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outer edge of peanut butter frosting
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5 from 1 vote

Peanut Butter Frosting with Cream Cheese

"It's JUST RIGHT!", exclaimed my peanut butter loving son in law! "This Peanut Butter Frosting with Cream Cheese has the perfect amount of flavor! It's not too much or too little, It's PERFECT!"
Prep Time8 minutes
Cook Time0 minutes
Frosting the Cake10 minutes
Total Time18 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: peanut butter frosting with cream cheese
Servings: 12 servings
Calories: 307kcal
Cost: $5

Equipment

  • stand mixer or hand mixer with bowl
  • measuring cups and spoons
  • rubber spatula
  • offset spatula

Ingredients

  • 8 Tbs Butter
  • 1 Cup Peanut Butter
  • 4 oz Cream Cheese
  • 2 Cups Powdered Sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 4 Tbs Milk only as needed to thin frosting for your purpose

Instructions

  • Add butter, peanut butter and cream cheese to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on low until combined.
  • Add the powdered sugar by the 1/4 cup full while beating slowly.
  • Add the vanilla extract
  • Check the thickness of the frosting. Add milk by the 1 Tbs full to thin the frosting to the desired consistency.
  • Spread onto your cooled cake.

Video

Notes

Substitutions:
Butter - Margarine or butter substitute as long as it is fairly thick at room temperature. 
Vanilla - Imitation vanilla if that is all that you have, but vanilla extract is preferred for best results.
Cream Cheese - Neufchatel or a  low fat cream cheese will work. 
Milk - cream, evaporated milk. I have never tried a milk substitute like Oat milk and do not know what the result will be but I suspect it would work.
  • Be sure to use room temperature butter or the frosting will not make correctly. 
  • Use good quality ingredients as there are only a few and each shines in this recipe. 
  • Use a smooth peanut butter not crunchy. 
Tips and Tricks...
  • To be fair, although I said in the article that you can just throw it all in the mixer (and you can), it really works best if you add the powdered sugar one cup full at a time. It makes less of a sugary poofy cloud.
  • If your frosting isn't as thick as you want it, just add more powdered sugar.
  • The point of the milk is to thin the frosting. Only add it by the tablespoon full and then mix for at least 20-30 seconds before you decide to add more or not. The milk part can be tricky.
  • The dab of vanilla takes the bright edge off of the peanut butter and you definitely want to leave that in the recipe.
  • Use smooth not crunchy peanut butter.
  • I find that mixing this on slower speeds is really best for a creamy and smooth frosting.

Nutrition

Serving: 0.12g | Calories: 307kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 31mg | Sodium: 198mg | Potassium: 162mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 368IU | Calcium: 27mg | Iron: 1mg