Cream Cheese Frosting with Brown Butter and Bourbon

22 Reviews

Prep: 25 min
Cook: 15 min
Ready In: 40 min

“This frosting pairs perfectly with banana, carrot, and spice cakes. Browning the butter gives it a deep, nutty flavor. As with many buttercreams, you may need slightly more or less sugar to reach your desired consistency.” - by metread

Ingredients

3/4 cup butter, divided
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
1/2 fluid ounce bourbon whiskey
4 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons heavy cream

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Metric US

Original recipe yields 1 batch: enough for a 2- or 3-layer cake

Directions

Melt 1/2 cup butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally and cook until the milk solids turn brown and give off a nutty fragrance, 15 to 20 minutes.
Combine the remaining 1/4 butter and cream cheese in a mixing bowl. Pour the browned butter into the mixing bowl and set aside for about three minutes, letting the warm butter soften the cream cheese and cold butter. Scrape the black seeds from the vanilla bean and add them to the bowl. Add the bourbon and mix on low speed until smooth.
Gradually add the confectioners' sugar and cream, alternating between the two, until the proper consistency is reached. If the frosting is too soft for decorating, refrigerate it for about half an hour before using.

Nutrition

Amount Per Serving (12 total)

Calories
339 cal
17%

Fat
19 g
29%

Carbs
41.6 g
13%

Based on a 2,000 calorie diet

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Reviews (22)

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topolino

Feb. 14, 2011

"Fantastic! One of the few recipes on here that I am not tempted to change in any way! I brown butter for my cookies, but I'd never thought of doing it for frosting and I was pleasantly surprised. I us..." See moreed some of my boyfriend's 18 year Elijah Craig bourbon (shhhh!!) and it was heavenly. Definitely don't use something cheap! I used this to frost a carrot cake and it was a perfect combination. Just a tip for first time butter-browners: make sure you have extra butter on hand just in case you burn the first batch!"

Celeste

Mar. 10, 2011

"Amazing! I made this as is and it was delish, but I needed more frosting, so I added another 8 oz. cream cheese and a little more burbon, and used it on the Carrot Cake III from this site. Rave review..." See mores :) Thanks for a fabulous recipe metread!"