The Best Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
on Mar 19, 2012, Updated Jun 13, 2024
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This decadent Chocolate Buttercream Frosting is the best homemade icing for cupcakes! It’s super simple to make and tastes incredible on all of your favorite sweets (or straight off the spoon — I won’t judge!). If you’re a chocolate lover, you’ll adore this incredible buttercream frosting recipe.
I have spent many a birthday whipping up festive cakes and cupcakes for my little ones who insist on getting older, much to my equal delight and dismay! They enter new stages and grow taller and more mature, which is a joy to witness, but at the same time, I just want them to be little forever.
Simply put, this frosting is impeccable! It’s creamy and chocolatey, but not too much. And it’s a fantastic texture for piling high on a big batch of cupcakes (if your spoon doesn’t steal too much of it away first). You know me — simple recipes that come together quickly and with a handful of ingredients are sort of my thing, and this one hits all the marks.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Chocolate buttercream frosting has a deep, rich chocolate flavor that many people find irresistible. The combination of cocoa powder or melted chocolate with butter is so good you’ll keep going for another bite!
- Buttercream frosting is known for its creamy, smooth texture that melts in your mouth, so it’s the perfect addition to any cakes or even brownies.
- It can be used to frost cakes, cupcakes, cookies, or even as a filling for pastries. Its versatility makes it a popular choice for most.
Recipe Ingredients
- Butter — at room temperature
- Heavy cream
- Vanilla extract
- Cocoa powder — I like Dutch-processed
- Powdered sugar
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Chocolate Buttercream Frosting For Cupcakes:
- Add the butter and cream to the bowl of your stand mixer. Mix on medium speed.
- Put in the vanilla, cocoa, and 2.5 cups of the powdered sugar.
- Mix on low until combined, then increase speed to medium, and whip for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Pipe on cupcakes.
Buttercream frosting with a small amount of milk or cream, like this recipe, is not perishable for short periods and can be left at room temperature for 2 to 3 days. Other recipes, like French and Italian buttercream frostings that use eggs, should be refrigerated to maintain freshness.
Chocolate buttercream lasts in the fridge for about 1 week and in the freezer for 3 months kept in an airtight container. You can make it ahead and store it either way before frosting cake or cupcakes.
This recipe is the perfect amount of frosting for 12 generously frosted cupcakes. You need about 3 to 4 cups of frosting for a 9×13-inch cake
You can store iced cupcakes in an airtight container (careful not to smash the frosting) at room temperature for 2 to 3 days, in the fridge for up to a week, or frozen for 3 months.
Expert Tips
- Since chocolate is the star of the show in chocolate buttercream, using high-quality cocoa powder or chocolate will make this magical. Opt for unsweetened cocoa powder or good-quality chocolate with at least 60% cocoa.
- Make sure your butter is at room temperature before starting. Softened butter will cream more easily with the sugar, resulting in a smoother frosting.
- Sift the cocoa powder and powdered sugar before adding them to the butter. This will help remove any lumps and ensure a smooth frosting texture.
More Cupcakes To Consider
Cupcakes
Chocolate Cupcakes
Frosting Recipes
Peanut Butter Frosting
Dessert Recipes
Red Velvet Cupcakes
Cupcakes
Birthday Cupcakes
Did you make this recipe? Leave a ⭐️ review and share it on Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest!
The Best Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
- 3 to 4 tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder
- 2.5 to 3 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- Add the butter and cream to the bowl of your stand mixer. Mix on medium speed with the whisk attachment, until the butter and cream combine.
- Increase the speed to high and mix for 3 to 5 minutes, until the mixture is light and fluffy, stopping to scrape down the sides a time or two.
- Add the vanilla, cocoa, and 2.5 cups of the powdered sugar.
- Mix on low until combined, then increase speed to medium, and whip for 1 to 2 minutes.
- The consistency of the icing is important if you are going to pile it high on a cupcake. It should be a medium consistency. If you mix the batch of icing with a metal teaspoon (the kind you use for dinner) the spoon should stand up straight in the middle of the bowl when it is stuck in the icing. So, you should be able to stir it with a spoon by hand, but it should also be sturdy enough to hold the spoon up.
- If the icing is too thick, add a little cream. If it needs to be a little thicker, add a 1/4 cup of powdered sugar, and whip to combine until it’s sturdy enough.
- Place in an icing bag, and pipe onto cake or cupcakes with tip 2A.
Notes
- This recipe is recommended for 12 heavily frosted cupcakes.
- The consistency of the icing is important if you are going to pile it high on a cupcake. It should be a medium consistency. If you mix the batch of icing with a metal spoon, it should stand up straight in the middle of the bowl when it is stuck in the icing.
- Enhance the chocolate flavor with a pinch of salt or a splash of vanilla extract. Salt can help balance the sweetness and deepen the chocolate flavor, while vanilla adds complexity.
- If your frosting is too soft or runny, chill it in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes to firm up before using it to frost your cake or cupcakes.
No sugar is going ok, as long as I don’t make any special desserts. I made an orange cake for a RS thing & it smelled so good I almost cried. but I refrained from eating it.
WOW, these look absolutely fabulous!!
what?! no peanut butter cupcake recipe?! No cookies & cream recipe?! just as well, since I can’t eat them right now.
I feel so honored you are so observant! The Cookies and cream wasn’t up to par and I didn’t get any pictures of the PB… I’ll do that sometime though. How is the no sugar going by the way? That baby is worth it, but it’s so hard!
I hope that your plants are all nice and cozy and didn’t freeze. This is such a fun time, I love the spring, not so much the spring in Idaho, it’s not too “springy”. Good luck with your chicks, i hope to someday have a bunch of chickens in my back yard eating the bugs out of my garden 🙂 Love your blog. Keep up the hard work!! thanks for the recipes, i love a good tried and true recipe.