Philadelphia Just Launched Its First-Ever Cream Cheese Frosting, and It Tastes (Almost) Better than Homemade

Cream cheese frosting on knife.
Credit: Ali Domrongchai Credit: Ali Domrongchai

In the world of frosting, there’s ganaches, buttercreams, glazes, and then the holy grail: cream cheese frosting. I say holy grail with a hefty dose of bias because it’s the only one that my grandma will eat (her favorite dessert is cheesecake so it’s not too surprising) and what I grew up around the most. This frosting is made with the same technique as a simple buttercream frosting, with a block of cream cheese in addition to butter. It’s sweet, smooth, slightly tangy, and incredibly delicious.

Time and time again, I’ve kept tubs of the store-bought stuff on hand for cake emergencies (you know, bad days, last-minute celebrations). So I was particularly excited to learn the O.G. cream cheese brand Philadelphia was launching a ready-made cream cheese frosting of its own — no hand mixer required. I, of course, had to get my hands on some to see how it tastes.

Someone holding Philadelphia Frosting.
Credit: Ali Domrongchai Credit: Ali Domrongchai

What You Should Know About Philadelphia Cream Cheese Frosting

The Philadelphia Original Cream Cheese Frosting hit the refrigerator section of grocers earlier this October and comes in 16-ounce tubs. It’s slowly rolling out across the country, and you can already expect to see it in stores, like Walmart for $4.48. The frosting is a new mainstay in Philadelphia’s catalog of flavored cream cheeses and appears to be the first of its kind for the brand.

Container of Philadelphia cream cheese.
Credit: Ali Domrongchai Credit: Ali Domrongchai

To get a feel for how much cream cheese it is, The Kitchn’s recipe for cream cheese frosting takes an 8-ounce block of cream cheese and one stick of butter to yield roughly three cups of frosting. This cream cheese frosting comes in a 16-ounce container (or two cups), and I personally found it the perfect size to ice an entire 10-inch cake. That being said, if you’re working with a layered cake, I’d maybe grab an extra tub just in case.

Philadelphia Original Cream Cheese Frosting
Philadelphia Original Cream Cheese Frosting

Philadelphia Original Cream Cheese Frosting

Walmart

$4.48

Buy Now

My Honest Review of Philadelphia Cream Cheese Frosting

To really test this new frosting, I treated it like I would any other cream cheese frosting — by sampling some directly off a spoon. To my delight it tasted like a freshly whipped homemade version — sweet, tangy, and totally creamy.

Cake made with Philadelphia cream cheese.
Credit: Ali Domrongchai Credit: Ali Domrongchai

To treat this like a typical batch of cream cheese frosting, I let it sit out for an hour to come to room temperature before using it (in lieu of my typical homemade version) in a layered vanilla cake with a blueberry compote in the center (it was for a friend’s birthday). I didn’t pipe it. Instead I glopped a large scoop right on my cake and then smoothed it with an offset spatula. It spread with a dream!

I’ve tried other store-bought cream cheese frosting brands in the past, but going forward, I’m only going to be buying this one. I can’t wait to use it for more cakes, cinnamon rolls, and brownies … The possibilities are endless!

Buy: Philadelphia Original Cream Cheese Frosting, $4.48 for 16 ounces at Walmart 

Have you tried the new Philadelphia Original Cream Cheese Frosting? Tell us about it in the comments below.

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