Light, fluffy and rich Healthy Cream Cheese Frosting made with Greek yogurt and maple syrup. Amazing on carrot cake, banana bread, and pancakes!
Can I be honest here? This cream cheese frosting tastes like straight up cheesecake.
I mean, I could eat it by the spoonful. Correction—I did eat it by the spoonful. Would you like some Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal with that frosting?
Today’s frosting recipe is made with pure maple syrup rather than cups on cups of powdered sugar. We’re winning already!
I’m the kind of gal who likes tangy, creamy frosting rather than the overly sweet kind that makes your teeth hurt. I think the former complements baked goods like carrot cake or pancakes so much better.
I also like how this frosting turns out “whipped” and fluffy-like. Some cream cheese frostings are super thick, but I find that this recipe has just the right spreadable texture.
The yogurt helps thin it out while also contributing to that beloved tanginess.
Which Cream Cheese to Use
I recommend full fat brick cream cheese all the way, baby. It offers the best smooth texture and velvety mouthfeel. You want the block of cream cheese versus kinds that are already whipped or in tubs, as those have more water.
When it comes to the yogurt, it doesn’t have to be Greek, although that’s what I used since I prefer the thicker styles. The higher the fat content, the richer the cream cheese will be. I used Fage 2% Greek yogurt.
Why is Cream Cheese Frosting Runny?
It shouldn’t be! If you use a cream cheese spread or whipped cream cheese in a tub versus brick-style, there will be more moisture and you may end up with runny frosting.
Bricks have the lowest water content for nice and thick cream cheese frosting.
How to Soften Cream Cheese
Why use room temperature cream cheese, you ask? If you beat cream cheese when it’s still cold, the frosting will have small lumps and the consistency won’t be as smooth.
1. To soften slowly: Unwrap the cream cheese from the foil. Place it on a plate and let it sit at room temperature on the counter for an hour.
2. To soften quickly: Unwrap the cream cheese, discard the foil, and set it on a microwave-safe plate. Microwave for about 20 seconds. It should not feel hot. If it’s too warm, the frosting may be runny.
Tips for Sweetener Options
I find that this is the perfect balance of sweet and tangy, but you can easily make it sweeter or less sweet to suit your preferences by adding more or less sweetener.
Using sweetened versus plain yogurt will also make it sweeter.
Maple syrup: My favorite liquid sweetener of all time. I get the big jug at Costco. You can also find it locally! It brings fabulous flavor and just enough sweetness to this recipe.
Honey: You can definitely use honey here if you’d prefer. I find honey has a more distinct flavor versus just adding sweetness, though.
Agave nectar: This would work just fine here.
How to Serve Cream Cheese Frosting
How to Serve Cream Cheese Frosting1. On baked oatmeal: I first created this recipe with my Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal in mind. Divine!
2. On pancakes: I know from experience that this frosting is quite magical atop a fluffy stack on Favorite Fluffy Whole Wheat Pancakes, these Orange Pancakes, or these Vegan Pancakes.
3. On muffins or banana bread: I love it paired with these Fluffy Pumpkin Muffins, Banana Blueberry Muffins, and Lemon Blueberry Muffins.
4. On cookies: I even smeared some on these Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies. Yep, I went there.
Frosting on, sweet friends!
Print
Healthy Cream Cheese Frosting
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 2 cups 1x
- Category: Desserts
- Method: No-Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
Best ever light, fluffy and rich Healthy Cream Cheese Frosting made with Greek yogurt and maple syrup. Amazing on carrot cake, banana bread, and pancakes!
Ingredients
- 8oz block of full fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1/4 cup plain or vanilla Greek yogurt (I used 2%)
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Use a hand mixer or stand mixer and beat on medium speed for a few minutes, or until it’s smooth and fluffy, scraping down the edges as needed.
- Enjoy on carrot cake baked oatmeal, lemon blueberry muffins, banana bread, and pumpkin muffins. Store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.
Notes
- This recipe yields about 2 cups of frosting, or enough for a dozen cupcakes or muffins.
- To make more of an icing that you can drizzle, simply thin a portion in a separate bowl with milk and mix until smooth.
Keywords: healthy cream cheese frosting
This was a terrific tasty and full bodied frosting. I will be making this frosting for a great deal of my cakes and breads. The only draw back with it is that I cannot stop eating it!!! It is so good not to have to use 2 cups of confectioners sugar for a frosting recipe!!! Thanks.
★★★★★
Hahahah I agree–it’s so good on everything, even pancakes! Thanks for letting me know you loved it, Carmella 🙂
Thank you for this recipe! How long will it keep in the fridge?
I’d guess up to a week? How did it turn out?
The frosting tastes good but it is extremely runny. I left the frosting in the fridge for 4 hours before putting it on the cupcakes and after a minute it started pooling off the sides. I used the full fat brick cream cheese as stated and I made sure to measure everything properly.
★★
Hey Daniela! This is a very thick frosting even without refrigerating. WHen I want a looser frosting for cinnamon rolls, I have to add milk to this recipe. From my research on runny frosting, low-quality cream cheese that has a higher water content can lead to runniness as can using a paddle attachment versus beaters to whip it. Lastly, if cream cheese is over-whipped it can break down and become runny. Perhaps it was beaten too long? I hope that helps, I really am shocked to hear that it was runny!
I CANNOT believe how good this is! The tanginess and cream cheese combo is so delicious. I made it with a hand mixer and whipped it for a while so it turned out wonderfully fluffy. I added a little spoonful of stevia to kick the sweetness up to what I am used to, it’s a little tart as written, but incredibly delicious. The calories are surprisingly low and this totally hits the spot. I’m keeping this in the fridge for the rest of my cinnamon rolls, but it’s hard not to eat it with a spoon. It would also be an amazing dip for fruit as a lighter dessert or in an appetizer spread.
Hahah so good with a spoon, right? I love that you can add more sweetener per your preferences, too! If you’d be up for leaving a star rating next time, that would be STELLAR! It helps other people find my recipes 🙂 Enjoy!
I’m so excited to try this! Going to make it now for my daughters birthday vanilla cake! I was looking for a healthy frosting recipe and so excited I came across yours!!! 🙂 I’ll let you know how it turns out 🙂
★★★★★
Amazing! Let me know how it turns out!
Can you freeze this after? Thank you! Trying it now!
I have no idea–I’ve never tried freezing frosting. I’d google “freezing cream cheese frosting” and go from there. Enjoy!
This frosting is EVERYTHING! Tastes like the original kind and goes very well with cinnamon rolls or carrot cake. If you need a good cream cheese recipe, you NEED to make this!!
★★★★★
Thank you so much, Maddie!
Is it possible to use this in a piping bag to decorate a cake or would it not be the right consistency?
I think that would work!
Cant wait to try these!
★★★★★
Hope you love it!
Incredible frosting! A go-to for me from now on as it’s perfectly sweet, creamy, & easy to make. Thank you!
★★★★★
WAHOOOO!!! I need to make another batch. Mine seems to have disappeared! 🙂
I was recently thinking I needed to try a healthy version of frosting, so I made this recipe with some skepticism. It is soooo good!! I love how fluffy it is and it’s so easy to make! I can’t wait to take this to my next gathering, whenever that happens 🙂
★★★★★
Thanks a ton, Miriam!!
I can vouch that this is delicious on the pumpkin muffins! SO GOOD!
★★★★★
Love it with those!!
Gotta try this next weekend. I’m also trying to switch to a healthier lifestyle and started to mine for healthy recipes like yours. Also, I’m training with SportMe home workout app, and I managed to get rid of some pounds. Your blog posts are super inspiring for me in this phase, thanks!
★★★★★