Chocolate buttercream frosting is the perfect finishing touch for your next cake or cupcake recipe. This sweet chocolate frosting comes together in minutes and can easily be doubled or tripled for your next cake.
If you are a chocolate lover, you will agree that chocolate cake can only be topped with chocolate frosting. This chocolate frosting is velvety smooth and pairs perfectly with a batch of homemade chocolate cupcakes.
Butter and confectioner's sugar serve as the base for this simple frosting recipe. Cocoa powder, vanilla, and salt are added for flavor, and heavy cream makes this frosting rich, smooth, and extra creamy.
Add this classic chocolate frosting to your next batch of vanilla cupcakes or vanilla sheet cake for parties and celebrations. Looking for a vanilla frosting instead? Try my vanilla buttercream frosting recipe.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Butter - The base of the recipe. I only recommend making this recipe with sticks of real butter, not margarine or vegetable oil spread (commonly found in a tub). I recommend unsalted butter so that you can control the amount of salt in your buttercream, but salted butter can be substituted (and the listed salt omitted) if desired.
- Confectioner's sugar - Sometimes called powdered sugar or icing sugar. Confectioner's sugar sweetens and stabilizes the frosting, making it thick and pipeable. I don't recommend blending granulated sugar to make confectioner's sugar because you often can't achieve the superfine texture of manufactured confectioner's sugar at home.
- Vanilla extract - Adds depth of flavor to your frosting.
- Salt - Balances with the sweetness of the frosting and helps it taste less sweet. I don't recommend omitting the salt unless you're using salted butter.
- Heavy cream - Creates a creamy, smooth texture. Whole milk can work as a substitute. I don't recommend lower fat milk alternatives because they won't add a creamy texture to the frosting. The fat in the milk is what creates a creamy texture.
Tips and tricks
Whisk dry ingredients - After measuring, whisk your dry ingredients together until you don't see any clumps. You can also use a flour sifter or fine mesh sieve for this if you don't have a whisk handy. Cocoa powder is often clumpy straight from the container so it's important not to skip this step if you'd like a smooth, creamy buttercream.
Use a hand mixer or stand mixer - This frosting must be whipped with a whisk attachment for several minutes, so I recommend using a mixer instead of trying to mix it by hand.
To bring butter to room temperature - Set your butter out on the counter about 1 hour before making your frosting. To bring it to room temperature faster, unwrap your butter and slice it into pieces. Small pieces warm up faster than a whole stick.
Don't be tempted to use the microwave - I don't recommend microwaving your butter because any melted butter in the recipe can ruin the texture of the frosting.
Don't skip the salt - The salt listed in this recipe helps balance with the sweetness of the frosting and enhances the flavor.
Frequently asked questions
This recipe makes enough chocoalte frosting to frost the following cupcake quantities and cake sizes:
- 6-inch three layer cake
- 18 cupcakes with piped frosting
- 24 cupcakes spread with a knife
- 9x13 sheet cake
- 13x18 sheet cake
- 8-inch or 9-inch two layer cake with thin frosting on the tops, sides, and middle. For thick frosting all over, make an additional ½ batch of frosting.
I don't recommend it. Buttercream frosting is a traditional, very sweet frosting that is often found in grocery store bakeries and used on birthday cakes. It is popular because it's easy to prepare with two main ingredients - butter and confectioner's sugar. Since buttercream frosting includes so few ingredients, it is not easy to alter or make less sweet. Adding less sugar makes the frosting too soft to pipe and tastes like sweetened butter.
Instead, I'd suggest making a less sweet frosting recipe like ermine frosting, homemade whipped cream, Italian meringue buttercream, or Swiss meringue buttercream.
Baked goods can be frosted with buttercream the day before an event and left at room temperature in a sealed container. Keep in mind that butter (and in turn, buttercream) melts around 90 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit.
If your location is nearing this temperature, I'd recommend refrigerating your baked goods until an hour before you're ready to serve them. Refrigerating your frosted baked goods for a short amount of time will not hurt them. However, you will want to give them some time to come to room temperature before serving.
Here's a fantastic article about how frosting holds up to heat: The Best Cake Frosting For Hot Weather
No, chocolate buttercream frosting can be kept at room temperature for 3 to 4 days with no issues. However, if your frosting contains other ingredients like eggs or cream cheese, it must be stored in the refrigerator.
Leftover buttercream frosting can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Troubleshooting
Buttercream frosting is made with butter, which melts around 90 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit. If your home is nearing that temperature or your cake is being displayed outside or in the sunlight, it may begin to melt.
Confectioner's sugar and cocoa powder can contain lumps straight from the container. For chocolate frosting I specifically note in the recipe card to sift or whisk your dry ingredients before beginning. Otherwise, lumps of cocoa are likely to be found throughout your frosting.
While I find chocolate buttercream to be slightly less sweet than a vanilla buttercream, they're still two of the sweetest types of frostings out there. You likely chose buttercream because it's made with two main ingredients, butter and sugar, and it requires no cooking. The trade-off for being so easy to make is that it is very sweet. Buttercream frosting relies on the confectioner's sugar to stabilize it, making it thick and pipeable. If you reduce the amount of sugar in the recipe, your frosting will get too soft to pipe and taste a lot like sweetened butter. I don't recommend reducing the sugar in this recipe for those reasons. Don't skip the salt in this recipe - it helps balance the sweetness of the frosting.
Buttercream frosting can have a grainy texture if the butter isn't room temperature or if the sugar isn't confectioner's sugar. Room temperature butter melds seamlessly with the sugar, and the liquids in the butter help melt the sugar granules. If your confectioner's sugar contains anti-caking agents like cornstarch, this can also add noticeable texture. Granulated sugar does not work in this recipe. I don't even recommend blending your granulated sugar to make confectioner's sugar because this process doesn't usually achieve the fine, powdered texture you get from store bought confectioner's sugar.
Allow your buttercream to set at room temperature for a few minutes. Add a bit more heavy cream and continue to whip. This allows the butter to warm up (if it was still a bit cold) and adds more moisture to help dissolve those sugar granules.
When refrigerated, buttercream frosting will firm up. Allow refrigerated frosting come to room temperature before spreading. If your room temperature frosting is still too thick to spread, add a splash of heavy cream or whole milk and mix until incorporated.
Recommended
📖 Recipe
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups (339 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 4 cups (456 g) confectioner's sugar
- 6 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup (57 g) heavy cream, or milk
Instructions
- In a bowl, add confectioner's sugar and cocoa powder. Sift or whisk to remove lumps, then set aside.
- In a separate bowl, add butter. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat until creamy and smooth, about a minute. Add confectioner's sugar and cocoa powder mixture, 1 cup at a time, and starting slowly, mix until ingredients are fully combined. Then, whip at high speed for 2-3 minutes, or until light and fluffy. Add vanilla extract, salt, and heavy cream, then beat for another minute until fluffy.
- Pipe or spread frosting with a knife onto cupcakes and serve.
Equipment Recommendations
Notes
- Recipe makes enough to frost up to 18 cupcakes with piped frosting, 24 cupcakes spread with a knife, a 9x13 sheet cake, a 13x18 sheet cake, or a round 8 or 9 inch 2-layer cake with thin frosting. For thick frosting on all sides of a layer cake, make an additional ½ batch of frosting.
- This frosting will crust, so sprinkles or additional decorations need to be added before your frosting dries.
- Buttercream frosting will keep for up to a week in the refrigerator or 3 months in the freezer.
Made this YUMMY frosting for my nephew’s birthday cupcakes. My family are not big sweet eaters but, everyone raved about the frosting. It’s delicious, light & fluffy and pipes perfectly. I added white & chocolate jimmies to top it off. Beautiful & tasty too !
Making this frosting for my birthday cake!
Great choice Karen! Let us know how you like it, and happy birthday!