Top your sweet treats with the BEST Chocolate Buttercream Frosting! It’s so smooth, full of chocolate flavor and pairs perfectly with any cake or cupcake you pipe it onto. The store-bought stuff simply can’t compare!
Easy Chocolate Buttercream
Really, what’s the appeal of store-bought frosting? Sure, it’s easy to just open up a container and smear it onto your cake, but it’s never as good as homemade buttercream frosting. This is a rich, fluffy, truly decadent buttercream frosting that those containers just can’t hold a candle to.
Oh, and I should probably mention – this recipe only takes 5 minutes from start to finish and calls for just 5 simple and inexpensive ingredients. If your reasoning for using store-bought frosting is that it’s easy, I’ve got news for you! This recipe is easy as well and double as delicious.
There’s one big challenge when making chocolate buttercream frosting, and it’s a hot topic of debate in my household. When you’re done making the buttercream, who gets to lick the bowl and spoon?!
Why You’ll Love this Chocolate Buttercream Frosting Recipe:
- Easy: 5 minutes and 5 ingredients is all you need… does it get much easier than that? I don’t think so!
- Delectable: The rich chocolatey flavor and smooth texture of this buttercream frosting is downright delectable. It’s usually praised more than the cake I frost it with!
- Versatile: Chocolate frosting can be used in SO many different recipes. Get creative with how you use your homemade buttercream frosting!
How to Make Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
When a recipe is this easy and delicious, it’s truly a wonder why you’d ever frost a homemade cake with a store-bought frosting! Treat yourself to the frosting you deserve with these simple steps.
Be sure to see the recipe card below for full ingredients & instructions!
- Beat the butter and vanilla until it’s light and fluffy.
- Mix in the cocoa powder.
- Gradually add in powdered sugar.
- Pour in and mix the heavy cream.
- Beat everything until fully combined, fluffy and smooth. Enjoy!
You can use any cocoa powder you prefer, as long as it is unsweetened. Use natural cocoa powder for a more natural taste, and use Dutch-process cocoa powder for a smoother taste.
It’s pretty annoying to frost a cake or cupcake, only to have a lump of powdered sugar or cocoa powder get everywhere. To avoid any lumps in the frosting, use a sieve to sift the powders into the mix. This is optional, but highly encouraged to avoid any lumps!
Making your cupcakes picture-perfect is actually pretty easy! I use a large piping bag fitted with the cake decorating tip #1M. Just fill the bag with the chocolate frosting, then pipe it onto the cupcakes in a counter-clockwise direction. Swirl up and toward the center for the prettiest results.
Store chocolate buttercream frosting in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months. To use the frozen buttercream frosting, just let it thaw in the fridge for a few hours, then re-beat it before using. It should be good as new!
Recipe Tips and Notes
- You can change the consistency of the buttercream by altering the amounts of powdered sugar and heavy whipping cream.
- To enhance the rich flavor even more, consider adding some espresso powder for a fun mocha twist to this classic frosting recipe. Just a tablespoon will be enough for a lovely coffee taste!
- If your buttercream is noticeably gritty in texture, add just a little bit more cream and continue mixing until you have a smoother consistency. Sometimes, gritty buttercream means there’s not enough moisture in the mix.
Frost your yellow, chocolate, or strawberry cakes with this crazy good (and super easy) homemade chocolate buttercream frosting!
If you make this recipe be sure to leave us a comment or rating. Enjoy!
Easy Chocolate Buttercream Frosting Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter 226 grams, room temperature (2 sticks)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 4 grams
- 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 84 grams
- 4 cups powdered sugar 452 grams
- 1¼ cups heavy cream 284 grams
Equipment
- Kitchen Scale (optional)
- Hand Mixer (optional)
- Stand Mixer (optional)
- Fine-Mesh Sieve (optional)
- Piping Tip Set (optional)
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer), beat the butter and vanilla until smooth and fluffy.1 cup salted butter, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Add in the cocoa powder and mix on low until well-combined.1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- Gradually add in the powdered sugar, mixing on low speed to prevent too much powder being tossed out of the bowl.4 cups powdered sugar
- With the mixer on low, slowly pour in the heavy cream and beat until light, fluffy, and fully combined. You can adjust the amount of cream to change the consistency of the buttercream.1¼ cups heavy cream
- To frost cupcakes, fit a large piping bag with cake decorating tip #1M. Fill the piping bag with buttercream. Pipe buttercream onto cupcakes in a counter-clockwise direction, swirling up and toward the center.
Notes
- This recipe will frost 24 cupcakes (18 cupcakes if frosting is piled high) or a 2 layer, 9-inch round cake
- This buttercream recipe is decadent, chocolate-y, and very fluffy. It has quite a bit of heavy cream in it to provide that fluffy, creamy texture and flavor.
- Sift cocoa powder and powdered sugar through a fine-mesh sieve to ensure you don’t have any lumps in the frosting (optional).
- This is not “shelf-stable.” It needs to be refrigerated whether stored alone or frosted on baked goods.
- This buttercream pipes fairly well, though I wouldn’t use it for intricate designs. But you can use it to make swirls and/or piped borders.
- You need to use a hand mixer or a standing mixer to beat the buttercream into its smooth, fluffy texture. Adjust powdered sugar and cream amounts to change the consistency of the buttercream.
- If buttercream becomes too soft while piping it, place in the refrigerator to firm up for 10-15 minutes.
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Thanks for stopping by, Rejeanne!