BEST Chocolate Buttercream Recipe EVER!
The Best Chocolate Cake Ever!This is the blog where I show you the BEST chocolate buttercream ever! Baker approved! (That’s me!)
This chocolate buttercream is THE BEST buttercream because it’s the chocolate version of the super popular velvety smooth vanilla buttercream! Thousands have tried and approved this recipe time and time again and I am happy to release to you my chocolate version of this buttercream recipe!
Here’s a little back story on this recipe…
I know, but just hang with me for a bit, ok?
I crafted this recipe after I needed to make a cake with chocolate buttercream. I had been using a traditional chocolate American buttercream but wondered if I could take the velvety vanilla buttercream and make it chocolate. Test Kitchen in full swing!
My initial thought was I would make up the velvety vanilla buttercream and then add cocoa powder at the end like I would a traditional chocolate buttercream, but that didn’t sit quite right with me. The main reason I was unsure about doing it this way is that the technique behind making this buttercream special wouldn’t really lend itself well to adding more powder (cocoa powder) at the end after it has already smoothed out into delectable velvety goodness.
We know cocoa likes to clump and needs to really be incorporated well and I did not want grainy bits in my creamy buttercream. No thanks.
So how else could I get the chocolate into the buttercream and still achieve a super creamy and silky chocolate buttercream?
I decided to add it in the beginning with the powdered sugar. It makes sense right? Combine the powders and add them together. Perfect!
It made sense to me, but I was still unsure if it was actually going to work. After trying it out, I quickly realized that I am a genius. IT TOTALLY WORKED! And now I get to share my velvety chocolate buttercream with you!
My process is super easy and because I have even ratios, this buttercream is easy to scale to smaller or larger amounts as needed. Woo hoo!!
The Ingredients
Just like my velvety vanilla buttercream, this velvety chocolate buttercream is the chocolate version of a faux chocolate Swiss meringue buttercream. What makes it an imitation version is that it combines a form of egg whites, sugar and butter together to create one of the best buttercreams ever. Where it differs is in the form of ingredients used and the technique to make it. The faux version simplifies a lot of the steps.
My chocolate buttercream uses pasteurized egg whites, powdered sugar, cocoa and butter. That’s it!
The key in these ingredients is that the pasteurized eggs whites and powdered sugar allows you to skip most of the process that is required for traditional Swiss Meringue Buttercream and diminishes the risk of not properly cooking your eggs and sugar to the proper temperature for safe consumption. Pasteurized egg whites are safe for consumption right from the cart so it is highly imperative that you choose pasteurized egg whites. No, there are NO substitutions.
To make the best out of this easy buttercream recipe, allow all ingredients to come to room temperature. Room temperature ingredients aid in the velvety smooth texture of this buttercream and helps your ingredients emulsify easier and quicker.
Recipe Break Down
When I say my Velvety Smooth Imitation Swiss Meringue Buttercream is the easiest to follow and the easiest to convert, I MEAN THAT! And the chocolate version is just the same.
The recipe I am sharing with you below will make a batch that will fill a 4.5 quart mixing bowl almost to the top and is enough buttercream to ice and decorate a tall 3 layer 6 inch cake AND a tall 3 layer 8 inch cake.
The conversions are simple as my recipe is a 1:4:4 ratio of egg whites to powdered sugar to butter. So for example, say the recipe calls for 1 ounce of egg whites. Multiply the 1 ounce by 4 and you get the amount for the powdered sugar ( 4 ounces) and butter (4 ounces).
Another easy way to convert is by taking the the number of ounces of egg whites and applying that number to give you the number sticks of butter needed. This is assuming you use 4 ounce sticks of butter. So for example, 2 ounces of egg whites equals 2 sticks of butter. Then multiply by 4 to get the amount of powdered sugar as before (8 ounces of powdered sugar).
Here is how you incorporate the cocoa powder. Take your ratio of 4 for powdered sugar and turn one fourth of that amount into cocoa powder. You can also swap out for half the amount for a more chocolatey buttercream.
So here it is in numbers. If you have 1 ounce of egg whites, you will need 4 ounces of butter and 3 ounces of powdered sugar and 1 ounce of cocoa powder. 8 ounces of egg whites, 32 ounces (8 sticks) of butter, 24 ounces powdered sugar, and 8 ounces cocoa powder.
Easy right?
The Method
The method to making the Best Chocolate Buttercream is quite simple. Whip together your pasteurized egg whites, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar with the whisk attachment until a chocolatey meringue is formed. This will take at least 5 minutes. Start on low (2 on Kitchenaid) until just combined then turn on high (about 8 on Kitchenaid) and whip until mixture thickens and doubles in size.
Drop in your butter and any flavorings and continue to whip on high until it everything is incorporated. Switch to a paddle attachment and mix on low (2 on Kitchenaid) until smooth and velvety. It may look a little funny at first but just keep whipping. It will come together and done! Can you believe it’s literally that easy?
But wait!
There’s actually one last thing you need to know about this process. While anyone can follow a recipe and get great results, a lot of times it’s actually all in the technique that makes a difference! And that is definitely the case here. What sets my buttercream apart from the rest is it’s super silky, moveable texture that actually still has a firm hold with no air bubbles. Kind of like an oxymoron.
What gives this delicious chocolate buttercream that ability is time. Time is key. Time and low speed and using the paddle attachment. The combination of these is what knocks out the air bubbles giving you the smooth texture, makes the buttercream silky, light and fluffy and super easy to smooth and work with and most importantly not be too sweet and melt in your mouth.
Use and Storage
The Best Chocolate Buttercream makes what I consider one batch. The one batch will make one tall 3 layer 8″ cake AND one tall 3 layer 6″ cake. Or 3 6″ cakes, or 1 and a half 8″ cakes, or a whole bunch of 4″ cakes.
5 ounces for an 8″ cake
3 ounces for a 6″ cake
8 ounces for a sheet cake (14×19)
2 ounces for a 4″ cake
These are approximations I go by. You can check out my vanilla cake recipe here to learn more about my cake layers.
This velvety smooth buttercream can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator for a week or in the freezer for a month and left out at room temperature for 2 days. If I am using the buttercream the next day, I will leave it out on my counters. If I am using it within 2 or 3 days, I will store it in the refrigerator and if I have leftovers or need to use it later, I will store in the freezer. I like to store my buttercream in these airtight containers to keep it fresh and in good shape. A single batch of buttercream will fit in 1 1/2 of these containers.
A quick tip: Bang containers to remove any air bubbles that might have gotten trapped when putting the buttercream in the containers. This is going to make for a smooth transition when you are ready to use it.
The process to bring the buttercream back to life is super simple. Leave it out at room temperature for 6 hours. I will generally take it out the night before using or early in the morning right when I wake up and it is usually good and ready for me to use. The best part about this is that IT DOESN’T NEED TO BE REWHIPPED! Yep, my velvety chocolate buttercream will be just as smooth and silky as the day you put it in there, even coming from being frozen. Fill your piping bags or scoop right out of the tub because this buttercream is ready to go.
Now if for whatever reason your buttercream isn’t ready right out the tub, mix it by hand or rewhip on low in your stand mixer and you will be good to go!
What It’s Good For
Absolutely EVERYTHING! Pipe cupcakes, ice and decorate cakes, fill cake jars, fill chocolate bars, pipe on top of pies, stuff cookies with it, fill macarons. The options are literally endless because this imitation swiss buttercream is so light and silky.
Commonly Asked Questions with Answers
Q: Can I use regular egg whites? (Non-pasteurized)
A: ABSOLUTELY NOT! The safety in this recipe is using PASTEURIZED egg whites that have already been treated. If you want to use fresh eggs, do the traditional Swiss Meringue Buttercream Recipe instead. It’s delicious too!
Q: Does it taste like eggs?
A: Not at all. It tastes like the best ice cream you’ve ever had!
Q: Can I use less butter or powdered sugar?
A: I wouldn’t recommend it, but if you would like to experiment to find your own combination, go for it! Although it is pretty perfect already so just give it try this way first and then adjust from there if needed.
Q: Will this buttercream hold up in hot temperatures?
A: You will have to test it in your climate to know for sure, but I have used this buttercream on many cakes that have sat out in the hot, humid, Texas summer heat for hours. It held up beautifully.
Q: It looks really soft. Will it crust or firm up?
A: This is not a crusting buttercream, but if you chill it in the refrigerator, the buttercream firms up to a nice hold. You can easily maneuver it around like I do in this video here.
Q: Can this buttercream be colored?
A: Yes! You can color this buttercream using food colorings. Like most buttercreams, allow the buttercream to set to allow the color to develop and deepen. You can also heat up a bit of it in the microwave then add it back into the batch to quicken the process.
Q: Can I replace half the butter with shortening?
A: I haven’t personally tried it, but I would assume it would still work the same. Give it a try and let me know how it turns out!
Ready to try the best chocolate buttercream ever? Let me know in the comments!
