Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting

This raspberry cream cheese frosting gets its vibrant naturally pink hue and bold berry flavor from freeze-dried raspberries — no artificial dye, just real fruit and color. It pipes well onto cakes and cupcakes while staying softer and tangier than a classic American buttercream, making it one of those recipes you'll reach for whenever you want something a little more special on the dessert table.

I first developed this alongside my blueberry cream cheese frosting — one flavor naturally led to the other. Since then I've used it on everything from raspberry almond cupcakes to fudgy chocolate cupcakes, and the pairing never gets old.

If you're newer to flavored frostings, I also have an almond buttercream and a mango buttercream frosting worth exploring once you've made this one.

Jump to:

• 🩷 Why You'll Love this Recipe for Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting
• Ingredients
• How to Make Frosting Less Sweet
• Adding Jam
• Steps for Homemade Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting
• How to Use this Creamy Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting
• Storage Instructions
• 💡 More Tips for the Best Frosting
• ❓Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting FAQ
• More Recipes like this Frosting
• Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting

🩷 Why You'll Love this Recipe for Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting

• Creamy texture: Thanks to cream cheese, this frosting is soft and spreadable while still holding a nice shape.
• Easy to make: In addition to having great flavor, this recipe is a quick one to literally whip up.
• Natural food coloring: I'm such a sucker for a colorful frosting or buttercream. When possible, I like to achieve colors naturally. The end result of this recipe is a cheery shade of light pink, and it's all natural.

Ingredients

Many of the main ingredients for this raspberry cream cheese are common ones you'd find in American buttercream. However, the tanginess of some cream cheese gives this frosting a different flavor and slightly softer texture. It is less stiff than a traditional buttercream.

Below is a list of the simple ingredients you'll need to make this cream cheese raspberry frosting.

• Room temperature unsalted butter - We use butter here for a bit firmer frosting. This helps give it stability when you pipe it onto a cake.
• Powdered sugar - This ingredient (sometimes referred to as "icing sugar") helps keep your frosting light and fluffy.
• Full fat cream cheese - Fat equals flavor! You can use low fat if you'd like, but the flavor will be slightly different.
• Freeze dried raspberries, finely ground into a powder - Freeze-dried raspberries give a fresh raspberry flavor to this frosting. They get their taste from real fruit, and they pack a punch. This ingredient is a must! Also, you can use a fine mesh strainer to remove the raspberry seeds from the powder. But I don't mind the seeds and do typically keep them in the frosting. You may want to remove them if you are looking for an ultra smooth texture.
• Vanilla extract - This adds a nice, warming note to the frosting, giving it a bit more sweetness and depth, too. If you like almond extract, this recipe is nice with a dash of that, too, though it's not necessary.
• Pinch of salt - Although it may sound counterintuitive, salt in sweet desserts and dishes counterbalances sweetness and helps make flavors stronger and more pronounced.
• Optional:
• Add a few drops of lemon or lime juice (or white vinegar) to cut sweetness
• Raspberry extract is not necessary but can add an extra kick

How to Make Frosting Less Sweet

Some people really love desserts where you can easily taste the sugar.

But that flavor can be overwhelming or off-putting.

If you find yourself wishing that the buttercream or frosting that you're eating weren't so cloyingly sweet, read on. Lemon juice, lime juice, or white vinegar can come in handy.

Those liquids are all acidic. Adding just a couple of drops to your frosting and then doing a taste test will help you cut back on an overly sweet taste. I added some lemon juice to this raspberry frosting recipe.

Adding Jam

Some recipes call for using seedless raspberry jam or raspberry puree.

I found that this recipe tasted like raspberry and didn't need jam for more raspberry flavor. However, you're welcome to experiment with it.

I'd add a tablespoon at a time. If the frosting becomes too soft from the added moisture, you'll want to incorporate some more powdered sugar into it to thicken things.

Steps for Homemade Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting

Smooth the Cream Cheese: In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or a large mixing bowl with a handheld electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth (about 2 minutes). Add the butter and beat butter for another minute until fully combined.

Incorporate Dry Ingredients: Turn off the mixer and add salt, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract (plus raspberry extract if using) to your cream cheese and butter mixture. Mix on low to incorporate the sugar, then increase to high for 2-3 minutes. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl, ensuring all ingredients are combined.

Add Raspberry Flavor: Mix in finely ground freeze-dried raspberries until well combined. Taste and add lemon juice, a few drops at a time, if needed to balance sweetness.

Pipe & Decorate: Transfer frosting to a piping bag fitted with your preferred tip and decorate cakes or cupcakes as desired.

How to Use this Creamy Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting

This frosting would be a nice way to change up a traditional chocolate cake or cupcake with a pop of berry-flavored frosting.

It also goes great with vanilla — though if you're ever in the mood for something more classic, my classic vanilla buttercream is always a reliable option. I've used this raspberry version on my small batch vanilla cupcake recipe and had a lot of fun pairing those flavors together.

This recipe creates enough frosting for decorating a dozen cupcakes or a smaller (think two layers and 6″ round) layer cake.

For more raspberry options, I took inspiration from this frosting to make a glaze that I use on a raspberry chocolate Bundt cake and also spread across a white chocolate raspberry loaf.

Storage Instructions

This frosting will keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for about 3 days

Freeze it in an airtight container or tightly sealed plastic wrap for 3 months. Let it thaw and come to room temperature before attempting to use it to decorate cakes or cupcakes.

This buttercream will stay fresh keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for about 3 days.

You can also freeze fully decorated cupcakes or cakes that use this frosting.

For more on a related topic, I have a detailed guide for freezing cupcakes.

💡 More Tips for the Best Frosting

• Want super smooth frosting? Once your stand mixer has done the hard work, spend a few more minutes with a spatula and your mixing bowl. Use the spatula to pop air bubbles in the frosting. To do this, push frosting with a spatula from the middle of your bowl to its edges, watching as the tears and bubbles in your buttercream disappear. Spend 3-4 minutes doing these motions to achieve nice, smooth frosting.
• Buttercream too sweet? Add a few dashes of lemon juice, lime juice, or distilled white vinegar. It cuts the sweetness, so taste test until it's your desired flavor.
• If you need to thin out this frosting, add a few splashes of heavy cream or milk. Adding raspberry jam or preserves will also thin out this frosting.
• If you need to make a thicker frosting, add about ¼ cup of powdered sugar at a time. Mix until you've reached your desired consistency.
• If you’re not already, use a kitchen scale for accuracy in baking. Weighing your ingredients and writing or following a recipe using a standard metric like grams ensures consistency. I highly recommend investing $30 or less in a kitchen scale.

❓Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting FAQ

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