Cream cheese frosting is the ideal topping for a range of bakes, including carrot cake, cupcakes, and cinnamon buns, but how do you make sure yours is light and fluffy and tastes great?
What is frosting?
Frosting is essentially icing, which is a term used for both the covering on top of a cake and the action of covering it Icing is usually called frosting in recipes from the US, but cream cheese frosting and cream cheese icing are basically the same thing – a mix of cream cheese, icing sugar, and butter. Frosting is usually thicker than icing, which makes it perfect for piping or spreading on cakes, whereas icing is poured or piped over bakes such as biscuits.
What makes the best cream cheese frosting?
In addition to the three ingredients listed above, there are other things you can add to frosting to make it the perfect balance of tangy and sweet. These include vanilla extract, which you can add depending on how much sweetness you like.
An afternoon tea box delivery is a good way to sample frosted cakes and obtain ideas on how to present them. If you like the idea of an afternoon tea box delivery, you will find it offers a wide variety of both sweet and savoury delights.
Start with full-fat cream cheese for maximum flavour; let’s face it, you shouldn’t have to worry about a low-fat version when eating cake! The cream cheese should be taken out of the fridge a little while before to ensure it is at a fairly cool room temperature. Your butter, which should be unsalted, should also be at a similar temperature to make it easy to beat. Finally, when it comes to the icing sugar, you should always sift it through a sieve to ensure there are no lumps.
The texture should be super-smooth and creamy, which can be achieved through the right amount of whipping. The idea is to pipe or spread just the right amount onto a bake to make it extra-indulgent without being too sickly.