Basic Cream Cheese Frosting

I’m pretty sure that cream cheese frosting will always be my favorite type of frosting. I’d take it over buttercream any day. Frosting is rather simple, and this here is the recipe I always use. My favorite thing about it is that it’s flexible, and you can alter it in a myriad of ways—by using a special flavor of cream cheese, tossing in some cocoa powder, subbing in a different type of extract, you get the picture. It’s really hard to mess up this recipe, I promise!

Basic Cream Cheese Frosting

Makes enough for 12 cupcakes or for half of a standard double-layer 9″ round cake.

Ingredients

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp
4–8 oz. neufchâtel or cream cheese
2–3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
a pinch of salt (optional)

Method

Cream together the butter and cream cheese.

Gradually beat in the powdered sugar. The more you add, the stiffer your frosting will be.

Beat your frosting for a few minutes. The more air you incorporate, the better!

Finish by incorporating the vanilla and salt.

Apply frosting to completely cooled cupcakes or cake.

Note: A cake with this frosting should be refrigerated since the frosting contains cream cheese.

Another note: You may have some frosting left over. Freeze it in a plastic baggy, and the next time you need to frost something you can just let it thaw, snip off the corner of the bag, and frost to your heart’s content.