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This chocolate buttercream frosting recipe was handed down by my mom and is by far the best I’ve ever made! With five simple ingredients, it’s quick, foolproof, easy to prepare, and always turns out rich, creamy, and so delicious. Thanks, Mom!
My mom was known for many dishes in our Lebanese kitchen, from her lemony salad to her eggplant, Sheik al Mehsheh, but one of the things our family loved most was her chocolate buttercream, on any number of desserts.
She used it to generously frost chocolate birthday cakes and spread thickly over pans of brownies. When I later went to culinary school and started experimenting with more complex buttercreams made with egg whites and candy thermometers, she would just shake her head. In her mind, there was simply no reason.
And honestly, she was right. While those other buttercreams may look glossier, they often taste heavier and even slightly greasy. My mom’s version is classic American buttercream and turns out rich and chocolatey (never greasy) while remaining incredibly easy to make.
More often than not, for her famous brownies my mom relied on Duncan Hines mix, and I go that way myself now and then. But I do love my homemade olive oil brownies recipe with a luscious crackly top.
To me, what matters most in this classic combo, though, is the frosting. Thick, rich, and deeply chocolatey, this buttercream is the finishing touch that turns any cake or brownie into something special. And if you’re anything like me, you might find yourself sneaking a spoonful straight from the bowl….
Ingredients You’ll Need
Please be sure to scroll down to the recipe card for the complete ingredient list and instructions!
- Salted Butter – Salted butter is a must! I have tried this with unsalted butter more than once, and the flavor just isn’t the same.
- Hershey’s Cocoa Powder – This is natural, not Dutched, cocoa powder. My mom always, always used Hershey’s cocoa as a matter of both convenience and devotion. Not only could she always find it at any grocery store, but it’s the chocolate brand her dad used in his candy store, and it’s the chocolate bar she stashed in her candy drawer (yes, she had one of those) for her chocolate fix. She also used it in her chocolate crinkle cookies recipe.
- Confectioners’ Sugar – Also known as powdered sugar, this dissolves perfectly into the frosting, sweetening it and helping thicken the mixture without making it grainy.
- Vanilla Extract – Vanilla enhances the sweetness and adds depth of flavor to the frosting. Use pure extract.
- Milk – I recommend whole milk or even heavy cream for the richest taste, but any milk will work to help combine the ingredients and create a luscious consistency. The key is to be sure the milk is room temperature, not cold. Cold milk can cause the buttercream to seize and turn grainy.
How to Make Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
This is truly the easiest chocolate buttercream icing recipe of all time! You don’t need any special equipment or fancy tools like a stand mixer, just a bowl, a spoon, and a little patience!
- Combine ingredients. Stir the butter and cocoa powder in a bowl until well combined. I do this by hand, using elbow grease to mix everything evenly! I do use a stand mixer for larger batches; be sure it’s fitted with the paddle attachment, and not the whisk attachment, to keep the frosting smooth.
- Sweeten. Sift the confectioners’ sugar into the bowl one cup at a time, mixing in between each addition. After each addition of sugar, add liquid, starting with vanilla and then adding milk one tablespoon at a time.
- Combine. Continue to stir until the ingredients are smooth and spreadable, then use immediately.
My Top Tips & Tricks
- Use very soft butter (but not melted). The butter should be extremely soft so it blends easily with the cocoa powder. If it’s too cold, the frosting will be difficult to mix and may end up slightly lumpy. Always let butter come to room temperature before you begin!
- Sift the confectioners’ sugar. Sifting removes any lumps and helps the frosting come together evenly, creating a smooth consistency.
- Adjust the texture as needed. If the frosting feels too thick, add room temp milk one tablespoon at a time. If it’s too soft, mix in a little more confectioners’ sugar until you reach the right consistency.
Ways to Use
No doubt my favorite way to enjoy a bite of this creamy chocolate buttercream recipe is off my finger, straight from the bowl! But really, it’s just the perfect frosting for decorating cakes, cupcakes, and brownies. Some of my favorite ways to use it include with my double chocolate cake recipe, Valentine’s Day cake, frosted chocolate cupcakes, and classic yellow cake.
Mom’s Chocolate Buttercream
Equipment
- 1 Medium Mixing Bowl
Ingredients
- 8 ounces (2 sticks) salted butter, very soft (but not melting) room temperature
- 1/2 cup Hershey’s cocoa
- 3 cups confectioner’s sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 to 4 tablespoons milk (of any sort), room temperature
Instructions
- In a medium mixing bowl, stir the butter and cocoa until very well combined. If the butter isn’t extremely soft, this requires some elbow grease.
- Sift the confectioner’s sugar into the bowl, one cup at a time and mixing after each addition. After each cup of confectioner’s sugar, add some liquid, starting with the vanilla and then adding milk one tablespoon at a time and stirring well after each addition.
- Stir until the mixture is well combined, smooth and spreadable. If the frosting is too soft, add more confectioner’s sugar. If it’s too thick, add a touch of milk.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Absolutely delicious—exactly what you want in a chocolate buttercream
Thank you cuzzy!! So so so so good.
This frosting looks amazing! Your box brownies reminded me of a similar experience I had. A neighbor had
given me a plate of oatmeal chocolate cookies that were a little crisp on the outside and moist and chewy on the
inside. I asked for the recipe and she said sure. Long story short, I had to keep reminding her that I wanted that
recipe in the worst way. Finally one day when I asked, she came closer to the fence where I was standing and
almost whispered that they were a box mix!! She acted so embarrassed and I assured her that I didn’t care, they
were perfect. I still make that ‘mix’ whenever I want oatmeal, chocolate chip cookies!!
Hahaha!!!! Sometimes you just use boxed!
Thanks for the recipe Maureen! While I was looking at it I realize that’s exactly how my mother made her buttercream frosting. And I agree with you about brownies they’re hard to get a homemade batch that isn’t dry. I would consider my husband a MasterChef and he’s made two batches of brownies from scratch and they are nothing like Duncan Hines which my mom always used. We are trying to watch our intake of preservative mixes but I have to agree with you about brownies
I’ve been using this for brownies, just need to watch it so it’s cooked to your liking:
https://www.my-easy-cooking.com/2011/03/31/chocolate-brownies-without-chocolate/
I have to say, my Mom made this chocolate frosting all our life..I always thought most knew this recipe.It’s the best and only one to use..Thank you Maureen for sharing your story .It brought back great memories
Thanks Marie! I just made cupcakes and piped this buttercream high on them–check out my instagram or facebook page–SO beautiful and so so delicous.
The only recipe my mother and older sisters ever used. It’s much like eating fudge!
Oh, sorry, autocorrect. “You attended” was supposed to be “unattended”.
Maureen, about heating milk/cream for chocolate butter cream frosting: I don’t just warm it, I scald it . Warmed milk isn’t as effective, due to the low ratio of liquids to solids. Sometimes I melt some of the butter as well as liquids before creaming, and let it come to room temperature and thicken up before proceeding. The results vary with the latter method, heh heh. But frosting tastes much better when it is all smooth. Also, I have a private theory, based on no known scientific facts, that scalding milk changes the flavor, and the milk is sweeter. I always scald milk for cocoa. Unfortunately, I have never mastered the technique of scalding milk in the microwave. I have childhood memories of my mother leaving milk unattended in a sauce pan over high heat, for her daily ritual of boiling milk overflowing the pan as she left it you attended to scald for her morning cocoa. She burned out a lot of stove top burners that way, and of course boiled milk in a standard stainless steel sauce pan is a hell of a mess to clean up.
This is THE BEST CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM IN THE HISTORY OF CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM.
It is so ordered.
I thought brownie magic was confined to box mix too, until I tried Smitten Kitchen’s “My Favorite Brownies” (2012-08-20)
They’re falling-off-a-log easy – but I can’t wait to ‘improve’ them with this frosting!
Which proves Mom is ALWAYS right. I have a
very tattered and battered copy of my grandmother’s favorite Cuban cookbook. Woe to anyone who tries to “improve” any of those recipes! Nothing beats her butter cake and, oh, the memories that cookbook holds! Lovely post, as always!
Such a sweet story! I don’t know if you all have already tried Shirley Corriher’s brownie recipe, but it’s my favorite. It’s in her Bakewise cookbook, https://www.amazon.com/BakeWise-Successful-Baking-Magnificent-Recipes/dp/1416560785
I’ll post a photo of the recipe on your FB page.
This recipe is really close to the Wilton buttercream recipe, which calls for 1 cup butter and 1 cup shortening–heresy–I only use butter, salted, in buttercream. Can’t wait to try this one. Also I have a brownie recipe I got in grad school that I will post when I get home. It is flawless and it is better than anything out of a box.
Can’t wait!
I agree regarding the salt; soo flat without it. Duncan Hines are great brownies but I adore the Cook’s Illustrated brownie recipe. It’s not overly fudgy, but definitely delivers a satisfying fix.
I have to say that your chocolate chip cookie recipe is the best. Ever. I was never a big chocolate chip cookie fan until I made yours. The browning of the butter does the trick. I use a combo of dark and white chocolate chips. If you can find Guittard white chips, they are best, I think. And kudos to your lemon salad dressing! It’s our “house dressing”. Also love it with rice vinegar.
Thank you Maureen!
P.S. Was in Edwards CO at a bookstore last July and there on the shelf was your book on display, front and center. Love it!
So neat!! Thank you Peggy!
I just had to laugh because this is how my mother (now 96) makes her brownies, and yes, after years of being a “from scratch” cook, Duncan Hines’ brownie mix is still the best and MY mother’s go-to for a chocolate fix! And always covered with a buttercream icing. Real feel-good food!
I love it!
I have not made buttercream recently. When I do I make a recipe very much like this. I have also made variations with other flavors. Salted butter all the way. 🙂
Maureen, this post made me chuckle. I love its honesty and nod to your mom. I so agree on the butter issue. The emperor is naked when it comes to unsalted butter. I now use salted butter for better taste, and I use a box mix now and then, and I love Hershey’s chocolate, just as I love pretty much anything with the word chocolate. Ah, that was liberating, maybe we need to start a support group: Cooks Anonymous. “Hi my name is Tom, and I use salted butter in pie dough recipes.” 😉
As always, it was a delight to check in and find your generous and delicious prose awaiting me, fresh out of the oven.
This is so great Tom! Thank you for your wonderful note!
I don’t know if it is the nostalgia of childhood or just a fact that chocolate butter cream, American style, tastes infinitely better than European style butter cream. But it is certainly my preference. Our choice of cocoa was Drostes, we scorned Hershey’s as bland and boring. Now adays, Droste’s is criticized as one note. I don’t know, I also like Ghiardelhi’s and Black & Green cocoa, for instance, but for me, nothing beats Droste’s cocoa, and I will go to great lengths, and expense, to get it. Such is the power of tastes imprinted during childhood. Suggestion: your chocolate frosting looks grainy. I always heat my milk and/or cream, to be sure that the powdered sugar and cocoa dissolves smoothly.
Susan, I can NOT wait to try the warmed milk for a smooth effect!!! Thanks a million!
This looks delish! Can not wait to make them!
What a precious story, Maureen! Love it–and the chocolate recipe. Got to try it !
That is the one my mother used. As a child I believed that there was no other chocolate icing recipe on earth except this one. I still use it, 68 years later.
No mixer at all? Hand stir? Wow! That’s dedication to a family recipe. Thanks for sharing!