Strawberry cream cheese frosting is a perfect summer frosting. It's light and refreshing. I don't like my strawberries with too much added sugar so I use fresh strawberries rather than a strawberry syrup in the frosting. Groom 1.0 said that the strawberry cream cheese frosting tasted a bit like strawberry yogurt.
Why Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting?
The strawberry cream cheese frosting was planned because I knew I was going to have lots of strawberries. I was going strawberry picking. Not only was I going strawberry picking, but I was going at 8 AM on a Saturday! I was told that this year has been a bad year for the strawberries and we had to get up early or they would be all sold out.
My friend over at Life in Webster arrived to pick me up and greeted me with the bad news. She had called on the way over and found out that at 7:30 AM, the strawberry farm already had too many strawberry pickers and they would take no more. I had no idea strawberries were in such hot demand!
Luckily for us, there were fresh strawberries to be had at the farmer's market. I could still make my strawberry cream cheese frosting.
The Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe
Update 6/29/11: Be sure to read through the comments before making this recipe. You'll see that some people LOVE it and others found it to be way too "soupy". To help make the frosting less liquidy, drain off the excess liquid after mashing your strawberries and chill the frosting a bit before trying to pipe it.
- 1/4 C butter (room temperature)
- 1 8 oz package cream cheese (room temperature)
- 1/2 C strawberries, mashed up in a food processor
- 3 to 4 C powdered sugar
- Cream butter and cream cheese.
- Mix in the strawberries.
- Add the powdered sugar to the taste and consistency you prefer.
- Add to your favorite cupcakes! (I used it on my multigrain cupcakes with strawberries)
funny you should be discussing this very topic today. I just inhaled a strawberry cupcake from Veruca...vanilla cake with strawberry quick icing....lord almighty...it was heaven.
ReplyDeleteif i find a free moment soon...I'll steal your recipe and use up those frozen berries I have. One can only eat so many pints of fresh berries...i had to freeze a couple for recipes like this!!
love it -- i used fresh blueberries in my cake frosting for a dish this weekend -- great minds think alike! so delicious, and the color can't be beat!
ReplyDeleteCan't wait for your next cupcake-sounds good! :)
ReplyDeleteCheese - I had a ton of extra strawberries that were about to go bad. After reading your comment I went and threw them in the freezer. Duh. Why didn't I think of that sooner. If I ever bought cupcakes, I would so be there at Veruca. His stuff is amazing!
ReplyDeleteKaty - Fun! That sounds great!
Ivy - It's a comin!
I was just thinking about this and cherry cream cheese frosting. It's like you're reading my mind!
ReplyDeleteQuestion: I just made my own version of strawberry cream cheese frosting last night-- weird- then I ran into this article. I use about 2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar, so it is not very stiff. It is runny enough to cover the whole cupcake like a thick ganache. How is yours? I love the flavor of the strawberries but I am concerned if I add more sugar it will taste too sugary and steal the berry flavor. What are your thoughts? Can't wai until I see your pics.
ReplyDeleteGigi - I won't tell anyone what you are thinking about right now. It will be our secret.
ReplyDeleteCouture - I guess it depends on what you are looking for. I'm sure making it more ganache-like would be awesome! How much strawberry did you use? I didn't think mine was too sweet and I'm pretty picky about that. However, I'm sure yours had a much stronger strawberry flavor.
I loooove cream cheese frosting - adding strawberries would only make me love it more.
ReplyDeleteIs it 1/2 cups of strawberries before or after being processed?
ReplyDeleteR - Sorry for the confusion in the recipe. It's a 1/2 C after being processed.
ReplyDeleteOn the strawberries, do you drain the excess juices off, or include that in the 1/2 c?
ReplyDeleteI do not drain off the extra juice, but I also don't process it so much that it gets super juicy.
ReplyDeletehello!
ReplyDeletei was just wondering how much frosting this makes. thanks! it sounds yummy [and healthier than most recipes] so far!
Jessica - This will easily frost 12 cupcakes. It could frost 24 if you use it sparingly.
ReplyDeletehello, i was wondering if you used a whip attachment when making this frosting? i've tried to make 2 different strawberry buttercream frosting this week, with a hand mixer, and they both curdled. a friend told me that i had to use a whip attachment and add the strawberries in slowly for it not to curdle, however i do not have a whip attachment. was this an issue for you? what are your suggestions? thanks!!
ReplyDeleteMolly - I did not use the whip attachment and it did not curdle. Was everything at room temperature? That is really important.
ReplyDeleteit was 2 strawberry buttercream recipes i tried that both curdled. but i just tried your cream cheese recipe, and it turned out great! thanks!!
ReplyDeleteThis was awesome. I was making brownie cupcakes for a baby shower and wanted a pink frosting for them - this fit the bill perfectly. Obviously the color worked for the soon-to-be mother of a little girl but they also looked great and the taste complimented the richness of the chocolate wonderfully. Used about a cup of stawberries (I didn't mean to but that's what I ended up with), 3 cups of sugar, and butter - once it was chilled it was much easier to work with.
ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteI tried making your strawberry cream cheese frosting last night and it was too soupy. I minuted I tried piping it on the cupcakes, it ran down the sides like a soupy ganache. It tasted great but did not hold up. What could I or did I do wrong? Thank you.
Jackie
We made this receipe last night and had trouble with the consistancy. The flavor was excellent but frosting was too thin, even with 4 c. sugar and being kept in the fridge all night. Is there something else we can do to thicken it up? Cathy
ReplyDeleteFor those of you that are having trouble with it being too thin and soupy, perhaps you could try using slightly bigger chunks of strawberries. I'm wondering if you are processing the strawberries too much and ending up adding too much liquid to the frosting.
ReplyDeleteNote to self: read the comments BEFORE starting your recipes. I succumbed to the over zealous processing of the strawberries, and it very loose. I treated it as a ganache and spun a vanilla almond dozen cupcakes to bring into work tomorrow. I'll be curious to see the texture of the frosting tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteI'm h*llbent on making this frosting - so batch number two commences tomorrow!
Erin - Good luck with round two! If you are still having problems, another options is to use strawberry jam instead of the fresh strawberries.
ReplyDeleteThis is my favorite frosting!!! It was soupy but it stayed on the cake. I'm not sure if this helped, but I first cooled the icing, the spread a thin layer on the cake. I cooled the cake until the icing wouldn't go anywhere. Then I added another layer of frosting, and repeated the process until it looked good. It was delicious with this ah-mazing vanilla cake. So moist (the icing may have something to do with that) and just tasty! We had alot of icing left over but I'm not complaining about that :)
ReplyDeleteDELICIOUS! I want some right now!!!!
ReplyDeleteHello? I don't know if you're still reading these, but it seems this comes out pink? Can you think of a good way to make it turn out white so I can color it, or suggest another good strawberry frosting that turns out white?
ReplyDeleteSeriously??
DeleteHAHAHAHAHAH!!!
DeleteOmg. I hope she just ignores that comment.
Anon - Any strawberry frosting with real strawberries is going to come out pink. If you want something white, you would need to purchase a strawberry extract.
ReplyDeleteAh, okay. I figured as much. Thanks anyways.
ReplyDeleteI REALLY wish I hadn't tried this recipe without reading the whole way down to the bottom of the comments to the people who actually made it! It was soupy. Went through 2 lbs of powdered sugar and it STILL wasn't stiff enough to put on cupcakes. Should have run the strawberries through my Omega juicer to just get the juice, then added a few tablespoons. Very frustrating with a waste of time, money and resources. Sorry.
ReplyDeleteI had everything at room temperature and drained the processed strawberries and it curdled.
ReplyDeleteI made this frosting and I loved it!!! It's very good, although it turned green. I used to decorate a chocolate cake, and after 5 hourse I noticed that some areas of the frosting turned turned greenish, I would llike to know why..is that the natural strawberries oxide? or what caused that greenish color to the frosting? I'd love to have an answer if there is one....
ReplyDeleteActually, I have Watkins Strawberry Extract and it's still pink and will tinge the frosting a light pink. The flavor though good, is just not the same as real strawberries. Can't really duplicate that great flavor!
ReplyDeleteHi, is my first time doing my own frosting so I waas wondering if there are any specific technic in pouring the powdered sugar to the mix? What about the procesed strawberries? Thank you :)
ReplyDeleteSilvana - Nope. There is no specific technique. Just add them in a little at a time and mix until combined.
ReplyDeleteDesiree - I have no idea why it would have turned green. Odd.
ReplyDeleteLoved this recipe, it did turn out runny and I wasn't able to pipe it but who cares! It taste great and I just spooned it onto the cupcakes. Thanks for the recipe, it was fun to try something new.
ReplyDeleteDelicious! Came out perfect! I used it on banana nut bread cupcakes- it was the perfect compliment! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteI tried this recipe and I love it! I used 4 cups of sugar, adding a cup at a time. It is slightly sweet with a hint of strawberry and perfect for my strawberry banana cupcakes! I garnished it with a piece of fresh strawberry.
ReplyDeleteWe made this for our valentine treats...the fresh strawberries made the icing heavenly...everyone oohed and ahhed over the icing
ReplyDeleteFor the butter ... is that salted or unsalted ... I'm new to this baking thing and don't want to screw it up!
ReplyDeleteAlways use unsalted butter in baking unless the recipe specifies otherwise.
DeleteAnon - Unsalted.
ReplyDeleteMine was too runny.... I tried chopping and draining the strawberries too. It tasted great but too runny to use as frosting on a cupcake.
ReplyDeleteTurned out perfect, great taste! My husband loved it!
ReplyDeleteIt came out great! I didn't read the reviews before I pureed the strawberries hehe, but I had an extra cream cheese I added and it helped a little. I only made a small cake and 12 cupcakes, so I had much left over.
ReplyDeleteHow long can I stored the left over frosting?
can I use strawberry cream cheese instead of fresh strawberries?
ReplyDeleteIt wouldn't be the same, but it would work. Give it a try!
DeleteThe icing came out perfect! Yay me! Lol. My kids loved it. Stef...do u have any yellow cake recipes? The one I used from my Kitchen Aid booklet taste like cornbread to me.
ReplyDeleteTry this one http://bit.ly/nwpQnY!
DeleteAnd - I'm so glad the frosting worked out for you!
Deletehow long does this icing last once its made? im making a red velvet cake 3 tiers 12x4, 8 or 10x4 and a 6x4, im just doing it as a filling, and then covering the cake in fondant(making a princess castle cake) i was wondering how long does this frosting usually last once made if not refrigerated as i need the cake done the night before as were having our 3 children baptised on the same day as my daughters birthday party lol. any help that would be great. thanks :)
ReplyDeleteHope my response isn't too late, but the night before is fine.
DeleteThis sounds awesome my little girl is alergic to red food coloring but loves pink so we have been going through different options for a year now and how to come up with pink icing. My only question is since it is made with real fruit does it need to be refrigerated.
ReplyDeleteIf you are going to keep it out for a few days, I would refrigerate it. If it's just for a short while and it's not too hot, you should be fine keeping it out.
DeleteOkay, so I don't have a food processor. Can I just use my blender instead?
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the comments I think I will make the Wilton Buttercream recipe & add some pureed strawberries. I don't want soupy icing!
ReplyDeleteI don't usually comment on blogs of any sort but had to take a second to post about this recipe. It is SO delish! I literally just made it for my son's bday cake. I was going to do cupcakes but thought that a cake would hold the "runnier" frosting better. It is runnier than something you would pipe but for a cake it will be perfect I think. I am refrigerating it for a couple of hours first and I think that might help but I'm not worried about it. I did make a recipe and a half for the cake, used frozen berries straight from the freezer instead of fresh. I think I'm going to put a bit of strawberry extract in my vanilla cake too for just a touch more strawberry. I detest canned frosting and this one will be a fav for years to come! Thanks Stef!
ReplyDeleteWorked terribly! Do not recommend if making cupcakes AT ALL
ReplyDeleteI tried this recipe as directed and though the taste was great, the frosting was way too thin for a cupcake. I don't know what you could do to thicken it and still get the strawberry flavor. So this unfortuantely wasn't a successful recipe for me.
ReplyDeleteStrawberries that are mashed or blended will be soupy. You need to boil the blended strawberries for a while to get rid of some extra water and thicken them up. Stir continuously once it starts boiling.
ReplyDelete