Creamy, healthy cream cheese frosting…
It’s both fluffier and creamier than Pillsbury cream cheese. And if you’re counting calories: you could eat the entire recipe for just 200 calories. Who wouldn’t want to eat an entire container’s worth of frosting in one sitting?
For more healthy frosting recipes: Over 50 Healthy Frosting Recipes
But the following recipe is better than store-bought frosting for a reason much more important than the calories: it’s free of unhealthy trans fats.
Many packaged frostings contain your entire day’s worth of trans fats in just two tablespoons. I posted a similar frosting recipe, my Cheesecake Frosting, around three years ago, and I modified the recipe yesterday and think this new healthy cream cheese frosting recipe is even better than the original!
Healthy Cream Cheese Frosting
(makes about 3/4 cup)
- 1/2 cup cream cheese, such as TJ vegan or homemade cashew cream cheese
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 4 tbsp powdered sugar OR stevia to taste
- 1/4 cup silken tofu OR more cream cheese (For soy-free: Greek Yogurt Cream Cheese Frosting)
- up to 2 tbsp milk of choice, as needed for desired thickness
Blend everything together in a small food processor (I used a Magic Bullet). If you’re using this recipe to top cupcakes, I’d recommend frosting them just before serving, or frosting earlier and then storing the cupcakes in the fridge, due to the perishable nature of the ingredients. Leftover frosting can be stored for a few days in the fridge, covered. Variation ideas: Add pumpkin, or shredded carrot and pineapple for a carrot cake dip, or cinnamon and walnuts…
Or you can go crazy: Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Dip.
Do you worry about trans fats?
Do you think they really are as bad as all the hype says they are? I don’t “worry” about them, but that’s pretty much because I don’t have to—most of the foods containing trans fats are pre-packaged snack foods (often not even vegan) I wouldn’t seek out anyway. Sure, every now and then I’ll grab a handful of chocolate Teddy Grahams if I’m at a friend’s house and they’re sitting out. But for the most part, I don’t buy anything with “partially-hydrogenated oils” listed in the ingredients (a really easy way to tell if a food has trans fats).
By the way, I just noticed: You can totally see my head and camera in the reflection of the spoon in the photo above 
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I made a coffee flavored version of this! I just added instant coffee a little at a time until it tasted like coffee frosting. Delicious!
Katie,
First of all I’m a huge fan of your recipes they are delicious lifesavers for us health-conscious vegans with a MAJOR sweet tooth!
I made this recipe tonight as a topping for some butternut squash that I roasted with SF maple syrup and cinnamon. Initially I put 2T on it but I think I went back for more THREE times! It was great. Thank you!
This was amazing! I haven’t had anything with cream cheese since before I became vegan about a year ago. This is way better than anything I remember. I will have to get some non-vegan opinions tomorrow. I hope they like it as much as I do because it is going on my health conscientious friends birthday cake.
This was amazing! I made this icing for a dinner party last night and put it on a Key Lime Cake. The great part was that all of the non-vegan people there LOVED it. I couldn’t find any Mori-nu, but I used some Nigari Silken Tofu from Trader Joe’s and it worked perfectly! No soy aftertaste whatsoever.
I love your recipes and enjoy following all your blogs. By any chance do you have a frosting recipe for someone who can’t have dairy or soy? I can have small amounts of soy but absolutely no dairy. I’m making carrot cake cupcakes for Easter and where I will be able to eat the cupcake, I would reeeeeeaally like to enjoy a frosting. Can u help me? 🙂
Hi Danielle,
Here is a link to all my frosting recipes. Many are soy-free, and all are dairy-free :).
https://lett-trim.today/category/healthy-frosting-recipes%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Do you think using plain, unsweetened soy yogurt instead of the tofu? My local natural food store carries soy yogurt, but not silken tofu.
I love your website! It’s great! The recipes are amazing.Thank you for bringing such delicious and healthy recipes!!!deliciou
S
Looks perfect for the vegan redvelvet cake I’m making for my son’s first birthday! How much sweetener do you recommend? Obviously to taste but a starting point? Thank you!
Hi Ellen,
For frosting I think I would start with 3 tbsp powdered sugar or 3 NuNaturals stevia packets.
When you posted the WW points for the Carrot Cake Waffles, is that serving size 1 waffle or for the recipe which makes two? Does the points include the suggested Healthy Cream Cheese frosting or is it just for the Waffle?
Thank-you, you are doing a great service to woman-kind.
It is per waffle.
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