Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting is the ultimate decadent frosting. With the tanginess of the cream cheese and the nutty flavor from the brown butter, it's a match made in heaven and will elevate any dessert.
Cream cheese frosting is always a winner in my book, but now it's EVEN better by using delicious brown butter instead of regular butter. The flavor of this is complicated and sophisticated, and irresistibly tasty - it will take your desserts to the next level.
I first made it as a frosting for my Chai Cake, as I wanted something that would compliment the warm spices. It also pairs wonderfully with my Banana Cupcakes and is the best frosting to use with any fall baking recipes.
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Why You'll Love This Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe
- An easy way to add an extra layer of interest to desserts
- Unbelievably delicious flavor from the brown butter
- It has pretty little specks in the frosting from the browned bits
Ingredients for Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
This brown butter cream cheese frosting recipe has very simple ingredients. It's the same basic ingredients used in traditional cream cheese frosting recipes, but we will just brown the butter first as one extra step.
- Butter - Salted or unsalted butter. If using unsalted, add a pinch of salt.
- Cream Cheese - Use full-fat cream cheese, not the spreadable kind.
- Powdered Sugar - Also known as confectioners' sugar or icing sugar. You can adjust the amount you use according to personal preference.
- Vanilla - Vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste is a vital ingredient in cream cheese frosting - it adds a lot of flavor and balances out the tanginess.
See the recipe card for quantities and the full recipe.
Recommended Equipment
- Stand Mixer - I used a paddle attachment, but you could also use your whisk attachment. It's also fine to use a large bowl and electric mixer, or you could even just use a large mixing bowl and a wooden spoon.
- Saucepan - You'll need a small saucepan to brown the butter in.
- Sieve - It's important to sift the powdered sugar to remove any lumps.
How To Make Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
The process for making brown butter cream cheese frosting is the same as for regular cream cheese frosting, except we will brown the butter first and let it cool so we can cream it.
It's a little bit of extra time and effort that goes a long way in creating an outstanding, delicious dessert.
Making Brown Butter
Making brown butter is super easy and the cooking process takes just a few minutes. For more detailed information, check out my post on how to make brown butter.
Heat Butter
Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
As the butter melts, it will start to bubble up and make a 'crackling' sound. Keep cooking, stirring occasionally.
Watch Closely
Once the crackling subsides, the butter will start to brown quite quickly so keep an eye on it. You'll know it's ready once it is a deep amber color and you can smell that lovely nutty aroma.
See my 'how to brown butter' post for more details on how to know when it's done.
Cool
Transfer the browned butter to a heatproof bowl immediately. Make sure you scoop up all of the little brown bits from the bottom of the pan - these are the milk solids that add all that wonderful flavor - so that's the good stuff!
While it's cooling, remove your cream cheese from the fridge so it can also come to room temperature.
Make the Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
The process for browned butter cream cheese icing is the same as regular cream cheese frosting, but with just one extra step first - browning the butter!
Cream Butter and Cream Cheese
Once the cream cheese and browned butter are both at room temperature, beat them together in the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment fitted, until combined.
Add Powdered Sugar
Sift the powdered sugar into the bowl to remove any lumps, then mix it in on low speed.
Depending on what kind of cream cheese you are using, and what consistency you need the frosting to be, you may need to add more powdered sugar to make it stable enough.
Add Vanilla
Add the vanilla and a pinch of salt if needed, then turn the mixer up to medium-high speed and beat for 1-2 minutes until the brown butter frosting is creamy and smooth.
How to Use Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
There are so many ways you can use this wonderful brown butter frosting!
- Filling for Layer Cake - This makes a great filling in between cake layers. Try my Chai Spice Cake recipe, or my Pumpkin Cake recipe.
- Banana Bread - The flavor of brown butter and cream cheese also goes really well with banana cake. Try my Brown Butter Banana Bread.
- Frosting for Cupcakes - As long as the frosting is stiff enough, it will pipe nicely onto cupcakes. It would be delicious on vanilla cupcakes, or try something like my banana cupcakes.
- Sheet Cake - Spread this brown butter frosting on top of a sheet cake. Something like a moist carrot cake would be lovely.
- Cinnamon Roll Icing - If you add a little less powdered sugar, this would make a delicious brown butter icing to add to the top of homemade cinnamon rolls.
Pairing
These are some dessert recipes that go really well with brown butter cream cheese frosting:
Tip for Frosting
If the brown butter cream cheese frosting is too loose to frost your cakes with, try putting it in the fridge for 30 minutes to set up a little, the butter will solidify and make it easier to work with.
Storing Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
Store your brown butter cream cheese frosting in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
If making it in advance, let it sit out to warm up a little for best results, and give it a little fluff with the mixer before using it to bring back the texture.
More Frosting Recipes
Recipe
Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 sticks Unsalted Butter 227g
- 12 oz Cream Cheese 340g
- 5 cups Powdered Sugar 600g* see notes
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1 pinch Salt (if using unsalted butter)
Equipment
- Sieve
Instructions
- Brown the butter according to the instructions in my 'How to Make Brown Butter' post.2 sticks (227 g) Unsalted Butter
- Let the brown butter cool to room temperature. Meanwhile, remove your cream cheese from the fridge so it can come to room temperature too.
- Once the brown butter and cream cheese are both at room temperature, beat them together until smooth.12 oz (340 g) Cream Cheese
- Sift in the powdered sugar and mix in slowly. You may need more powdered sugar depending on your cream cheese - see notes.5 cups (600 g) Powdered Sugar
- Add the vanilla, and a pinch of salt if using unsalted butter, and beat at medium-high speed for 1-2 minutes or until creamy.1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract, 1 pinch Salt
Chris Radwanski
I know this is a frosting, but I could eat this on toast, its that good!