For any icing, including cream cheese, add a tiny squeeze of lemon, then taste. It really makes it better and balances the sweetness. Continue to add, by tiny squeezes, tasting all the way, until it reaches perfection. This is the difference between grocery store plain old sweet icing, and over-the-top, ridiculous delicious icing.
I like to add some sour cream to a standard cream cheese frosting recipe to amp up the tang a bit. For the recipe sdebrango posted I'd probably decrease the butter by 2 or 3 T and add 2-3 T of sour cream instead.
I use this recipe from Nick Malgieri:
12 ounces softened cream cheese
12 ounces (1 1/2 sticks softened butter
1 tbs vanilla extract
6 cups powdered sugar
Cream the cream cheese and butter, add the vanilla extract and the confectioners sugar a cup at a time with mixer on low until you reach the desired consistency.
I have never added the full 6 cups of powdered sugar I usually stop at 4 1/2 cups 5 cups at the most so its not so sweet.
This is such a simple recipe and so good.
Personally I'm a fan of this cream cheese whipped cream--a lighter, fluffier topping with all the benefits of cream cheese frosting AND whipped cream! http://college.biggirlssmallkitchen.com/2011/06/cream-cheese-whipped-cream.html
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12 ounces softened cream cheese
12 ounces (1 1/2 sticks softened butter
1 tbs vanilla extract
6 cups powdered sugar
Cream the cream cheese and butter, add the vanilla extract and the confectioners sugar a cup at a time with mixer on low until you reach the desired consistency.
I have never added the full 6 cups of powdered sugar I usually stop at 4 1/2 cups 5 cups at the most so its not so sweet.
This is such a simple recipe and so good.