Black Cocoa Cream Cheese Buttercream

What's the #1 issue with black frosting...?

Aside from getting white buttercream to turn a deep black - many people worry black buttercream will stain their teeth. No bueno. So as we head into spooky season and Halloween baking, I want to re-share a recipe / tip! This is one I use in almost all my Halloween decorating - Black Cocoa cream cheese frosting!

Why you'll love this recipe - 

First the backstory (lol). My first attempt at making black frosting was ill-informed and not too successful. :/ 
I started with regular buttercream and added a *ton* of black gel color until I got in the ballpark of the color I wanted - but my end result was more dark gray than actual *black.*
After all that work, it didn't even really taste good! I had a big bowl of buttercream flavored with food dye. Yick. And super frustrating! 

This black cocoa frosting recipe is the one I wish I'd have had that day!! 

  • This recipe relies on the dark color of the cocoa powder to do 90+% of the coloring work. Just a touch of black dye finishes off the job if you'd like - or if not, you can leave it out! 
  • You can't taste the dye, just the chocolate and cream cheese - and you get gorgeous deep black frosting! Best of all worlds. πŸ˜‰ 

"How do I make black frosting that won't stain my teeth?" 

The short answer - with black cocoa powder!

Black cocoa powder doesn't contain any dyes; it's simply cocoa powder that has been more heavily 'dutched' or alkalinized. This keeps it from reacting with leavening agents in baked goods. It retains its delicious chocolate flavor - and it also gives it a dark color perfect for black frosting that won't taste bad or stain your teeth!

I've added a bit of food dye to the recipe, but it is optional - if you'd prefer to leave the dye out you absolutely can!

Quick tip if you'd like to leave out the black gel coloring -

Especially if you'd like to skip adding the black gel food coloring - prep this frosting recipe ahead of time!

I'd recommend making this black cocoa cream cheese frosting at least 24 hours in advance; letting it sit that long will deepen the black color.

"How should I store this frosting?" 

Because of the cream cheese in the frosting, I recommend storing this frosting in an airtight container or ziplock bag in the refrigerator.

(With the amount of sugar in the recipe you could maybe get away with storing it at room temperature for up to a day...but it seems risky to me.) 

And like I said above - I recommend storing it overnight to let the color deepen to that super-dark-black we all love this time of year! πŸ˜‰ 

Have at it - happy baking!! 

(Disclosure: As an Amazon associate I may earn from qualifying purchases, and my posts often contain affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you!)

Don't forget to pin this recipe for later! 

Black Cocoa CrCh Buttercream pinterest pin

Black Cocoa Cream Cheese Buttercream

Frosts one 8-inch cake or 24 cupcakes
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time0 minutes
Total Time10 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: black buttercream, black cocoa frosting, black frosting
Servings: 24 cupcakes
Calories: 217kcal
Author: Sarah H

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Beat together softened cream cheese and butter; slowly add in powdered sugar alternating with cocoa powder and milk until frosting reaches desired consistency.
  • Add vanilla, black gel color (if desired), and salt if needed and beat until well combined.

Video

Notes

As mentioned above, letting the frosting sit for several hours or overnight will deepen the black color several shades!Β 
Please note nutrition information is an estimate and may not be exactly accurate. Nutrition listed is for 1/24 recipe (amount for 1 cupcake); 1/16 (amount for 1 slice of cake) is 326 calories, 17.3g fat, 44.6g carb, 2.3g protein.Β 

Nutrition

Serving: 1cupcake (frosting only) | Calories: 217kcal | Carbohydrates: 29.7g | Protein: 1.5g | Fat: 11.5g

Black Cocoa Cream Cheese Buttercream additional notes / links:
Nielsen Massey vanilla extract (best reviewed) Watkins vanilla extract (less expensive)
Americolor black gel food color - I use black pretty frequently, especially around Halloween, so I bought this large bottle from Amazon! 

Did you make this Black Cocoa Frosting? Let me know how it went – or make my day and find me on Pinterest or on Instagram and tag @IntensiveCakeUnit in your photo!

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11 thoughts on “Black Cocoa Cream Cheese Buttercream

  1. hi! i am planning to make a red velvet cake for my brothers birthday, and think it would be cool to have black frosting. i am concerned because i want to do some piping, but i know that cream cheese frosting is not typically as stable as an american buttercream- have you tested the stability of this frosting/do you recommend it for a some pipework? thank you!

    1. Hi! Thanks for asking! πŸ™‚ I’ve actually used this recipe to decorate cupcakes before and in my experience it pipes almost exactly like regular buttercream. πŸ™‚ If you try it and have any trouble piping it I’d try adding a bit of extra powdered sugar + black cocoa powder (1/4 cup + 1 Tablespoon each) at a time until it will hold its shape.

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