This whipped mascarpone frosting is easy to make in 10 minutes! Made with silky smooth mascarpone cheese, powdered sugar, and heavy cream, this is a light and airy yet sturdy mascarpone frosting perfect for spreading on cakes and piping on cupcakes. It's less sweet than American buttercream and cream cheese frosting with a richer, more decadent flavor too.
This whipped mascarpone frosting might be my new favorite frosting recipe. It's a smooth, creamy frosting thanks to mascarpone cheese.
This frosting is like a stable whipped cream. It has that light and fluffy texture, but the mascarpone helps it hold its shape. I love it piped through a piping tip on vanilla cupcakes, but it's also delicious slathered on chocolate cake, this mixed berry cake, and other layer cakes!
You can use mascarpone instead of cream cheese in other frosting recipes like no butter cream cheese frosting, coffee cream cheese frosting, and small batch cream cheese frosting!
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Why This Recipe Works
- Rich and creamy texture- Mascarpone is a creamy Italian cheese usually used in desserts like tiramisu and cannoli. It's richer and sweeter than regular cream cheese.
- Easy with simple ingredients- You only need 5 ingredients and 10 minutes to make this easy and delicious frosting.
- Delicious on everything- You can sandwich it between cookies, spread it between birthday cake layers, pipe it on brownies, or eat it by the spoonful!
Key Ingredients
- Mascarpone-ย This is a soft Italian cream cheese know for its creamy, smooth texture and mild, subtly sweet flavor. It's a key ingredient in tiramisu, which is why I used this frosting on tiramisu cupcakes! Belgioioso is my favorite brand because it is ultra smooth.
- Heavy cream-ย Heavy cream whips up to create a fluffy frosting. Make sure to use cold heavy cream, and don't use half and half or milk. The frosting will be too runny.
Substitutions and Variations
- Mascarpone substitute:ย If you can't find mascarpone cheese, you can make this frosting with regular full-fatย cream cheese. It's a good substitute, but flavor will be much more tangy and you have to bring it to room temperature.
- Chocolate frosting: Remove ยผ cup (25 grams) powdered sugar and replace it with ยผ cup unsweetened cocoa powder to make chocolate mascarpone frosting.
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1: Beat the cold mascarpone cheese, vanilla, almond extract, and salt on medium-low speed until smooth.
Step 2: Add the powdered sugar, mixing on low so the sugar doesn't come flying out of the bowl. Once combined, increase to medium-high speed.
Step 3: Drizzle in the cold heavy cream while mixing on low speed. The frosting will look soft and runny.
Step 4: Turn the speed up to high and beat until the frosting is fluffy with stiff peaks.
Expert Tips
- Use cold ingredients. Your mascarpone and heavy whipping cream need to be cold for a stable frosting! If the ingredients are too warm, it'll be a soupy mess.
- Keep mixing. When you add the heavy cream, the frosting will be loose and liquidy at first. Don't worry, you didn't ruin it! Just keep mixing until the frosting thickens.
- Don't overmix. Stop mixing once the frosting has stiff peaks. If you overmix it, the frosting will curdle.
How to Use this Frosting
- Fill and spread over this chocolate mascarpone cake or chocolate tiramisu cake to balance the rich chocolate. It's also great on this lemon berry mascarpone cake!
- Dollop on top of a lemon mascarpone cheesecake or peaches and cream cake as a light, fluffy topping.
- Sandwich between blueberry shortcake biscuits and add a dollop on top.
Frequently Asked Questions
The recipe makes enough mascarpone cheese frosting to generously frost about 12 cupcakes. It's also enough to frost a pan of brownies or a 9X13-inch sheet cake. You can use it to fill and frost a 3-layer 6-inch round cake or a 2-layer 8-inch round cake.
Yes, you can make the frosting up to 2 days ahead of time and keep it in the fridge. It won't get super hard like buttercream does, but I recommend letting it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before you use it.
Like most frostings, this one can sit at room temperature for about 2 hours before it needs to go in the fridge. Try to keep anything frosted with it out of direct sunlight so it doesn't melt.
Your frosting might look runny when you first add the heavy cream, but it shouldn't be runny at all once it's whipped. If it is, your cream and mascarpone may not have been cold enough. Try chilling the mixture for 20 minutes and then stir with a rubber spatula. If it's still runny, you may need to add more powdered sugar until it thickens up.
More Frosting Recipes to Try
๐ Recipe
Whipped Mascarpone Frosting
Equipment
- 1 Electric hand mixer or stand mixer with the whisk attachment
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Ingredients
- 226 grams mascarpone cheese cold
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ยผ teaspoon almond extract optional
- โ teaspoon salt
- 120 grams powdered sugar
- 240 grams heavy cream cold
Instructions
- Place cold mascarpone cheese, vanilla, almond extract (optional), and salt in the bowl of a hand mixer or stand mixer with the whisk attachment. Beat at medium-low speed until smooth and creamy.226 grams mascarpone cheese, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ยผ teaspoon almond extract, โ teaspoon salt
- Gradually add the powdered sugar, mixing on low. Increase to medium-high for 1-2 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.120 grams powdered sugar
- Drizzle in the cold cream while mixing on low speed. The frosting will look soft and a bit runny. This is ok!240 grams heavy cream
- Turn the mixer up to high and beat for 1-2 minutes until the frosting is fluffy and stiffens up like whipped cream. Now it's ready to use!
Brigitte Kay Lewis
best frosting! simple to make but oh so good. added a dollop to hot chocolate and it was fantastic.