Dairy Free Chocolate Frosting
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This might be the perfect dairy free chocolate frosting! Made with just 4 simple ingredients, no one will ever know it’s dairy free and vegan. This is the best chocolate frosting for your cupcakes and layer cakes and it only takes 5 minutes to make!
This is my go-to chocolate frosting that I’ve used on my vanilla cake, mini chocolate cupcakes, dairy-free chocolate cake – the list goes on! I love this dairy free chocolate buttercream because it tastes just like the real deal.
This vegan chocolate frosting is perfect for anyone in your life with food allergies, but I promise that it tastes just like regular frosting. You can easily double up the recipe if you need more frosting!
Why You’ll Love This Dairy Free Chocolate Frosting
- You only need 4 simple pantry ingredients, nothing too fancy here!
- It takes just 5 minutes to make.
- This is perfect if you have food allergies, but it tastes just like the real deal.
- It makes enough frosting to frost a cake or 12 cupcakes, but you can easily double the recipe.
Ingredients Needed
- Vegan Butter: you’ll need to use dairy-free butter as the base for this chocolate frosting recipe.
- Icing Sugar: icing sugar or confectioners’ sugar is going to sweeten the buttercream.
- Cocoa Powder: you can use natural or dutch processed cocoa powder. Dutch processed cocoa powder is richer and darker in color.
- Salt: just a pinch of salt is going to help balance the sweetness.
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1: In the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a bowl with a handheld mixer, beat the butter, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, salt and ¼ cup of icing sugar together.
Step 2: Add in ¼ cup of powdered sugar at a time until you have your desired consistency. Use it to frost your cake or cupcakes!
Expert Tips
- I always recommend using a kitchen scale, especially because if you use measuring cups to weigh out the powdered sugar you might add too much which will make the frosting too thick.
- If you find your chocolate frosting is too thick, you can add a drizzle of vegan milk to thin it out. If your frosting is too thin, add a bit more powdered sugar until you have the right consistency and it’s spreadable.
- If you want to frost more than 12 cupcakes or a large cake, you can double the recipe.
- Make sure the dairy-free butter is at room temperature before you get started on this recipe. You want it to be softened but not melted.
- Don’t need to use all this frosting at once? Freeze any leftovers!
Storage Instructions
Store any leftover buttercream in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Let come to room temperature and rewhip before using it to frost a cake.
To freeze, place the frosting in a freezer-safe container in the freezer for up to 2 months. Let thaw in the fridge before mixing it with a stand mixer or handheld mixer, then use.
More Recipes You’ll Love
If you make this recipe, let me know how it went in the comments below, I’d love to hear from you! You can also tag me on Instagram or Facebook so I can check it out!
The calorie information provided for this recipe is an estimate. The accuracy of the calories listed is not guaranteed.
Dairy Free Chocolate Frosting
Ingredients
- 1½ cup (315) dairy free butter, softened
- 1¼ cup (107 g) unsweetened Dutch processed cocoa powder
- 2¾-3 cup (330 g) icing sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 Tablespoon dairy free milk, if needed for consistency
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl with a handheld mixer, beat the butter and cocoa powder together until smooth. Add in vanilla extract.
- Slowly add in ¼ cup of powdered sugar at a time until it reaches your desired consistency.
- If the buttercream is too thick, you can add ½ tablespoon of dairy free milk in at a time, thinning it out as much as you'd like. If buttercream is too thin, add in more powdered sugar ¼ cup at a time.
If I use this frosting on your dairy-free cake recipe, is it okay to leave the frosted cake at room temp in a covered cake carrier for a couple of days? Or will the cake need to be refrigerated?
Yes – The cake can be stored covered at room temperature for 3-4 days. I store mine in a cake carrier! For longer than that, I would recommend freezing the cake layers and buttercream separately and assembling when thawed.