The Best Dark Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
The Best Dark Chocolate Buttercream Frosting is rich and creamy and intense. Perfect for Dark Chocolate lovers and so good on chocolate baked goods.
We love our The Best Chocolate Buttercream Frosting recipe. It is our go-to Chocolate Frosting and we use it all the time. But sometimes you want a Chocolate Frosting that is a little more intense. A little more sophisticated. A little more chocolate-y. When those times come around we pull out the recipe for our The Best Dark Chocolate Buttercream Frosting. Mmmm … mmmm …. good!
How to Make
Step 1: Add the butter and vanilla to a mixing bowl. The butter should be “slightly softened” which means it is still cold but has warmed up enough so you can press your thumb down into the stick of butter. If the butter is straight out of the refrigerator it will bounce around against the paddles of the mixer and won’t mix with the vanilla. If it is too soft, the butter will start melting during the creaming process and the consistency of your icing won’t be correct.
Step 2: Mix the butter and vanilla together on medium speed until thoroughly combined (about 2 minutes.) You want to give the butter and vanilla and chance to meld together. Use a spatula to scrape the butter and vanilla mixture down from the sides of the bowl before moving on to the next step.
Step 3: The key to a really Dark Chocolate Frosting is the type of Cocoa Powder you use. You will need a Double Dutch Dark Cocoa Powder. We purchased our Dark Cocoa Powder on Amazon but we have also seen it at our local grocery store.
Step 4: In a separate bowl, use a food scale to measure 1 Pound of Powdered Sugar. If you don’t have a food scale, measure 4 cups instead. We normally do not sift the powdered sugar and instead rely on the mixer to do that work for us.
Step 5: Add 1/2 cup of the Dutch Cocoa Powder to the bowl with the Powdered Sugar.
Step 6: Use a fork to whisk the Cocoa Powder and Powdered Sugar. We highly recommend that you do not skip this step because you need to fully incorporate the dry ingredients to maximize the chocolate flavor in your frosting and avoid pockets of pure cocoa powder in the frosting.
Step 7: Pour the Cocoa Powder/Powdered Sugar mixture into the mixing bowl with the butter/vanilla mixture.
Step 8: Two Sisters Tip – cover the mixer with a towel during this part of the mixing process to keep the powdered sugar from flying out of the mixer. Start your mixer (or electric beater) on the lowest setting and keep it on low until the butter and sugar are incorporated (about 30 seconds). Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl and then increase the speed to medium-high and mix for another 30-45 seconds so the frosting gets light and fluffy.
Step 9: Add one tablespoon of non-flavored brewed and cool coffee. The coffee will not add a coffee taste to the Dark Chocolate Buttercream but instead greatly enhances the chocolate flavor. Mix until the frosting is the correct consistency.
Step 10: ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS taste your frosting to determine if it is the right consistency. If you need to add a little bit more liquid you can add more coffee a 1/2 teaspoon at a time.
How to Serve
How much frosting will you need? That always depends on how thick or thin you apply the frosting or how much decorating you do but here are a couple of guidelines. Our recipe should make enough Dark Chocolate Frosting to cover a 9″ x 13″ sheet cake or a two-layer 8″ cake. If you are making cupcakes, you should be able to frost 24 cupcakes if you apply the frosting with a knife. If you swirl on the frosting with a pastry bag you should be able to frost 15-18 cupcakes depending on the size of the swirl.
Expert Tips and FAQ’s
Frosting stored in an air-tight container in the refrigerator should be good for up to a week. If you carefully wrap the frosting in order to avoid freezer burn, the frosting should be fine in the freezer for 3-4 months.
No, the frosting does not need to be refrigerated. For example, brownies frosted with this Dark Chocolate Icing would be fine left out on the counter for 2-3 days if the pan was tightly covered with aluminum foil. That said, we usually refrigerate our frosted desserts to keep the baked good from going stale even if the frosting would be fine. We think frosting tastes best at room temperature so we will then remove the item from the refrigerator a couple of hours before we will serve them.
Add another teaspoon of the cooled brewed coffee and mix again. Continue to add the coffee, a teaspoon at a time, until the frosting is the consistency that you like it
Other Chocolate Frosting Recipes You Will Love
Did you Make This Recipe? Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @twosisterscrafting on Instagram so we can see it!
And don’t forget to follow us on Tiktok, Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram!
The Best Dark Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
The Best Dark Chocolate Buttercream Frosting is rich and creamy and intense. Perfect for Dark Chocolate lovers and so good on chocolate baked goods.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Butter, slightly softened (We use Salted Sweet Cream Butter)
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 1/2 cup Double Dutch Dark Cocoa Powder
- 1 pound Powdered Sugar (or 4 cups)
- 1 tablespoon Coffee (brewed and cooled)
Instructions
- Add the butter and vanilla to a mixing bowl. The butter should be “slightly softened” which means it is still cold but has warmed up enough so you can press your thumb down into the stick of butter.
- Mix the butter and vanilla together on medium speed until thoroughly combined (about 2 minutes.)
- In a separate bowl, use a food scale to measure 1 Pound of Powdered Sugar. If you don’t have a food scale, measure 4 cups instead. We normally do not sift the powdered sugar and instead rely on the mixer to do that work for us.
- Add 1/2 cup Double Dutch Dark Cocoa Powder to the bowl with the Powdered Sugar.
- Use a fork to whisk the Cocoa Powder and Powdered Sugar. We highly recommend that you do not skip this step because you need to fully incorporate the dry ingredients to maximize the chocolate flavor in your frosting and avoid pockets of pure cocoa powder in the frosting.
- Pour the Cocoa Powder/Powdered Sugar mixture into the mixing bowl with the butter/vanilla mixture.
- Start your mixer (or electric beater) on the lowest setting and keep it on low until the butter and sugar are incorporated (about 30 seconds). Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl and then increase the speed to medium-high and mix for another 30-45 seconds so the frosting gets light and fluffy.
- Add one tablespoon of non-flavored brewed and cool coffee. The coffee will not add a coffee taste to the Dark Chocolate Buttercream but instead greatly enhances the chocolate flavor. Mix until the frosting is the correct consistency.
- Taste your frosting to determine if it is the right consistency. If you need to add a little bit more liquid you can add more coffee a 1/2 teaspoon at a time.
Did you Make this Recipe? Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @twosisterscrafting on Instagram so we can see it!
