Chocolate Fudge Frosting is thick, dark and silky, made from just five ingredients: butter, cocoa powder, powdered sugar, heavy cream and vanilla. The cocoa is cooked in melted butter first, then beaten with the sugar and cream until the frosting turns smooth, fluffy and easy to spread or pipe. One batch frosts 12 cupcakes.
How to make it: Melt the butter over low heat and stir in the sifted cocoa until it thickens and pulls away from the pan. Move it to a stand mixer, add the powdered sugar and cream in two parts with the vanilla, then beat on medium for a full 5 minutes.
Why You’ll Love It
- Five ingredients: all pantry and fridge staples, no chocolate bars to chop.
- Deep chocolate flavor: a whole cup of cocoa goes into one batch.
- Spreads and pipes: swirl it onto cupcakes, smooth it over a cake or spread it on brownies.
- Quick: about 10 minutes of work once the cream has warmed up.
Ingredient Notes
Unsalted butter: Half a cup, one stick. It melts gently over low heat, and the cocoa cooks in it.
Unsweetened cocoa powder: One cup, about 3.5 ounces. Sift it before you start.
Powdered sugar: Four cups, about 17 ounces, sifted separately from the cocoa.
Heavy whipping cream: Two-thirds of a cup. Take it out of the fridge 20 minutes before you begin.
Vanilla extract: Two teaspoons, added with the second half of the sugar and cream.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick)
- 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (3.5 ounces), sifted
- 4 cups powdered sugar (17 ounces), sifted
- 2/3 cup heavy whipping cream, out of the fridge 20 minutes
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
How to Make Chocolate Fudge Frosting
1. Get ready. Take the heavy cream out of the fridge 20 minutes before you start. Sift the cocoa powder and the powdered sugar separately.
2. Melt the butter. Melt the butter in a small saucepan or skillet over low heat.
3. Cook the cocoa. With the pan still over low heat, stir in the sifted cocoa powder until the mixture is thick, comes together and pulls away from the sides of the pan. Take it off the heat.
4. Add sugar and cream. Put the chocolate mixture in the bowl of a stand mixer. Mixing on low, add half the powdered sugar and half the cream and mix until combined. Add the rest of the powdered sugar, the vanilla and the rest of the cream, then scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.
5. Beat. Mix on medium speed for a full 5 minutes, until the frosting is smooth and creamy.
Fudge Frosting vs. Old-Fashioned Fudge Icing
Search for fudge frosting and you’ll find two different things under nearly the same name.
Fudge frosting is the recipe above. It is beaten, not boiled: cocoa cooked in butter, then whipped with powdered sugar and cream until fluffy. It stays soft, so you can spread it, pipe it and smooth it over the sides of a layer cake.
Old-fashioned fudge icing is cooked like candy and poured. Stir 2 cups of granulated sugar, 3 heaping tablespoons of cocoa and 2/3 cup of whole milk together in a large saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat until large bubbles form and it reaches a hard boil, then boil it for 1 minute. Take it off the heat, add 1/2 cup of cubed salted butter and 1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla, and beat with a wooden spoon until thick and smooth. Pour it over the cake right away: it hardens as it cools, and it hardens quickly, so it suits a sheet cake or a single cake, not a layer cake that needs frosting spread between the layers and up the sides.
A second way to make the poured icing uses a candy thermometer. Bring 1 cup of sugar, 4 tablespoons of cocoa and 3/4 cup of whole milk to a boil in a small heavy saucepan, cover it for 2 to 3 minutes so the steam washes the sugar crystals down the sides, then uncover and cook without stirring to the soft ball stage, 234°F. Let it cool to 110°F, stir in 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 teaspoon of vanilla, and pour it over a warm cake. It covers a 13×9 cake.
Tips for Success
Why is my frosting too thick?
Add about 1 tablespoon more heavy cream and beat it in, then add more slowly, a little at a time, until it spreads the way you want.
How do I get a smooth frosting?
Sift the cocoa and the powdered sugar separately before you start, add the sugar in two parts with the mixer on low, and give it the full 5 minutes on medium.
How do I know the cocoa is cooked enough?
Watch the pan, not the clock. The butter and cocoa are ready when the mixture turns thick, holds together in one mass and pulls away from the sides of the pan.
Variations
- Milk instead of cream: whole milk, regular milk or almond milk works, but you probably won’t need the full 2/3 cup. Milk makes a thinner frosting that won’t whip up as well and can turn runny, so add it a little at a time.
- Melted chocolate fudge frosting: heat 1/2 cup of cream until small bubbles form at the edges, without boiling. On low heat, stir in 2 teaspoons of cocoa, then 1 1/4 cups of semi-sweet chocolate, 1/2 cup of butter, 1/2 cup of powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon each of instant coffee and salt, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla until smooth. Press plastic wrap onto the surface and let it cool completely, about 45 minutes, before using. It makes about 1 1/2 cups.
- Fudge frosting that doubles as hot fudge sauce: stir 1 1/2 cups of sugar, 4 tablespoons of cocoa, 5 tablespoons of cornstarch, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 1 1/2 cups of water over medium-low heat until thick and just starting to bubble. Off the heat, stir in 1 teaspoon of vanilla and 2 tablespoons of butter. Cool it to frost a cake, or spoon it warm over ice cream.
Storage & Reheating
Keep leftover frosting in an airtight container or zip-top bag in the refrigerator and use it within 3 to 4 days, the USDA FSIS guideline for leftovers. For longer storage, freeze it in an airtight container for 3 to 4 months. Thaw frozen frosting in the refrigerator, not on the counter, then give it a good mix before you spread or pipe it.
What to Serve With It
Spread it on cupcakes, a sheet cake, brownies, sugar cookies or donuts. It is at home on French silk pie brownies or banana bread brownies, and for more sheet cakes there’s Bea’s blueberry sheet cake. For another from-scratch cake frosting, try homemade caramel cake. If you love a fudgy treat, there’s old fashioned fudge and hot fudge brownie bread.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the difference between chocolate frosting and fudge frosting?
The names overlap a lot. In this recipe, the fudge part comes from cooking a full cup of cocoa in melted butter until thick before the sugar and cream go in, which gives a dark chocolate frosting. The old-fashioned fudge icing described above is different again: boiled like candy and poured, so it sets firm.
How much frosting does this recipe make?
Enough to frost 12 cupcakes. Double it for a 13×9 cake, a 2-layer round cake, or any whole cake you want to cover on the sides too.
Can I pipe fudge frosting?
Yes. After the full 5 minutes of beating it is smooth and holds its shape, so you can pipe it onto cupcakes or spread it with a knife.
Can I make fudge frosting ahead?
Yes. Make it up to 3 to 4 days ahead and keep it covered in the refrigerator, or freeze it. Mix it well before using.
Final Notes
Sift everything, give the mixer the full 5 minutes, and choose the poured fudge icing only when you want a glossy top that sets firm. If you have a question or make this, tell me how it turned out in the comments.
Chocolate Fudge Frosting
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Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter 1 stick
- 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 3.5 ounces, sifted
- 4 cups powdered sugar 17 ounces, sifted
- 2/3 cup heavy whipping cream out of the fridge 20 minutes
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Take the heavy cream out of the fridge 20 minutes before you start. Sift the cocoa powder and the powdered sugar separately.
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan or skillet over low heat.
- With the pan still over low heat, stir in the sifted cocoa powder until the mixture is thick, comes together and pulls away from the sides of the pan. Take it off the heat.
- Put the chocolate mixture in the bowl of a stand mixer. Mixing on low, add half the powdered sugar and half the cream and mix until combined. Add the rest of the powdered sugar, the vanilla and the rest of the cream, then scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.
- Mix on medium speed for a full 5 minutes, until the frosting is smooth and creamy.
