I need to decorate a cake on Thursday evening but it won't be eaten until Sunday. The filling is cream cheese buttercream. Anyone have a suggestion on how to store it? I don't want it to dry out in the fridge but I feel like 3 days is too long for cream cheese icing to be sitting at room temp. 

If your cake is completely covered in bc, refridgerating for 3 days will not effect your cake. Won't dry it out at all.

and cream cheese has to be handled properly for safety -- should not ever stay out of fridge for any length of time, not one day not a half or quarter day, -- must be kept fridged cold

You can safely keep out a cream cheese frosted cake for 3-4 hours. Some say as long as 24 hrs. I've only taken right out of the fridge to family functions, and served within 2 hours.  Wouldn't trust it much longer than that. That's why I use cream cheese extract.  All the flavour of cream cheese, without the refrigerator nonsense and concern it will turn.

yes -- some say an accumulated 4 hours total -- because even when refrigerated bacteria still grows it's just growing slower -- so after four hours it's unserve-able -- ready for the bin --

and no it doesn't turn green immediately and most everybody will not get sick if they eat it but people with compromised immune systems and the very young and old will --

there's also a white balsamic recipe that give a faux cream cheese effect without all the troubles

http://www.cakecentral.com/recipe/61811/white-balsamic-american-buttercream 

and you can adjust the tang so it's more fun than just picky cream cheese you gotta be so careful with

Ya..I'm not a big fan of cream cheese icing. Made to go with red velvet cake for a family get together..and was requested. Would never use for a wedding/bday cake if I were selling.

Thanks for the recipe link. That makes a lot more sense than cream cheese.

my husband and i ate the leftovers on spoons -- obviously we have sweet tooths -- but it's murderously delicious -- i used to make cream cheese mints in the 70's -- i always wondered about the refrigeration thing but ... anyway --- it's just like those -- dangerously good -- 

but i mean we didn't even wait for it to crust ahahahahahaha

Earlene Moore's Cr Ch BC is safe and fantastic for 3-5 days.  Check out her web site for the recipe.

BTW:  Earlene is a very sick lady.  Anyone wanting to wish her well should do so very soon.  She has cancer in both lungs.

Oh.no...that's awful. How can I go on her website??

oh lynne, I did not know about earlene -- thank you

earlenescakes.com

Thank you K8memphis..

I read this on the internet so it must be true...  . Cream cheese frostings made with at least 4 cups of sugar (roughly a pound) per 8 ounces of commercial cream cheese are considered safe to leave unrefrigerated. 

Don't believe everything you read on the intetnet!! Notorious for misinformation..

This recipe is listed is part of a list of recipes published by the Texas Department of Health as a non-potentially hazardous recipe:

Traditional Cream Cheese Frosting - pH 4.85 aW 0.83 - Non-potentially hazardous

the standard is not how close can I get to the edge but how certifiably safe can I make it -- cream cheese is a hazardous food that can cause a lot of damage without proper handling --

good on you, km0806, for being careful and getting clarification on the dangers of serving it to the public --

then just in general not directed at op -- that recipe is ok in Texas but it's not approved in the rest of the country -- a lot of which prohibits the use of cream cheese at all so be wise and careful! 

think about how you would answer to being questioned IF god forbid some people got sick on the sausage or something but of course the investigation encompassed all food vendors -- 

would you want to tell the authorities that you left the cc out on the counter all night to come to 'room temp' so you could mix it first thing in the morning -- left it sit out till the cakes got baked so it was still soft enough to spread -- no you don't want that to be your story --

neither would you want one or two persons quietly and unobtrusively getting sick again after the party from 'something' they ate --

this is why decorated cake comes under 'catering' rules here in my county i guess -- 

try the white-balsamic-american-buttercream -- it's got the same tang and is worry free

If I remember right, on Earlene's site she explains that it was tested (by a health dept??) and found to be safe unrefrigerated.  If the people who matter most to us (health dept) say it is why should we argue the facts?  

Found the source.  It is from the University of Minnesota | Extension – Cottage food FAQs

http://www.extension.umn.edu/food/food-safety/courses/cottage-foods/faqs/

Q: Do food products frosted with a recipe using cream cheese need to be refrigerated?

A: The rule of thumb for cream cheese frosting to not require refrigeration for food safety is related to the concentration/ratio of sugar to cream cheese. If the frosting recipe uses 4 cups of sugar and 8 ounces or less of cream cheese, the product does not need to be refrigerated. Often, a frosting recipe using cream cheese has enough sugar in it to not be a concern. If the cream cheese is a part of the recipe that is baked in the oven or cooked, it does not present a food safety issue due to the heat treatment.

The Come and Bake It has recipes and lab tested recipes that the Minnesota Department of Agriculture has accepted as documentation to validate non-potentially hazardous status. You can purchase it online for $8.99. http://texascottagefoodlaw.com/Recipes. You will find cream cheese, ganache and buttercream recipes that have been tested to be non-potentially hazardous foods. You would not need to have your product tested if you use the recipes from this source.

But other states like California don’t allow Cottage businesses to serve frostings that contain cream cheese, ganache, meringue, meringue powder, or Dream Whip. 

WOW, no ganache either??

Other states like Utah require lab testing of the recipe before cream cheese frosting can be sold.

What a mess.  It looks like each state’s laws are different.  I need to try K8Memphis Balsamic version, or just use the Cream Cheese flavor emulsion.  I didn't know that Cream Cheese Frosting was such a hotbed of controversy.

yeah pretty conflicting info across the country --

MAJOR MISTAKE!   Please forgive me for saying that Earlene has cancer.  She does NOT!  It is another well known decorator.

I guess I can blame it on the fact that I have some health issues myself and not feeling well.

sorry to hear you're not feeling well, lynne 

Thank you everyone. I am going to try the white balsamic vinegar.  Hoping that is my answer!  People love red velvet and i always cringe when they say it cuz i hate the fridge. 

Thank you everyone. I am going to try the white balsamic vinegar.  Hoping that is my answer!  People love red velvet and i always cringe when they say it cuz i hate the fridge. 

Well how do you like that, you learn something new every day. 4 cups sugar to 8 oz cream cheese is safe. Going to file this away.

I tried the Texas recipe and i didn't like the texture...to each their own

i hope you like it km0806 -- worth a try