks like cream cheese frosting recipes are pretty much the same.

But, Cakebaker, your recipe with the cream looks interesting. Do you think I'd need to double it for a 4 layer cake?

[cakebaker]

Chocolate Rose,
I usually make 3 layer 8" or 9" cakes and this recipe is adequate for a generous slathering of frosting. If in doubt, I might 1 1/2x's it rather than doubling it.
I once used above recipe for a 3 layer cake that had a raspberry glaze on top and even after piping leaves around bottom and top edge of cake I had so much left over that my DD & I were 'forced' to eat spoonfuls of the refrigerated frosting for several days!

[Chocolate Rose]

Originally Posted by cakebaker

Chocolate Rose,
I usually make 3 layer 8" or 9" cakes and this recipe is adequate for a generous slathering of frosting. If in doubt, I might 1 1/2x's it rather than doubling it.
I once used above recipe for a 3 layer cake that had a raspberry glaze on top and even after piping leaves around bottom and top edge of cake I had so much left over that my DD & I were 'forced' to eat spoonfuls of the refrigerated frosting for several days!

Thanks again, for your help. I bought the ingredients today to do a trial run of the frosting tomorrow. It sounds awesome, but I'm worried about incorporating the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Hopefully I'm worried about nothing!

[Chocolate Rose]

[QUOTE=cakebaker;1510629]Cream Cheese Frosting

1/2 cup heavy cream
1 stick sweet butter, softened
1 8 oz. package cream cheese,softened
1 tsp. vanilla
/QUOTE]

This was the BEST cream cheese frosting I've had. I did end up adding a bit more sugar, and that wasn't quite enough. I used "1/3 less fat" cream cheese and am thinking that that was why it wasn't quite sturdy enough. Do you make this with full-fat cream cheese?

[cakebaker]

Chocolate Rose....Glad you like it. Yes, I do use full fat cream cheese. So sorry I neglected to state in recipe. If you use 1/3 fat cream cheese, I might reduce heavy cream to 1/3 cup and/or add more sugar. Sometimes I add more sugar than recipe calls for just to get a dense base before adding whipped crea. I think it depends on weather as i seem to increase sugar quite a bit if it is hot/humid. Play with it. Making frosting not as exact a science as baking.

[Chocolate Rose]

Originally Posted by cakebaker

Chocolate Rose....Glad you like it. Yes, I do use full fat cream cheese. So sorry I neglected to state in recipe. If you use 1/3 fat cream cheese, I might reduce heavy cream to 1/3 cup and/or add more sugar. Sometimes I add more sugar than recipe calls for just to get a dense base before adding whipped crea. I think it depends on weather as i seem to increase sugar quite a bit if it is hot/humid. Play with it. Making frosting not as exact a science as baking.

Thanks, again. I don't think that I want to decrease the cream as I really like what it does to the frosting. YUM! Next time I'll make it with full-fat cream cheese.
My dd made cupcakes to put the frosting on and we don't have enough room in the fridge for them. So, the bowl of frosting isin the fridge and the naked cupcakes are on the counter. I'm having a hard time staying out of the frosting. "Just one more little spoonful...."

[cakebaker]

I know. Who even needs cake when you have cream cheese frosting as good as this. I could eats a bowl for dessert sans cake anytime.

[ChristieinMB]

cakebaker - is the frosting thick enough to pipe it on and keep its form at room temperature?

[Peweh]

Looks like you got a lot of great recipe suggestions, just wanted to add any Cream Cheese Frosting with almond extract subbed for the vanilla is my favorite!!

[cakebaker]

Christie, I have piped this frosting, but would use a little less cream and/or a little more sugar. And having butter, cream & cheese, I would definitely store in refrigerator to keep its form. Are you in Manhattan Beach? I'm in Lomita and with this weather would not keep this at room temp for more than a short while.

[ChristieinMB]

Yes, I'm in Manhattan Beach, (hi neighbor) I wouldn't leave it out for long, but just want to make sure.
I won't make it until October so it should should be quite cool by then.
I've been looking for a good cream cheese frosting, I'll print this one.
Thanks...