Alternate title: fluffy silky cloud dream frosting. This simple concoction has been hiding over on a post about stabilized whipped cream, since it plays on a simple stabilization method, but it is often my go-to when needing a light whippy frosting, or a topping for all kinds of desserts. This magical not-too-sweet mix only requires 3 main ingredients (plus some vanilla and a pinch of salt)and it produces a topping that is light like whipped cream, stable like frosting, and creamy like cool whip. It’s essentially 1 package of cream cheese and 1 pint of cream. What it is not is cream cheese frosting. Don’t let that ingredient fool you. If I didn’t mention it had cream cheese in it, you may not even guess by tasting it. The finished product is more like whipped cream than it is cream cheese. It pipes like a dream, making it perfect to adorn cakes or cupcakes (it’s what I used to top my funfetti cake in this recipe, and I even use it as the cake filling as well) but it also works great dollop on things like cheesecake and strawberry shortcake, like you would use a whipped cream. The cream cheese stabilizes the cream, so it will last and hold up longer than just plain whipped cream. Try it once and I guarantee you will be thinking of all kinds of things to put it on!
Ingredients Needed
- Cream Cheese – I prefer to use full fat cream cheese in recipes like this, but reduced fat should also work. I would however avoid fat free cream cheese.
- Heavy Whipping Cream – it’s important that you grab cream labeled “heavy” because the higher fat percentage is going to help stabilize the finished mixture.
- Powdered Sugar
- Vanilla – feel free to add other flavorings, my favorite is the addition of almond extracts, which I almost always add when I frost white or yellow cakes!
- Salt – just a pinch
- Stand Mixer – you can also use a hand mixer, but if you own a stand mixer, definitely pull it out for this one!
How to make Whipped Frosting
- Start by using a whisk attachment (as opposed to the paddle) on your stand mixer to beat cream cheese until smooth and creamy.
- Add powdered sugar, vanilla and a pinch of salt and beat to combine.
- Scrape down edges and make sure it’s smooth.
- With mixer running, start drizzling in cream. If you add it all at once too fast, you run the risk of lumps so steady is best.
- Continue beating until it’s smooth and fluffy, with stiff peaks. It only takes a few minutes!
Storage and Other Tips
- This light and airy whipped frosting can be used to spread on cakes, cupcakes, cheesecakes, and more, and it pipes beautifully.
- You can also use it as you would a whipped cream and dollop on things like strawberry shortcake.
- If decorating a cake ahead of time, spread or pipe onto cake and then store cake in the fridge. this is great straight from the fridge, or set at room temp for about 20 minutes first, to come to temperature.
Frequently Asked Questions
I’ve tested freezing this, and while it still tastes amazing and works well for dolloping, it doesn’t work as well for piping or cake frosting because you simply lose some air after freezing and thawing. For those uses, I’d make it fresh. However if you wanted to for example, freeze leftover cake or a fully made cheesecake with this topping already piped on top, that works great.
Similar to freezing, you can store this in the fridge to use later, but I wouldn’t intentionally prep it ahead unless absolutely necessary. If you have to pipe or spread it after a day or more in the fridge, it still tastes amazing and will work, but you will lose a bit of volume and structure. It would work well for daloping but not as much for something more structured like a cake or cupcakes. On the flip side– if you fully decorate a cake or cupcakes with it, those can go in the fridge ahead of time and it works beautifully because you’re not re-whipping or re-spreading after fridge storage.
Yes, you can definitely add any flavor extracts, or flavoring oils that you like.
Yes. Feel free to add a few drops of liquid food coloring. If you’d like to reach a thicker, darker color, I recommend gel color as to not add too much liquid.
Because there is a whole pint of cream here, it really mellows out the flavor of the cream cheese. I think the tanginess of the cream cheese off-sets everything nicely. There’s a mild cream cheese flavor, but a lot of people might not even realize it’s in there. If you’re really worried, you can follow the recipe as written, and just decrease the amount of cream cheese by 2oz or more. It won’t be quite as thick, but will still be delicious.
Light and Airy Whipped Frosting
Equipment
- 1 Stand Mixer If you have one, use it!
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Start by using a whisk attachment (as opposed to the paddle) on your stand mixer to beat cream cheese until smooth and creamy.
- Add powdered sugar, vanilla and a pinch of salt and beat to combine until smooth. Scrape down edges and make sure it's smooth.
- With mixer running, start drizzling in cream. If you add it all at once too fast, you run the risk of lumps so steady is best. Continue beating for several minutes until it's smooth and fluffy, with stiff peaks.
Notes
- If decorating a cake ahead of time, spread or pipe onto cake and then store cake in the fridge. this is great straight from the fridge, or set at room temp for about 20 minutes first, to come to temperature.
Questions & Reviews
How much almond extract would you use?
DS
I love almond so I do about a teaspoon. But you can start light and add more to taste!
I made it for a cake filling but it didn’t set like yours, it was just as light as the regular whipped cream, unfortunately. I feel like cream cheese didn’t make a difference, it was delicious though!
Can I add cocoa for a chocolate whipped cream?
You should be able to!
Hi there! I can’t rate recipe as I haven’t made it yet, but I’m wondering if its stable enough for a layered strawberry shortcake. If I make the cake the day before and store in fridge, could I cut it without it squishing everywhere?
If it’s stored in the fridge, then yes. You can see me use it as a filling in a layer cake here!
This turned out really runny for me, but I absolutely loved the flavor. My kitchen stays on the warmer side. What can I do to fix it?
If your kitchen is warm, that can definitely affect whipped cream. Make sure all of your ingredients are chilled, You might chill your mixing bowl as well! And continue beating it. It will be soft at first, but if it stays soft, chance are you didn’t beat it long enough at high speed.
Hi there! Can you freeze this? Thinking of using it on cupcakes and making ahead!
Thanks so much!
Since it’s mostly whipped cream, it will loose some air and fluffiness after freezing. I would probably not make it ahead and then pipe after. If you wanted to freeze some frosted cupcakes just to enjoy later it would be fine. But I’d for sure make it fresh if it’s for something!
I’m looking for a recipe for a tiered cake for my parents’ anniversary. I’ll have to make the cake ahead of time, store in the fridge and then take it to the event space, where it will sit out in room temperature for a few hours before it’s time to cut. Will the icing be ok? Can I use this for a good crumb coat? Thank you so much!
I can’t make any promises. It’s essentially just stabilized whipped cream, so there is a delicate nature involved. If there’s lots of transporting (ESPECIALLY if it’s warm out) and sitting out, it might not be the best choice. You could to a small test round to see!
I followed this to a tee and it went lumpy and split 😭
Hey Hannah! Some troubleshooting if you had lumps: Make sure to whip your cream cheese first until completely smooth. Then drizzle in your cream slowly, allowing it to fully incorporate as it whips. Things would only get lumpy if your cream cheese wasn’t smooth to begin with, or you added the cream too fast. I hope you can try again with better results!
Can I make this ahead 1-3 hours before using it on the cake store in the fridge?
You can, but making as close to serving using is best since it will lose some air the longer it sits. if it works with your schedule, piping onto the cake immediately and then storing the cake in the fridge till serving works great!
Could you just use the whipped cream cheese?
I’ve never tried it with whipped so I can’t confirm how it would turn out.
Has anyone that lives in the UK tried making this? The only cream cheese we have here is like philadelphia spreadable cream cheese and I’m not sure that will work…