Julie Clark
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Best Chocolate Frosting Recipe
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Hints for the creamiest, best chocolate frosting recipe around. There’s just 6 ingredients in this fudgy whipped frosting that pairs with any cake.
We’ve featured this mouthwatering buttercream, known as “the best chocolate frosting around”, several times on Tastes of Lizzy T in the past. You’ve seen it on mint cake, peanut butter cake and chocolate shortbread.
The time has come, however, to showcase this smooth, creamy, easy chocolate buttercream frosting with an article all of its own. Because it’s that good. And we use this recipe all the time.
Our favorite chocolate frosting with rich chocolate flavor.
There was a day when I didn’t think making my own buttercream frosting was worth the trouble. I’d just buy a tub of ready-to-spread frosting and call it good. After perfecting this easy chocolate frosting recipe, I realized there was no going back.
This is a milk chocolate frosting that gets its flavor from cocoa powder. It’s the perfect amount of chocolate and perfect for a birthday layer cake, chocolate cupcakes, fudgy brownies or sandwiched between two chocolate chip cookies.
Homemade buttercream is easiest when you have a stand mixer. The paddle attachment makes a silky smooth frosting that is easy to spread smoothly. The whisk attachment will whip more air into the frosting, making it lighter.
Love homemade frosting recipes? Try our vanilla buttercream, cream cheese frosting and swiss meringue buttercream.
Try it in our chocolate sandwich cookies or on our fudgy brownie cookies.
Enjoy! -Julie
Ingredients
This homemade chocolate frosting recipe has simple ingredients: butter, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, salt, vanilla and heavy cream. The butter makes the fudge frosting literally melt in your mouth.
Many use unsalted butter in baking, but I always keep salted butter on hand. The salt always adds such a great flavor!
The salt? It balances the sweetness just perfectly. It’s our secret ingredient.
And the heavy cream makes this chocolate frosting recipe whip up into a beautifully creamy, easy-to-spread chocolate frosting.
Best Chocolate Frosting Recipe
Hints for the creamiest, best chocolate frosting recipe around. There’s just 6 ingredients in this fudgy frosting that pairs with any cake.
Servings 10 servings
Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 4 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- In a stand mixer with the beater blade, beat the butter for 1-2 minutes on high speed until it is smooth, creamy and nearly white in appearance. 1 cup salted butter
- Add in the salt and vanilla. Mix until incorporated. ½ teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- With the mixer on low speed, slowly add in the powdered sugar and cocoa powder. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed. 3 ½ cups powdered sugar, ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- Add the heavy cream, a tablespoon at a time, mixing slowly until it is the consistency that you'd like. Beat for 1 minute on medium speed until smooth and creamy in texture. 4 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
Video
Notes
We like to use the beater blade attachment. If you’d like an airier frosting, you can use the whisk and beat the frosting for an additional 1-2 minutes. This will whip more air into the frosting, which makes it delicious, but it will also not spread on as smoothly.
We used regular cocoa powder, but if you’d like deeper, darker flavor, use special dark cocoa powder.
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.
Nutrition
Serving: 76g | Calories: 359kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 56mg | Sodium: 266mg | Potassium: 79mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 41g | Vitamin A: 655IU | Vitamin C: 0.04mg | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 1mg
Chocolate Buttercreme
have you tried it with almond rather than vanilla???
Made this today… it is delicious 😋… I was out of vanilla so I substituted 1Tbsp. almond extra and 1 Tbsp. Maple extra… Soooo tasty…
Ohhh and only used 3 cups powdered sugar… will 💯 make again