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This Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting is perfect for cakes and cupcakes! A silky smooth frosting that melts in your mouth and is also incredibly easy to make.
Looking for more chocolate frosting recipes? Try this buttercream chocolate frosting!
Don’t mind me over here, I am just eating this Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting with a spoon, no cake needed.
I was never someone who enjoyed eating frosting as a child, I always took it off my cake. Once I started making my own frosting, everything changed.
You’ll find a few different recipes for chocolate frosting on my blog, as well as my favorite cream cheese frosting recipe, but when the two become one, and you have Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting, everybody wins.
What is Cream Cheese Frosting?
Cream cheese frosting is equal parts butter and cream cheese, or close to it. This helps make for a thicker, creamier frosting that doesn’t just wilt once it’s been pipped.
Start with cold butter and cold cream cheese, which again, helps to make them a bit more stable for piping. I also think you can whip cold butter much easier than room temperature butter.
The butter and cream cheese are whipped together at various stages of the process making it ultra-light and fluffy. It’s the perfect frosting for my moist chocolate cake.
What Kind of Cocoa To Use
For this frosting, you’ll need a solid cocoa powder because that is where all the chocolate flavor is coming from. You can use any type of cocoa powder, whether it’s a dutch processed cocoa powder, a regular cocoa powder or a sweetened cocoa powder.
You might find that with the unsweetened cocoa powder, you may compensate with some additional vanilla extract or milk. These liquids help smooth out the flavors and also contribute to the overall creaminess of this frosting.
Have I convinced you to try it yet?
How to Make Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
One of the best things about this frosting recipe is how easy it is to make! Here’s how:
- Beat the butter: Start by cutting the COLD butter into 1-inch blocks, it helps you beat it easier. Beat the butter for 1-2 minutes until it is slightly softened.
- Add cream cheese: Then add the cold cream cheese and cream together for 2-3 minutes until they are fluffy and free of lumps. It helps to stop and scrape down the bowl occasionally.
- Add cocoa and vanilla: Turn off your mixer and add the cocoa powder and vanilla extract and beat until well combined. I like to add the cocoa powder at the beginning so that it really gets incorporated into the frosting.
- Slowly add sugar and cream: It helps to alternate the powdered sugar with the heavy cream to avoid the frosting from getting too lumpy. Add the confectionery sugar 2 cups at a time, followed by one tablespoon of heavy whipping cream and beat for 60-90 seconds until completely smooth.
- Beat until fluffy: Finally, add the remaining powdered sugar and heavy whipping cream and beat until desired consistency, at least 2 minutes. Your frosting should be nice and airy, resembling a whipped texture by this point.
Ways to Use Your Frosting
There are so many way to use chocolate cream cheese frosting. Firstly, you can eat it with a spoon. As I mentioned earlier, yes it is really that good.
You can also spread frosting over cooled cake or cupcakes and then cover with sprinkles. (Everything is better with sprinkles.) My favorite way to use it is for my chocolate cupcakes.
Or make cookies and sandwich frosting between them. I have also been known to dip strawberries in frosting – why not?
How Much Frosting Does this Recipe Make?
The recipe listed here is for a 9-inch by 13-inch cake and it’s more than enough for 12 cupcakes.
If you’re looking to frost 24 cupcakes just multiple the recipe by 1.5times it, if you double the recipe, you will have a lot of leftover frosting. Then you might have to make more cake!
Is that such a bad thing?
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If you love no-bake recipes, be sure to check out my cookbook, No-Bake Treats!
Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 3 cups
Description
This Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting is a silky whipped chocolate frosting that melts in your mouth. This cream cheese frosting is perfect for cakes and cupcakes
Ingredients
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, cold
- 6 ounces cream cheese, cold
- ½ cup (56g) cocoa powder
- 4 ½ cups (585g) powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons (30ml) milk or heavy whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Cut the butter into 1-inch blocks. Beat the butter for 1-2 minutes until it is slightly softened.
- Then add the cream cheese and cream together for 2-3 minutes until they are fluffy and free of lumps, scape down the bowl occasionally.
- Add the cocoa powder and vanilla extract and beat until well combined,
- Next, add the confectionary sugar 2 cups at a time, followed by one tablespoon of heavy whipping cream and beat for 60-90 seconds until completely smooth.
- Add the remaining powdered sugar and heavy whipping cream and beat until desired consistency, at least 2 minutes.
- Spread frosting over cooled cake and then cover with sprinkles. Keep in an airtight container.
Notes
The recipe listed here is for a 9-inch by 13-inch cake and it’s more than enough for 12 cupcakes. If you’re looking to frosting 24 cupcakes just multiple the recipe by 1.5times it, if you double the recipe, you will have a lot of leftover frosting
- Category: Frosting
- Method: Mixer
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: chocolate cream cheese frosting, cream cheese frosting recipe, easy frosting recipe
Thanks for the recipes. Can you tell me how well your recipes do using them with piping bags and tips? Any tips for doing that.
Hi Helena, they are all made with the intention of being able to pipe it! So no concerns there. Here you’ll find tutorial for how to use piping bags and a tutorial on the different types of piping tips
Hello i would like to know if the heavy cream needs to be cold or room temperature for the frosting ?
Always cold!
Hi, I hope your having an amazing day, I have a quick question I have been seeing your divine chocolate cupcakes everywhere but I can never find just a plain recipe for them? I would love to find out what is in them they look so moist and chocolaty! Love everything you make, your buttercream has been a life changer, please don’t stop with the sweet treats especially for the amazing season of everything PUMPKIN!
Hey Evelyn! I’ve got you covered. These are my super moist chocolate cake and there’s a recipe there for these cupcakes. However, late this month I will be posting the cupcake recipe on its own. Enjoy!
Thanks so much, I can’t wait to try these!