This cream cheese frosting without butter is simply delicious. Pair it with any type of chocolate cake (like this eggless chocolate cake or chocolate pound cake), red velvet cake, red velvet cupcakes, banana cake or this pretty blue butterfly pea cake and you will never go wrong.
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❤️Why you will love this recipe
- It requires only 3 simple ingredients i.e cream cheese, powdered sugar and shortening.
- Unlike the classic cream cheese frosting which contains butter, there is no butter in this homemade frosting making it a lot more stable in warm climates.
- This delicious frosting is not only suitable for frosting, it is perfect for piping too.
- What is more, it crusts so perfectly and works well in warm temperatures too!
- You can flavor it to different flavors too!
- It pairs really well with banana cupcakes, spice cake, cinnamon rolls, sugar cookies, carrot cake cupcakes, pumpkin cake, salted caramel pumpkin cupcakes, chocolate pumpkin cupcakes and many other treats.
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📋Ingredients
- Powdered sugar (icing sugar or confectioners' sugar) - sift first before using as powdered sugar tends to be lumpy.
- Full fat cream cheese (firm) - use the cream cheese sold in blocks. Spreadable cheeses will not work for this recipe as it is too soft.
- Shortening - this is to replace the butter and helps to stabilize the cream cheese.
- Pure vanilla extract - adds a lovely flavor and aroma to the frosting.
*Refer to the recipe card below for full list of ingredients and exact quantities. For best results, use a digital kitchen scale where applicable*
🧾Substitution and variations
- Replace the vanilla extract with almond extract for almond cream cheese frosting.
- To make chocolate cream cheese frosting, sift in one tablespoon of cocoa powder into the frosting at the end and mix well.
- To make lemon cream cheese frosting, add one teaspoon of grated lemon rind and one teaspoon of lemon juice to the cream cheese after creaming it.
- To make strawberry cream cheese frosting, replace the vanilla extract with strawberry extract. Tint with a few drops of pink food coloring.
This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you do try, please let me know in the comments section below!
👩🏻🍳How to make
- Sift powdered sugar to break all lumps. Set aside.
- In a separate mixing bowl, beat the softened cream cheese and shortening until well combined and creamy with an electric mixer (stand mixer or hand mixer).
- Add the sugar and mix into the cream cheese and shortening mixture with a spoon. Once the sugar is well moistened with the cream cheese mixture, continue to cream the frosting with an electric mixer on low speed first and then medium high speed until it becomes creamy and fluffy. Scrape the sides of the bowl.
- Add the vanilla extract and continue beating until it is well incorporated and the frosting is all light and fluffy.
- Color the icing as you wish. Fill and cover your cake as you like. To make piped decorations, transfer the icing into a piping bag fitted with your preferred piping tip and use as desired.
🍽️Serving & storage
- The cream cheese frosting should not be left at room temperature for more than 3 hours. Leftover cream cheese frosting is best kept refrigerated in an airtight container.
- I would not recommend keeping this homemade cream cheese icing in the fridge for more than 3 days.
💡Expert tips
- Powdered sugar is often lumpy. It needs to be sifted to break the lumps before using it for any type of frosting. The sugar lumps, though very tiny, are difficult to break even with high speed mixing. And they can cause unsightly lumps in your otherwise smooth frosting.
- These sugar lumps can obstruct the holes in your piping tips especially those with small holes. Similarly the cocoa powder when making chocolate flavored frosting.
- When adding the powdered sugar into the creamed cheese, beating on high speed will result in the sugar flying all over. Best way is to mix it in lightly with a spatula on use a very low speed until the sugar is fairly mixed into the cream cheese before using the mixer or increasing its speed.
💭FAQs
The only type of cream cheese you should be using to make the cream cheese frosting is the brick-style cream cheese.
Never use the spreadable cream cheese or low-fat cream cheese. They are too soft and will result in runny frosting.
For best results (i.e. creamy consistency), use full-fat cream cheese.
This icing is stiff enough for piping so you really do not need to make it any stiffer.
But if you still wish to make a thicker frosting, you can add a little more powdered sugar until you achieve the desired consistency. Add the sugar in small increments and mix well after each addition.
To make thinner frosting, you can add some heavy cream (heavy whipping cream). The cream can be added in liquid form and need not be whipped cream.
Another option is to use less sugar, but with this option, the taste of the icing will be impacted, depending on how much you reduce.
Yes, since cream cheese requires refrigeration, any cakes that are filled, frosted or decorated with cream cheese frosting should not be left out at room temperature for more than 3 to 4 hours.
The cakes and cupcakes are best kept refrigerated. You can leave them out at room temperature for 3 to 4 hours before serving.
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📖Recipe
Cream Cheese Frosting without Butter
For best results, use the metrics measurements. US customary measurements have not been tested and are only meant for guide.
Ingredients
- 300 g powdered sugar sifted
- 90 g cream cheese firm
- 30 g shortening
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Sift the powdered sugar to break all lumps. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, beat cream cheese and shortening until well combined and creamy.
- Add the sugar and mix with a spoon until the sugar is well moistened. Continue to cream the frosting on medium high speed until light and fluffy. Scrape the sides of the bowl.
- Add vanilla extract and continue beating until the icing becomes light and fluffy.
- Color if you wish and use as desired.
Notes
-
- To make almond flavored frosting, replace the vanilla extract with almond extract.
- To make chocolate cream cheese frosting, sift in one tablespoon of cocoa powder into the frosting at the end and mix well.
- To make lemon cream cheese frosting, add one teaspoon of grated lemon rind and one teaspoon of lemon juice to the cream cheese after creaming it.
- Powdered sugar is often lumpy. It needs to be sifted to break the lumps before using it for any type of frosting. The sugar lumps, though very tiny, are difficult to break even with high speed mixing. And they can cause unsightly lumps in your otherwise smooth frosting.
- These sugar lumps can obstruct the holes in your piping tips especially those with small holes. Similarly the cocoa powder when making chocolate flavored frosting.
- When adding the powdered sugar into the creamed cheese, beating on high speed will result in the sugar flying all over. Best way is to mix it in lightly with a spatula on use a very low speed until the sugar is fairly mixed into the cream cheese before using the mixer or increasing its speed.
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