Creamy Chocolate Frosting is a staple chocolate frosting recipe that you need to have in your recipe box. This frosting recipe is buttery, chocolatey, and it pipes a beautiful swirl. This is a fantastic chocolate buttercream frosting recipe!
This is the BEST Homemade Chocolate Frosting Recipe
I use this chocolate frosting recipe ALL the time. It’s fantastic on chocolate cake, chocolate cupcakes, or even sandwiched between two chocolate chip cookies! Just like a buttercream frosting recipe, you need a classic chocolate frosting in your back pocket. NO more canned frosting for you, this recipe is so easy, and always turns out perfect!
How Do You Make Chocolate Frosting From Scratch?
- Make sure your butter is room temperature
- I always use salted butter, but this is a personal preference, you can use unsalted butter, but you might want to add a pinch of salt while you’re mixing to enhance the chocolate flavor!
- You can use regular or dark unsweetened cocoa powder in this frosting recipe. It depends on the flavor (and look) you’re going for!
- You can sub in warm coffee in place of the water in this recipe to really amp up the chocolate flavor!
How To Pipe Frosting Onto Cupcakes
The great thing about this frosting recipe, is that it spreads onto cakes so smoothly, but also pipes beautiful swirls! Here are some piping tips:
- Since this makes a large batch of frosting, only use a few cups of frosting in a frosting bag fitted with a piping tip. Don’t try and fit all the frosting into the bag at once.
- You can pipe the frosting using a zip-top bag with the corner snipped off for a make-shift piping bag!
- I like using the Piping tips: Wilton 1M, Wilton 2A, Ateco 828
Delicious ways to use Chocolate Buttercream Frosting!
- On My Insane Peanut Butter Cup Cake…
- You can use this on my favorite chocolate cupcakes, which is an amazingly easy and soft chocolate cupcake recipe.
- Or if you’re feeling adventurous, this Bacon Pecan Crumble Chocolate Cake, is an INCREDIBLE chocolate cake, with the most delicious salty/sweet crumble on top!
This frosting recipe is my go-to recipe and it has never let me down. It’s a simple, and quick frosting recipe that is so versatile.
PrintCreamy Chocolate Frosting
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 5 mins
- Total Time: 10 mins
- Yield: 3 1/2 cups 1x
- Category: Frosting
- Method: Mixer
- Cuisine: Dessert
Description
This creamy chocolate frosting makes enough to frost and fill a 9″ layer cake or pipe swirls onto 24 cupcakes
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 8 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup very warm water
Instructions
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter, cocoa powder, powdered sugar, vanilla, and warm water and mix on low speed, until the mixture just comes together.
- Slowly increase the speed to medium and beat the frosting for 2 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
- Let the frosting cool for 15 minutes before using.
- You can spread this frosting or pipe it into swirls!
Notes
Store airtight at room temperature for up to 3 days, or store airtight in the refrigerator for up to 7 days, OR store airtight in the freezer for up to a month.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/4 cup
- Calories: 334
- Sugar: 66.6 g
- Sodium: 62.4 mg
- Fat: 8.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 68.8 g
- Protein: 0.7 g
- Cholesterol: 20.3 mg
This frosting is legit!! I’ve baked a lot of cupcakes, and this is by far the best frosting I have ever made! I used dark roast coffee. It mixed up beautifully and piped like a dream! YUM!
SO glad you liked it!!
I used this icing for a chocolate cake for a church dinner. Someone told me today they are still dreaming about it, especially the icing. Delicious! I did use hazelnut coffee in place of the water and it was amazing. Not too sweet and piped easy.
Love that you added the hazelnut coffee!! Great idea!!
Love this recipe! I used only 32 oz of powdered sugar so it wouldn’t be too sweet. I also substituted whole milk for the water. Thanks!
I just tried it and it was yum!!
My hubby doesn’t have sweet tooth, can I reduce the amount of sugar? If yes, how much maximum can be reduced?
Also do I need to change the amount of butter or water if the sugar is reduced?
Thanks!
Super easy to follow and the best frosting I’ve ever had. I will be using this recipe from now on.
so happy you love it!
Could you use heavy cream instead of water?
If you would like to use cream, that would work, however you will need to increase the amount to 1 – 1 1/4 or so cups. The cream is thicker than the water and will require more to get the same creaminess!
Do you have to store this in the fridge once piped or will it hold its shape?
It will hold its shape!
for how long will it hold its shape????
After trying several different recipes last weekend and being totally disappointed with each one, I searched again on the internet and luckily found your recipe. It turned out perfectly and was so much easier than the others!! I wish that I had found your recipe first…it would have saved me a lot of wasted time, money and frustration! Thank you so much for sharing!!
So glad you liked it! It is such an easy recipe, and I always get great results!
Should the water be hot or warm? Can’t wait to try this recipe!
sorry, very warm!
Awesome! I am looking forward to trying this. Frosting Fridays are fun!