And it only takes 15 minutes to make.

Published on October 25, 2025

Credit:

Jake Sternquist / Food Styling: Shannon Goforth

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This deliciously easy cream cheese frosting comes together in minutes and will add that signature sweet, tangy flavor to your favorite carrot cake recipe, pumpkin bread, or brownies. Feel free to whip up the homemade frosting a few days in advance so it's ready to go.

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Ingredients

  • 8 oz. softened cream cheese

  • 1/2 cup softened butter

  • 2 tsp. vanilla

  • 5 1/2 to 6 cups powdered sugar

Directions

  1. In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, butter, and vanilla with a mixer on medium until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in powdered sugar to reach spreading consistency. Makes about 3 1/2 cups.

    Make-Ahead Tip: Prep and store in an airtight container up to 3 days. When ready to use, let frosting stand at room temperature until soft and spreadable.

How Much Frosting Do I Need?

One recipe yields about 3 1/2 cups, which is enough to frost the tops and sides of two 8- to 9-inch cake layers. If you're making a 9x13-inch cake, halve the recipe.

How to Make Cocoa Cream Cheese Frosting

Prepare as directed, except beat 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder into the cream cheese mixture and reduce powdered sugar to 5 to 5 1/2 cups.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)

175 Calories
7g Fat
28g Carbs
1g Protein
Nutrition Facts
Servings Per Recipe 24
Calories 175
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 7.1g 9%
Saturated Fat 4.3g 22%
Cholesterol 19.7mg 7%
Sodium 60.7mg 3%
Total Carbohydrate 28g 10%
Dietary Fiber 0g 0%
Total Sugars 27.3g
Protein 0.6g 1%
Vitamin D 0mcg 0%
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 10.6mg 1%
Iron 0mg 0%
Potassium 14.7mg 0%
Fatty acids, total trans 0.2g
Vitamin D 0IU
Alanine 0g
Arginine 0g
Ash 0.2g
Aspartic acid 0.1g
Caffeine 0mg
Carotene, alpha 0.1mcg
Choline, total 3.5mg
Copper, Cu 0mg
Cystine 0g
Energy 732kJ
Fluoride, F 0.1mcg
Folate, total 1mcg
Glutamic acid 0.1g
Glycine 0g
Histidine 0g
Isoleucine 0g
Leucine 0.1g
Lysine 0.1g
Methionine 0g
Magnesium, Mg 1mg
Manganese, Mn 0mg
Niacin 0mg
Phosphorus, P 11.3mg
Pantothenic acid 0.1mg
Phenylalanine 0g
Proline 0.1g
Retinol 60.4mcg
Selenium, Se 1mcg
Serine 0g
Starch 0.4g
Theobromine 0mg
Threonine 0g
Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) 0.2mg
Tryptophan 0g
Tyrosine 0g
Valine 0g
Vitamin A, IU 223.2IU
Vitamin A, RAE 61.5mcg
Vitamin B-12 0mcg
Vitamin B-6 0mg
Vitamin K (phylloquinone) 0.5mcg
Water 6g
Zinc, Zn 0.1mg

*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.