This is my all-time favorite chocolate frosting recipe, and I think that once you try it it’ll be yours, too! Just 6 ingredients needed and it will easily frost a 2 layer 8″ or 9″ cake or generously ice a dozen cupcakes!
The Best Chocolate Frosting
Maybe you’ve seen this chocolate frosting recipe around here before. It’s made quite a few appearances, on my chocolate cake,ย vanilla cupcakes (pictured above), and myย vanilla cake (just to name a few), and finally it’s getting its own place on the blog.
Use it to top off your favorite cake or cupcake recipe, or just enjoy by the spoonful (you’ll get no judgement from me!).
What makes this the best chocolate frosting:
Well, you’re going to love it because it:
- Is richly chocolatey, without being too rich. The chocolate flavor complements whatever you put it on without being overwhelming!
- Is soft, smooth, and creamy.
- Uses less sugar than classic buttercream frosting or chocolate buttercream, perfect if you think most frosting recipes are too sugary or sweet!
- Absolutely melts in your mouth.
- Pipes beautifully, or frosts a cake smoothly.
What You Need
Here’s what you need:
- Chocolate. Real melted chocolate gives my chocolate frosting its incredible flavor and firm but fudgy consistency once it’s cooled. Chocolate bars (my preference) or chocolate chips will work fine.
- Powdered Sugar. This thickens and sweetens the frosting. One thing I love about this frosting is that it uses less sugar than your average frosting recipe.
- Butter. I use unsalted then add a pinch of salt for best flavor. Your butter should be at room temperature.ย If itโs too cold, small bits of the chocolate may harden as your ingredients are being combined and you will have chocolate bits in the mix rather than a smooth chocolate frosting.
- Vanilla Extract. Added for flavor! Any good chocolate is enhanced with a splash of vanilla to add depth of flavor.
- Heavy Cream. The small amount of heavy cream is the other part of what gives this chocolate frosting its smooth texture and rich flavor.
SAM’S TIP: You can use dark chocolate, semisweet, or milk chocolate for this frosting. If you want to use white chocolate, see my white chocolate buttercream recipe instead
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe and all details, please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Chocolate Frosting
- Chop chocolate into small pieces (only if you’re using a bar, no need to chop if you’re using chips) and melt in 15-30 second increments, stirring in-between, until completely melted. semi-sweet chocolate into same-sized pieces and place in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat the chocolate in the microwave for 30 seconds and stir. Let the chocolate cool until it’s no longer warm to the touch (but not re-solidifying) before continuing.
- Beat butter until creamy, then drizzle in melted (cooled) chocolate. Make sure the chocolate’s cooled, or the butter will melt and you’ll have a greasy chocolate frosting!
- Add the sugar in small amounts, stirring after each addition. Thoroughly stir in salt and vanilla.
- Drizzle in heavy cream and gradually turn up your mixer speed to high. Beat for 30 seconds for a light, silky smooth frosting!
Frequently Asked Questions
Make sure that your chocolate hasn’t begun to re-solidify before you add it to the butter. If this happens, small pieces may harden and you’ll have flecks of chocolate throughout the frosting. This will make piping the icing especially difficult.
If you heat the chocolate too quickly in the microwave, it could seize, giving it a grainy, rather than smooth, appearance. If this happens, toss out the chocolate and start over or your frosting will be pebbly.
While heat can make a frosting soft, melt-y, and even runny, with this recipe the culprit is usually that your chocolate was too hot. Stir it occasionally as it cools and make sure if you touch the melted chocolate or the bottom of the bowl it doesn’t feel warm to the touch.
Unfortunately I don’t recommend using cocoa powder for this recipe. If you’d like to use cocoa powder, see my chocolate buttercream instead.
More Recipes You Might Like
Enjoy!
Letโs bake together! Make sure to check out the how-to VIDEO in the recipe card!
Chocolate Frosting Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 oz (170 g) semisweet chocolateยฒ chopped into small pieces of roughly the same size
- 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature
- 2 cups (250 g) powdered sugar
- ยฝ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ยผ teaspoon saltยณ
- 2 Tablespoons (30 ml) heavy cream
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Place your chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 30 seconds. Stir well. Return chocolate to microwave and heat for another 15 seconds and stir again. Continue heating chocolate for 15 seconds, stirring after each, until chocolate is completely melted and smooth.6 oz (170 g) semisweet chocolateยฒ
- Allow chocolate to cool for at least 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. You want chocolate to cool so that it is not hot to the touch, otherwise it will melt your butter and sugar and the frosting will not turn out.
- While the chocolate is cooling, place butter in a separate bowl and use a stand mixer or electric mixer to beat until creamy.1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter
- Add melted, cooled chocolate and stir well.
- Gradually add sugar, scraping down the sides and bottom of bowl occasionally so that ingredients are well combined.2 cups (250 g) powdered sugar
- Sprinkle in salt and vanilla extract, stir well.ยฝ teaspoon vanilla extract, ยผ teaspoon saltยณ
- With mixer on low, gradually add heavy cream to frosting. Gradually increase speed to high and beat for 30 seconds.2 Tablespoons (30 ml) heavy cream
- Pipe or spread frosting onto prepared, cooled baked good.
Notes
ยนHow many cupcakes/how much cake will this frost?
This recipe will modestly cover 24 cupcakes or generously (as seen in the photos above) cover 12 cupcakes. You can also cover an 8″ or 9″ cake or a 9×13″ sheet cake. If you want to use the frosting for decorative borders around the cake, increase the recipe by 50%.ยฒChocolate
If you don’t have semisweet chocolate bars you can use 1 cup (170g) of semisweet chocolate chips instead.ยณButter
I recommend using unsalted butter, but if you only have salted on hand you can use that, just leave out the salt in this recipe.Making in Advance
This frosting may be made in advance. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator with a piece of plastic wrap pressed firmly against the surface. When ready to use, let it come to room temperature then remove the plastic wrap and stir again to regain that smooth consistency before using.Piping Tip
I used an Ateco 848 piping tip to pipe the cupcakes seen in the photos above.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
This recipe was originally published January 8th, 2018. While the recipe remains unchanged, I’ve updated the text of the post photos and added a how-to video.
Jane P
Hi! I was wondering if you could replace to chocolate with cocoa powder? I can’t get any chocolate right now, and all I have is cocoa powder. Thanks!
Sam
Yes you can! I’d probably add about 1/3-1/2 cup of cocoa powder, then taste test and add more powdered sugar/cream as needed. Enjoy!
Jane p
Thanks!
Tara
To make the recipe as written for a 2 tier round cake (filled), would you need to double the recipe? Or would one batch do it. I notice you say it scantly covers 24 cupcakes but idk how that converts to a torted double layer cake .
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Tara! I use this frosting on my 2-layered chocolate cake recipe which uses 8″ pans and one batch will cover the entire cake. ๐
Ellie
I am wworking on it, though it turned out, i didnt follow the insructions
Sugar Spun Run
Good Luck, Ellie!
Erin
I made this last night to go with your favorite vanilla cake! Havenโt tried the cake yet because itโs for someoneโs birthday. BUT..I did get to help myself to a spoonful of icing. So yummy! Thanks for always giving out wonderful recipes with the easiest instructions!
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed the recipe and found the directions easy to follow, Erin! I hope that the person you are giving it to has a wonderful birthday! Enjoy the cake! ๐
Lindsey
Can you make this the day before you want to frost the cake? How long will it keep?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Lindsey! Yes, it can be made ahead of time and stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 1 week. ๐
Rita Johnson
Finally I found the perfect recipe for chocolate icing! Thank you so much ,my family loves it ๐
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that your search is over and your family loved it, Rita! Thank you for commenting. Enjoy! ๐
shekinah
best frosting ever!!!
my little brother says he could eat the whole bowl:)
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that the frosting was a hit, Shekinah! Thank you for commenting. ๐
Tammy
This is so delicious….my family loved this frosting….probably more than the cake.
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that it turned out delicious and that the frosting was a big hit, Tammy! Thanks for commenting. ๐
Joyce
I used this to make a birthday cake for my daughter , I used a full 12 oz of semisweet chocolate chips and a full box of confectioners sugar and about 1/4 cup of cream along with the cup of butter . It made plenty to ice three layers with some left over . I didnโt have an electric mixer so I had to beat by hand ๐. Hope it tastes as good as it looks โค๏ธ๐
Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for trying my recipe, Joyce! I hope that the birthday cake is a hit and that your daughter has a wonderful birthday. Thanks for commenting. ๐
Harley
Yummy! I was wondering if you don’t have chocolate that would work, could I just use cocoa powder to get the chocolatey taste?
Sam
Hi Harley! I do think you could, I would start with 1/4 cup of cocoa powder and then add more to taste as desired. You may need to use a bit more heavy cream to get the proper consistency, too. I hope that helps!
Susan A Linn
I am confused about your weight for the powdered sugar. 1 Cup of powdered sugar weighs 120 grams, so 2 cups would be 240 not 320. Which is correct? The weight or the cup measurement? Thank you.
Sam
Sorry about the confusion, Susan! This recipe was written before I standardized my cup measurements to weights. At the time that I made it, I weighed 2 cups of powdered sugar to be 320g and that is what I would recommend using. I hope that helps!
Nilda
If I donโt have heavy cream can I substitute it with regular milk?
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Nilda! You could use milk (use a bit less as itโs thinner) or you can omit (the frosting will just be a bit thicker). I hope that helps! ๐
Anna K
Hello! can you use a dark chocolate instead? or do you have a recommendation on how to get a darker brown color? I am looking for a darker brown chocolate for frosting (it is going to be a football).
Thanks!
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Anna! Yes, dark chocolate will work just fine. I hope that your football cake turns out perfectly! ๐
Deb
I made this to frost vanilla cupcakes and used 4oz of semisweet chocolate and 2oz of bittersweet cacao 60%. Yummy! Thanks for a keeper of a recipe..
Sugar Spun Run
I am so glad that you enjoyed the chocolate frosting, Deb! I hope that you enjoy your cupcakes. Thank you for commenting. ๐
Julia
Hi! I wanted to know if this is a buttercream icing ? Thank you!
Sugar Spun Run
Hi, Julia! Yes, it is! I hope that you enjoy it. ๐