Oooh.
Yes, you should go “Oooh.” and when you taste this you should go “Mmmmmmm, oooh, unnnngg mmmm.”
Yeah, it’s that good.
Ingredients:
2 8 ounce bricks of Philly cream cheese at room temp.
1 stick of butter at room temp
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 Madagascar vanilla bean (sliced, and seeds scraped out)
7 to 9 ounces (roughly 1 1/2 to 2 cups) confectioner’s sugar.*
In a mixer bowl beat the cream cheese and butter together at medium speed. Add vanilla bean seeds, and the extracts beat for another 30-60 seconds. Switch to lowest speed and pour in the sugar slowly so it doesn’t go flying everywhere. once the sugar is incorporated, scrape down the bowl and then increase the speed slowly to high speed and whip until light and creamy.
The result is a not overly sweet topping for carrot cake, banana cake, spice cake, any cake where a good cream cheese frosting would work. You can use a little less sugar, but no more. These proportions allow you to taste the cream cheese, and the butter, and the vanilla is heightened by the addition of a little almond extract.
*Start with less sugar and adjust to taste, but do not go over 9 ounces or you’ll lose the butter and cream cheese flavors.
Just look at that gorgeous buttercream.
Enjoy!
