Cream Cheese Frosting Without Butter is a perfect icing option for cakes, cupcakes, or cinnamon rolls. It's light, fluffy, and holds its shape well. Best of all you need 5 pantry staple ingredients and less than 10 minutes to make it.
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- Why This Recipe Works
- What You Need To Make Cream Cheese Frosting Without Butter
- How To Make This No Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
- Frosting Flavor Ideas
- Expert Tips
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Try This No Butter Cream Cheese Frosting On These Recipes!
- Did you make this recipe?
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This no butter cream cheese frosting was NOT an easy recipe to get right. It took many failed attempts to get a perfectly fluffy and light frosting that wasn't runny.
The secret ingredient in this recipe is actually cream of tartar. It stabilizes the whipped cream and keeps it firm, while blending smoothly with the cream cheese and creating a silky frosting.
You can use this cream cheese frosting without butter on cinnamon rolls, chocolate cake, cupcakes, or it's even yummy as a dip for salty snacks or fruit.
Why This Recipe Works
- There's no butter, so the tangy cream cheese flavor is unmistakable
- It's made with 5 easily accessible ingredients
- This frosting recipe takes 10 minutes to whip up
- You can make it with a hand mixer, so there's no need for a bulky stand mixer
- This works on cinnamon rolls, chocolate cake, cupcakes, or even as a sweet dip for fruit or pretzels
What You Need To Make Cream Cheese Frosting Without Butter
Kitchen Tools:
- Hand mixer
- Mixing bowl
- Measuring cups and spoons
Ingredients:
- Cream cheese: I don't suggest using a low-fat variety, full fat cream cheese is always best for frosting.
- Heavy whipping cream: This replaces the butter and cannot be substituted. It's also important to keep the heavy cream COLD.
- Powdered sugar: The powdered sugar helps make the frosting stiff as well as sweetening it. This cream cheese frosting will only work with powdered sugar because granulated sugar is too grainy and won't give you a smooth frosting.
- Vanilla extract: The vanilla extract adds a note of warmth and pairs well with the tang from the cream cheese
- Cream of tartar: This is really important because it helps to stabilize the whipped cream so the frosting stays thick
How To Make This No Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a large mixing bowl, pour in the cold whipping cream and add the cream of tartar, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract (if using)
- Beat on high until stiff peaks form, then set aside in the fridge until needed
- In another large mixing bowl, whip the softened cream cheese until smooth, airy, and creamy
- Take the whipped cream out of the fridge and gently fold it into the whipped cream cheese until JUST incorporated
- Use the cream cheese frosting immediately or store in the fridge until needed
Frosting Flavor Ideas
You can keep this no butter frosting plain, which is good for cinnamon rolls or chocolate cake, but you can also add different flavors to switch things up if you'd like. Here's a few flavor variations:
- Peanut butter: Sift ¼ cup of peanut butter power into the powdered sugar
- Strawberry: Grind freeze dried strawberries into a powder and sift in with the powdered sugar
- Raspberry: Follow the same directions as the strawberry, but with freeze dried raspberries
- Chocolate: Sift 2-3 tablespoons of cocoa powder into the powdered sugar then add to the frosting
Expert Tips
- Don't let the cream cheese get too warm, it only needs to sit out for 15-20 minutes
- Keep the heavy cream COLD
- Sift the powdered sugar for a smooth frosting
- Don't overmix the cream cheese frosting without butter or else it will get runny
- Pop the mixing bowl into the fridge for 10 minutes to help the frosting become stiff
- Use on your favorite cinnamon roll recipe, on chocolate cake, or even serve as a dip for pretzels
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week
Frequently Asked Questions
I always recommend using Philadelphia brand. It's made with simple ingredients, has a nice, tangy flavor, and always makes delicious desserts.
Your frosting can turn runny for 3 reasons:
1. You use a low quality cream cheese that has a higher water content. This is why I always recommend using Philadelphia because they have the lowest water content.
2. The cream cheese was too warm. Since this frosting recipe doesn't use butter it's important to use cream cheese that isn't too warm. I only let mine sit out for 15-20 minutes before using it.
3. Overmixing is another reason your frosting can turn runny. You should stop mixing as soon as all ingredients are just combined.
For cream cheese frosting I like to substitute the butter with whipped cream. It makes it light, fluffy, and stiffens the frosting up while still keeping the tangy cream cheese flavor.
Some recipes that I've seen do use mascarpone instead of butter, but I find it finnicky to work with.
You can stick it into the fridge for 20 minutes before spreading it onto whatever dessert you're intending to use it for.
You can make a glaze without butter by mixing milk and powdered sugar together, but milk will not substitute butter in a frosting recipe.
Try This No Butter Cream Cheese Frosting On These Recipes!
Did you make this recipe?
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PrintCream Cheese Frosting Without Butter
Cream Cheese Frosting Without Butter is a perfect icing option for cakes, cupcakes, or cinnamon rolls. It's light, fluffy, and holds its shape well. Best of all you need 5 pantry staple ingredients and less than 10 minutes to make it.
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 12 Servings 1x
- Category: Frosting
- Method: Mixing
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 8 ounces full fat cream cheese- softened
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, pour in the cold whipping cream and add powdered sugar, cream of tartar, vanilla (if using), and salt
- Beat on high until stiff peaks form, then set aside in the fridge until needed
- In another large mixing bowl, whip the softened cream cheese until light, smooth, and airy
- Take the whipped cream out of the fridge and gently fold it into the cream cheese until JUST incorporated
- Use the cream cheese frosting immediately or store in the fridge until needed
Notes
- Don't let the cream cheese get too warm, it only needs to sit out for 15-20 minutes
- Keep the heavy cream COLD
- Sift the powdered sugar for a smooth frosting
- Don't overmix the cream cheese frosting without butter or else it will get runny
- Pop the mixing bowl into the fridge for 10 minutes to help the frosting become stiff
- Use on your favorite cinnamon roll recipe, on chocolate cake, or even serve as a dip for pretzels
- Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 1 week
Keywords: no butter cream cheese frosting, how to make cream cheese frosting without butter
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