Tangy and perfectly sweet, this lemon cream cheese frosting will be your new go-to! My recipe gets its flavor from real, fresh lemons–no lemon extract needed.
An Easier Lemon Frosting
I thought making this lemon cream cheese frosting was going to be similar to my classic lemon frosting. If you’ve made that recipe, you’ll remember we first make a homemade lemon curd which we then fold into the frosting. It gives it an incredible and bright flavor, but it is a bit time consuming. I expected to need to do the same thing with this recipe, but to my surprise, I was actually disappointed with the results this way.
Instead, it turns out the cream cheese (which has a tanginess in and of itself) plays very well with the lemon, and you can get a great lemon flavor without a drop of curd. It’s nice when things turn out to be easier than you expect!
4 Things to Know About This Recipe
- Easy to make without any lemon curd, lemon pudding mix, etc. We’ll simply zest and juice a lemon and stir both into a slightly modified cream cheese frosting.
- Pipeable, though it is still a softer frosting. As you can see, I had no problem piping it on my new lemon blueberry cupcakes in the photos throughout this post.
- Natural, fresh lemon flavor. I wanted a version made without lemon extract, and this one is naturally flavored with fresh lemon.
Ingredients
- Lemon. You’ll need some fresh lemon for both the zest and the juice. Sure, you could use bottled juice, but fresh will give you a better taste and since you’re already buying fresh lemons for the zest, just juice them too!
- Softened cream cheese. Just like with my lemon cheesecake, you need brick-style, full-fat cream cheese today. Spreadable or low-fat cream cheese could be too soft and runny here.
- Butter. This will need to soften as well. I use unsalted butter and recommend you do the same.
- Powdered sugar. The amount of sugar listed is necessary for the proper texture and sweetness of the frosting! Keep in mind this recipe is designed to cover a two layer cake or up to 24 cupcakes, so unless you plan to eat the whole batch straight out of the bowl with a spoon, you don’t need to stress about the sugar 😉
- Vanilla and salt. For flavor! Despite the fact that I usually skip vanilla in my fruity frostings, my taste-testers (and I!) hands down preferred the version with vanilla to the one without. It adds a depth that works well here!
SAM’S TIP: Always zest your lemons BEFORE juicing! It can be quite a challenge to zest a lemon after it’s already been cut and juiced.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make It
Make sure your butter and cream cheese have completely softened before starting; I like to let mine sit on the counter for about an hour or so. Cutting them into pieces first can speed up this process!
Beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth, then stir in the lemon zest and salt. Gradually stir in the sugar (go slow and keep the speed low so you don’t fling it everywhere!). Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl to make sure there are no pockets of sugar hiding, then stir in the lemon juice and vanilla. Easy, right?
SAM’S TIP: Don’t try to use a small, intricate piping tip with this frosting. The bits of lemon zest will surely clog the tip and create a very frustrating experience for you. You’d be better off using my lemon frosting in this scenario!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Keep in mind this frosting does have a pale yellow color though, so that will affect any colors you try to add. Just like with my german buttercream, you could try adding a tiny, tiny drop of purple gel food coloring to help neutralize the yellow hue.
I recommend gel food coloring for the brightest results–a little goes a long way. You can add it in with the lemon juice and vanilla.
This is a softer frosting, but it is still pipeable as you can see in the photos and video. If yours is too soft, just put it in the fridge for 10-20 minutes and work with it again.
I don’t recommend using this frosting for intricate flowers or designs (buttercream is better suited for that!), but a simple swirl on a cupcake or border on a cake will be just fine.
I’m comfortable letting a cream cheese frosting sit out for about an hour or two, but any longer than that and it needs to go back in the fridge. Make sure you store any cakes/cupcakes in an airtight container so they don’t absorb any fridge odors or dry out.
Cakes to pair with this frosting:
- Strawberry cake
- Zucchini cake
- Lemon blueberry cake or lemon blueberry cupcakes
- White cake or white cupcakes
- Funfetti cake or funfetti cupcakes
- Vanilla cake or vanilla cupcakes
Enjoy!
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Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
- 8 oz (226 g) cream cheese softened
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter softened
- 1 ½ Tablespoons lemon zest
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 4 cups (500 g) powdered sugar
- 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Recommended Equipment
- zester
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to combine the cream cheese and butter and beat until smooth and creamy.8 oz (226 g) cream cheese, ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter
- Add lemon zest and salt and beat to combine.1 ½ Tablespoons lemon zest, ⅛ teaspoon salt
- Gradually add powdered sugar while stirring on low speed until completely combined.4 cups (500 g) powdered sugar
- Add lemon juice and vanilla extract and stir to combine.1 Tablespoon lemon juice, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Use to decorate completely cooled cakes and cupcakes. If frosting is too soft to work with, just pop it in the fridge for 15-20 minutes, stir briefly and use.
Notes
Yield
Recipe makes enough to generously frost 12-18 cupcakes or modestly frost 20-24 cupcakes. It will also cover a (single layer) 9×13” cake or a two layer 8” or 9” cake.Storing
Frosting should be refrigerated. Will keep covered in an airtight container for up to 5 days. If you’d like to make the frosting in advance, keep refrigerated as indicated and note it will likely need to sit at room temperature for some time in order to be soft enough to be stirred before being spread or piped over your baked goods.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Fay
Delicious! I did slightly less sugar, but this is an excellent foundation lemon cream cheese frosting. 🙂
Sam Merritt
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Fay! 🙂
Kathryn
Wow, just wow. I made this to put on the lemon blueberry cupcake recipe of yours. I haven’t tried the cake yet (still cooling) but the frosting? Mmmm mmmm mmmm. I am bringing them to my family Easter celebration tomorrow and I can already tell it’ll be a hit.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed the frosting so much! 🙂