I am a sucker for lemon! It has a magical way of making everything it touches taste light and fresh. Which is absolutely the case with this heavenly lemon cream cheese frosting!

A cupcake with lemon cream cheese frosting piped on top. In the frosting is a lemon slice. In the background you can see full lemons.

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

Lemon is the flavor of summer and there will be absolutely no changing my mind. And because I’m slightly fanatic about this yellow citrus, I’ve racked my brain on ways I can reasonably add it to any dessert I’d like. I’ll save you the brainstorming, the answer is lemon cream cheese frosting.

The tartness of the lemon perfectly complements the sweetness of the cream cheese in a way you won’t believe until you try it. Adding cream cheese to lemon frosting creates a delightful topping that is absolutely impossible to not lick off of your fingers.

Lemon cream cheese frosting piped into a clear mason jar.

What You’ll Need for Cream Cheese Lemon Frosting

Salted butter softened – Adding a little bit of butter helps cut the strong cream cheese flavor in this recipe.
Cream cheese room temperature
Powdered sugar
Lemon extract or lemon bakery emulsion – I love love love Lorann oils lemon bakery emulsion, but extract would work well, too.
salt
Milk (optional) – I don’t ever use any milk. Just be patient when mixing the cream cheese into the powdered sugar. It WILL come together.

cream cheese lemon frosting piped on to a knife, laying in the middle of sliced and whole lemons.

Making Yummy Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and cream cheese until mixed thoroughly.
Scrape the sides of the bowl and then add the remaining ingredients, adding a portion of the powdered sugar and then letting the mixer go on low until the powdered sugar is completely incorporated before adding more.
Repeat until all of the powdered sugar has been added.
Mix in the lemon bakery emulsion or extract and the pinch of salt.
You can adjust the consistency of the frosting by adding a touch of milk to thin the frosting or more powdered sugar to thicken the frosting. (I generally add NO liquid).
Enjoy! Use on cakes, cookies, brownies or simply eat by the spoonful.

What desserts or baked goods pair well with lemon cream cheese frosting?

This would be delicious on a number of baked goods! I recommend trying it out on cakes, cupcakes, on top of cookies (or sandwiched between two cookies) or brownies. You really cannot go wrong!

How do I prevent the frosting from becoming too runny or too stiff?

I would avoid using milk/other liquids, if possible. This will ensure your frosting doesn’t become too liquidy!

That being said, if you notice your frosting getting a little too thick you can add in a TINY amount of milk to help thin it out and soften it up. Be careful not to add too much powdered sugar or overmix the frosting to prevent creating a stiff consistency.

A cupcake with lemon cream cheese frosting piped on top. In the frosting is a lemon slice. In the background you can see full lemons. Across the bottom is the text, "Lemon cream cheese frosting"

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