The Perfect Chocolate Buttercream Frosting recipe essential for birthday cakes and celebrations! It’s the best chocolate buttercream frosting I’ve ever tasted!
The Perfect Chocolate Buttercream Frosting is definitely a must in my house! Rich and delicious, this buttercream frosting is perfect for cakes, cupcakes and more.
This compliments so many delicious cakes and cupcakes, but my favorite is when it’s paired with my Best Chocolate Cake. It is literally the perfect chocolate frosting so it’s naturally so good on chocolate cupcakes or even my Vanilla Cake. But seriously, it is pretty amazing on anything it touches. Like a spoon works just fine, too!
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Made from just six simple ingredients, this buttercream frosting comes together quickly. This recipe yields enough to frost a three layer cake or three dozen cupcakes beautifully.
Here’s how I make it.
Ingredients for Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
You’ll need these ingredients to make this frosting.
- butter – softened. I prefer using salted butter.
- unsweetened cocoa powder
- confectioner’s sugar – also called powdered sugar
- milk
- vanilla extract – this homemade version is rich and delicious, but if you can use another quality vanilla if you wish.
- espresso powder – this adds a such a richness to the frosting further enhances the amazing chocolate flavor. It’s easy to make your own and is available in many grocery stores, cooking supply stores or online. This little extra ingredient heightens the deliciousness even more!
How to Make Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
To make this delicious frosting, you’ll need a large mixing bowl or a large bowl for a stand mixer.
- Add cocoa to large bowl or bowl of stand mixer. Whisk through the cocoa well to remove any lumps.
- Then, add softened butter to the bowl with cocoa. Cream together the butter and cocoa powder until well-combined.
- Next, alternately add sugar and milk to the cocoa mixture by adding 1 cup of sugar followed by about a tablespoon of milk. After each addition has been combined, turn mixer onto a HIGH speed for about a minute. Repeat until all sugar and milk have been added. This is important – so please make sure to mix it just as described in these instructions. It makes the frosting into fluffy, delicious perfection!
- Then add your vanilla extract and espresso powder and combine well.
- If your frosting appears too dry, add more milk, only one tablespoon at a time until it reaches the right consistency.
- If it appears too wet and does not hold its form, add more confectioner’s sugar, only one tablespoon at a time until it reaches the right consistency.
- Frost your cake or cupcakes as desired and enjoy!
Thankfully, this chocolate buttercream comes together quickly and makes plenty to frost a three layer cake or three dozen cupcakes beautifully.
Can I Store Extra Frosting?
Yes! If you have leftover buttercream frosting once you’ve frosted your cake, you can refrigerate or freeze it.
To Refrigerate
Place frosting in an airtight container. Refrigerate for up to 5 days. Once ready to use, remove from the refrigerator and allow to reach room temperature, then whisk well to fluff the frosting.
To Freeze
Place frosting in an airtight, freezer safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Once ready to use, place in refrigerator overnight to thaw, then remove from fridge for a short time prior to use as described previously and whisk to fluff the frosting.
More Favorite Frostings
Strawberry Buttercream Frosting
Whipped Cream – not a frosting, but still a great topping to many desserts.
Here’s my Perfect Chocolate Buttercream Frosting Recipe. I can’t wait to hear how you love it.
Perfect Chocolate Buttercream Frosting Recipe
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (339 g) butter, softened
- 1 cup (84 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 5 cups (567.5 g) confectioner’s sugar
- ½ cup (113.5 g) milk, whole
- 2 teaspoons (9 g) vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon (1 g) espresso powder
Instructions
- Add cocoa powder to a large bowl or bowl of stand mixer. Whisk through to remove any lumps.
- Cream together butter and cocoa powder until well-combined.
- Add confectioner's sugar to a large bowl. Whisk through to remove any lumps. Alternatively, you may sift the confectioner's sugar into the large bowl. Add the confectioner's sugar and milk to the cocoa mixture by adding 1 cup of confectioner's sugar followed by about a tablespoon of milk. After each addition has been combined, turn the mixer onto a high speed for about a minute. Repeat until all sugar and milk have been added.
- Add vanilla extract and espresso powder and combine well.
- If frosting appears too dry, add more milk, a tablespoon at a time until it reaches the right consistency. If it appears to wet and does not hold its form, add more confectioner’s sugar, a tablespoon at a time until it reaches the right consistency.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
You may also want to try my White Chocolate Buttercream Frosting recipe as well.
Robin – I cannot find espresso powder. Can I substitute instant coffee grains instead?
Hi Paul,
You can simply omit it or others have substituted with the Starbuck’s instant espresso packets (measured to equal the espresso powder) with good results. You could also use an instant coffee, but I would recommend reducing to about half of the amount of the espresso powder as I think it can leave a bit of a bitter aftertaste to the buttercream. Hope that helps! ~Robyn
Hi Robin,
Your frosting recipe looks great. i need to make a 12 x12 2 layer cake for a party. I will be filling it with some thing else how much do you think I will need. Will I be able to to smooth it and is it pipeable? if I make it on a Friday will it hold till sunday? lots of questions I know! thank you.
Hi Robyn, I can’t find espresso powder in Sri Lanka. What can use instead? Plz advise. Thank you. Can’t wait to try this recipe 🙂
Thushari.
Hello,
I LOVE the taste of this frosting. I used it to generously frost a 3 layer chocolate cake I made this week. One problem I did have was there was a bit of separation that left a whitish hue on the frosting. I probably wouldn’t make it again bc of this. Any thoughts on what might happened? I’m guessing the milk separated?
Thanks!
Hi Lisa,
I’ve not had that happen before or heard of anyone else having that issue. I’m a bit perplexed. Did you add all of your milk at once? I’m not sure why it would separate since I incorporate mine so slowly in the recipe.
I made this cake, and it was truly awesome and I can’t wait to make it again! I live in South Africa and I used Woolworth’s Hazelnut Ground Coffee and it worked great!
Mmmkay I followed this recipe to the letter and twice it has turned grainy and pale during the adding of icing sugar one cup at a time with one tablespoon of milk… Am I reading/understanding correctly that I am to beat on high between each sugar and milk addition? So at the end there will have been about 5 minutes of beating this frosting on high speed plus time beating it on low to incorporate dry and wet? Feels like it needs way less beating especially on high… why are we supposed to do it like that, is there a food science reason?
Also I assume that we only use 1 cup cocoa to 5 cups icing sugar because of the cost but if a gal wanted truly decadent chocolatey goodness with less sweet she could change that ratio to more cocoa and subtract that from the icing sugar… without consequence.
I have tried to bake a few cakes for friends few times but it never would really turn out good…always a disaster, either the cake was hard or the sugar was less.. or I got them burnt 🙁 One day I chanced upon this recipe and I said lets give it a shot!! The moment I took it from the oven it was so moist and nice…I did the ganache icing and took it to office next day to share it with my colleagues.. Trust me – everyone started asking me the recipe and even said I should get into full time baking and start taking orders…:) They thought I had ordered the cake from a shop 🙂 I havent tried the frosting tho…beacuse I used the ganache frosting on this and it was still amazing..
Gonna try the buttercream soon…Keep it up!!
Loving it!!
I made this as cupcakes this weekend. The batter seemed too thin, but I baked it and they turned out perfect! I received so many compliment on how moist the cupcakes were. Thank you!
This frosting is delicious. I used it for a chocolate cake I made. As someone else stated, this recipe makes a lot of frosting. I had 2 single layer cakes that I planned on keeping separate and just frosting one of them. So I halved the frost recipe, but I ended up with so much frosting that I just frosted both of the layers. Great recipe!
Hi.
I hope you can help, I need the recipe in metric, both this and the chocolat cake. Need it ASAP
Hi.
Have a big problem with the 3 stick of butter, what is the weight? Please help?
This should help you with conversions for butter – https://addapinch.com/cooking/cooking-conversion-charts/
You might find this conversion chart helpful — https://addapinch.com/cooking/cooking-conversion-charts/