Chocolate Whipped Buttercream Frosting that tastes like light chocolate whipped cream frosting. This whipped chocolate frosting is the best!
I’m not much of a frosting person. So many times frostings are heavy and overly sweet. Not this Chocolate Whipped Buttercream Frosting, though.
It’s super light and fluffy – like an ultralight chocolate mousse in frosting form. And since this frosting falls in the semisweet to bittersweet chocolate range, it isn’t too sweet either.
Tips to make chocolate whipped buttercream frosting
A couple notes about this frosting – first, the cooked milk/flour mixture needs to be completely cool before continuing on. If it’s still warm, it will melt the butter, and the frosting will be too loose.
Second, don’t cut the whipping steps short. The frosting needs to be whipped on high for several minutes in order to have its ultralight texture.
Also, a reader (thanks again!) left a comment saying that chilling the frosting helped it come together for her. So, please check out the comments below the recipe.
*Note – I had several comments saying that the frosting was separating. I worked on the recipe and changed it to make it whip up easier.
More chocolate frosting recipes!
- Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
- Chocolate Malted Milk Frosting
More whipped buttercream frosting recipes!
- Whipped Buttercream Frosting
- Whipped Brown Sugar Buttercream Frosting
- Vanilla Bean Whipped Buttercream Frosting
If you’ve tried this chocolate whipped buttercream frosting recipe, don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below. I love to hear from people who’ve made my recipes!
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Chocolate Whipped Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups salted butter at cool room temperature
- 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder I use Dutch-processed
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, whisk flour and milk together until well-combined.
- Heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens.
- Remove from heat, and let it cool to room temperature.*
- Stir in vanilla.
- While the mixture is cooling, cream the butter, sugar, cocoa powder, and salt together until light and fluffy on medium high, about 5 minutes.
- Add the completely cooled milk mixture.
- Beat it for about 5 minutes on high until it looks like whipped cream. It may look separated at first, so keep beating it until it comes together and looks like a whipped cream.
- If it looks separated after about 7 minutes of whipping, cover, and chill for about 30 minutes. Then, continue whipping for about 5 minutes, or until it looks like whipped cream.
Notes
**Nutrition facts are estimates.
Nutrition
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Published 8/23/13. Updated with new photos and tips 6/18/18.
Reader Interactions
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Comments & Reviews
Barbara O'Keefe says
I just now made this and wow! Thanks! Great recipe!
Kate says
Thank you! I’m so glad that you liked the frosting! Thank you for commenting. =)
Kim Lacosse says
I have made the vanilla whipped frosting with a hand mixer and it worked perfectly! My husband loves this frosting and could just eat it with a spoon! Amazing recipe!
Kate says
Thank you!! I’m so glad that you and your husband like the frosting! Also, thanks for your note about using a hand mixer! It always helps to hear what works for people. Thanks again! =)
Substitution question says
Hi! Quick question. I’m baking for a group that includes people with wheat allergies and gluten intolerance. Would this recipe work ok swapping the flour for cornstarch or potato starch, do you think?
Kate says
I have a vanilla version of this frosting, and I’ve heard from people who have used cornstarch to thicken the milk instead of flour. I would guess that it would work out ok with this one, too. Good luck! =)
Donna says
I just made this OMG is it good
Kate says
Thank you! I’m so glad that you liked it! Thank you for coming back to comment. =)
Rebecca says
Could melted chocolate be used? I need a good white chocolate whipped buttercream.
Kate says
When I tried melted chocolate, it didn’t work well for me, and I ended up with little pieces of chocolate in the frosting. There may be a way to make it work, but, unfortunately I haven’t found it.
Jarna Hector says
After beating the sugar mixture for 5 minutes I was like hmm still gritty but after a minute of beating with the flour added, it was soooo lovely. Wow.
Now, it’s kind of thin for frosting a cupcake…i followed the instructions to a T
Kate says
Thank you! The flour mixture does make all the difference. =) Thank you for taking the time to comment!
Beth says
Great frosting! I was looking for a chocolate whipped cream frosting and found this recipe. It was some of the best frosting I’ve had. Thank you!
Kate says
Thank you! I’m so glad that you liked it! Thanks for commenting! =)
Em says
I’d take your frosting, especially if it’s this frosting. This is some of the best chocolate frosting I’ve ever had! It was just as light as you said. Perfect, perfect perfect! Can’t wait to try your other frosting recipes!
Kate says
Thanks so much! I’m glad you liked it! I hope you enjoy the other frosting recipes, too. =)
Kris says
I was thinking of a chocolate version of The Pioneer Woman’s Best frosting I ever ate… this is it!! This is going on cupcakes later this week. Thanks!!
Kate says
You’re welcome! =)
April says
Just found this recipe and thought I’d give it a try today while I do more of my holiday baking. I’m not really big on frosting so excited to see how this tastes. My husband and son always laugh at me when I flip my cupcakes or cake slices upside down so most of the frosting comes off. From all the comments though I think with this that won’t be necessary. Thanks.
Kate says
Haha! You sound like me! Hope you enjoy! =)
Rosalie Phillips says
Call me stupid but when you say “T.” Does that mean teaspoon or tablespoon?
Maria says
“T” stands for tablespoon
“t” stands for teaspoon
Rosalie Phillips says
Call me stupid but when you say “T.” Vanilla is that teaspoon or tablespoon?
Kate says
It’s not a stupid question! In my recipes, I use T. for tablespoon and tsp. for teaspoon. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask!
Rosalie Phillips says
Oh thank you! I accidentally posted the question twice. Ok, I’m off to making your chocolate whipped buttercream frosting. Wish me luck! I’m making a cake for my husband’s birthday….oh wait…..he doesn’t eat cake…..oh well, I’ll eat it.? It’s the thought right?
Rosalie Phillips says
You’re right! This recipe is so yummy! I did have trouble with the separating but not the sugar grittiness. I used Baker’s sugar. I will try it again when the weather is not so hot.
Carita says
OMG!! this recipe is AMAZING!!!
For those who are speaking to not being able to get the ‘grittiness’ of the sugar out of the icing, you simply aren’t whipping it enough. I also used my paddle attachment (vs the whip) on my kitchen aid. (kate referred to ‘beat’ vs ‘whip’ in the recipe)
I was skeptical how, even after beating the sugar and butter for 5 minutes, how the ‘grittiness’ would be gone. NOTE; the grittiness is still there when you pour in the cooled chocolate mixture. but… nearly as soon as i mixed the chocolate mixture in (upon a taste test) could see that grittiness was disappearing, but you REALLY have to beat the daylights out of it in the beginning, i think that’s the key.
I had NO problem with seperating at all, the only thing I did was add about 3 tbsp’s of icing sugar in to sweeten it up a bit as it was pretty bitter and I was using this icing for s’more’s cupcakes (kids), and then whipped it another minute or so. I found adding the icing sugar gave it a bit more stiffness as well. (as for the bitterness, I likely added too much cocoa, which I think I did, it’s not the recipe)
I’ve been seriously into baking for 15 years and this is now my standby icing. tomorrow I’m going to whip up a lemon version of this for pink lemonade cupcakes!!
sorry for the novel, but had to share my comments. Thanks Kate for sharing…
PS I don’t think anything but a stand mixer will work for this recipe.
Kate says
Thanks!! Thanks for the tip about the sugar, too. I hope that helps people who are having trouble with the separation and structure.
I think you’re right; I don’t know that a hand mixer has enough power to whip the butter and sugar as much as this recipe needs.
Ellie Trout says
Hi guys! I just wanted to let everyone know that a hand mixer DOES work. I made it a while ago and it turned out perfectly right.
Kate says
Thank you that! I have had a lot of comments on my original whipped buttercream saying that it doesn’t work with a hand mixer, so it’s good to hear from someone who had it turn out.
Maria says
I made it with hand mixer before but the whisk should be the flat one and not the wire type. I don’t know how to describe the attachment for the handmixer but there are two types. A flat type about half cm wide and the wire type which is thin. Reason behind this is it will tend to separate more with the thin one although I haven’t had a problem using this before. I hope this helps.
Shirley Gabbert says
Wrong, my hand mixer worked just fine. The only thing I have an issue with is that it’s now a little thin. No grit once I added the milk mixture. I’m cooling in the fridge a while, hope that helps.
Kate says
Thank you! I’m glad to hear that the hand mixer worked for you! The frosting should firm up quite a bit in the fridge. Thanks for commenting! =)
Ashley says
I used whipping cream instead of milk. By doing this I was able to eliminate the heating step. It was a great time saver and the frosting tasted great!
Kate says
Thanks for the tip! Some people have had trouble with that step, so that’s a great alternative!
Hala says
Hi Ashley, you followed the same steps but only substituted the whipping cream for the milk? if yes, how would that eliminate the heating step?
do you mean you just mix the flour with the whipping cream without heating it?
Thanks for taking the time to read my comment.
Maria says
Thanks for the tip. I never tried it with cream before. Sure it will taste good….just extra calories though :)
Sara says
Has anyone made this with powdered sugar? I used granulated like it says and the grains of sugar never really dissolved giving it an odd texture. It tasted good it was just a weird texture.
Kate says
I’m not sure. I haven’t heard from anyone who has tried it with powdered sugar. I’m sorry that it didn’t work out for you, though. I do have a good chocolate buttercream recipe that’s made with powdered sugar if you’re interested – https://www.ihearteating.com/2013/09/23/chocolate-buttercream-frosting/.
J-mama says
I tried this recipe and it ended up seperating really badly, but I figured out that’s because I tried to cream the butter when it was refrigerated. Anyway, I fixed it by adding in a BUNCH of powdered sugar and it got really thick and and amazing. So I guess it would work well with confectioners sugar!
Kate says
Thanks for the tip about the sugar! I’m glad that it worked out for you!! =)
nini mcdaniel says
Hi I wanted to try this recipe and wanted to know if I could flour instead of cornstarch
Kate says
I haven’t tried flour in this version, but my original whipped buttercream frosting uses flour. So, I think it would work in this recipe, too. Good luck! =)
Emily says
Gave the recipe a try today, didn’t have problems with it separating but it did liquify very quickly after removing from the kitchen aide. Didn’t stay nice and whipped but it still had a wonderful taste to it. What we didn’t use was stored away in the fridge, hopefully after a full night it will stay thick. I am thinking the problem was I kept it on the stove literally thirty seconds too long, didn’t burn but could tell it would be soon. *kid distracted me for a few seconds* Apparently that is all that it took to make the huge difference in the turn out. It took about twenty minutes or so for the cocoa to cool down to room temperature before I could begin to mix. A bit time consuming, maybe it’s the climate I live in who knows, but it is a wonderful recipe! If I can make it work I would definitely say the time is well worth it!
Emily says
Oh and I have a TON of it left after frosting, generously, a 13X9 cake. I could probably frost 3-4 cakes with this recipe alone.
Kate says
I’m glad you like the flavor! The recipe is definitely temperamental. I’ve noticed differences in the consistency when I make it depending on how humid it is that day. I hope that chilling it helps! =)
Erin says
Can’t wait to try this!!! How many cupcakes will this frost? How long will it keep in the fridge?
Kate says
It will frost about 18-24 cupcakes depending on how generously you frost them. I haven’t kept it for longer than 2 days days in the fridge. It does start to separate the longer it sits, so I’m not sure that I’d try for much longer than 2 or 3 days. Hope you enjoy it! =)
Maria says
I’ve been keeping this icing in the fridge for weeks and haven’t had any problem. If you will try the suggestion of using cream instead of milk, I would not let it sit there for more than 3-4 days.
Emily says
I’ve made this and the vanilla buttercream — I just wanted to comment that I do NOT have the separation issues that others have, and I follow the recipes exactly. I let the flour/milk mixture get pretty thick before removing it from the heat, and use a Kitchen Aid stand mixer with the wisk attachment on speed 8-10. My co-worker attempted this with a hand-mixer and said it didn’t turn out for her — maybe the almighty stand mixer is the trick?
Kate says
I’m so glad! Yes, I absolutely think that the extra power of a Kitchen Aid makes a difference. I know my hand mixer just doesn’t have that sort of oomph to it.
Jamie says
I had just found this recipe and will be trying it out this evening but I was wondering if there was a specific reason you stated “salted” butter? In my experience of homemade frosting it seemed to taste better with unsalted, so I just thought I’d ask. Perhaps I’ll just try it out both ways.
I can’t wait to try it out because I’m not a huge fan of frosting either so I’m always on the hunt for a light, fluffy(not thick) frosting for my birthday cakes.
Thank you for sharing.
Kate says
The reason that I specified salted butter is because I think it tastes a little flat with unsalted butter plus salt. That just may be my taste buds, though, because I usually prefer salted butter in my frostings and desserts (I know that’s practically baking heresy, but it just seems to taste better to me that way). If you usually prefer unsalted butter, feel free to use that with salt to taste.