Black Buttercream That Doesn't Stain

5 from 13 votes

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Smooth black buttercream that tastes incredible, pipes beautifully and doesn't stain your teeth!

Prep: 15

Total: 15

Servings: cups

Author: Cakes by MK

IMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.

Ingredients

▢ 1¼ cups (180 g) milk chocolate
▢ 4½ cups (540 g) icing/powdered sugar
▢ 1 cup (120 g) black cocoa
▢ ½ tsp salt
▢ ¾ cup (165 g) milk - hot
▢ 1¾ cups (400 g) butter - unsalted
▢ 1 tsp vanilla essence/extract
▢ 2 tsp black gel colour

Instructions

Begin by placing your chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and melting it in the microwave for 20 second bursts at a time, giving it a mix in between each burst to make sure it's melting evenly. If you're using a block of chocolate, then cut it into small pieces before melting it. Once melted, set aside.
In another bowl, combine your icing sugar, salt and black cocoa together and mix until well combined.
Pour the milk into a microwave safe bowl, and heat it in the microwave until it's just boiling (keep an eye on it as you don't want it to over flow - it should take about a minute or so depending on your microwaves strength). Once it's hot, add it to your icing sugar/black cocoa mixture. Mix until well combined and you have a thick black paste (see note 1 if mixture is too thick to mix).
Add your melted chocolate from earlier to your black paste and using a spatula, mix until well combined. Set aside.
In another bowl, cream together your butter, vanilla and black gel colour for a few minutes using an electric mixer (hand or stand mixer both work fine).
Add your black paste from earlier (see note 2) to your creamed butter and mix with an electric mixer until just combined. Do not overmix (see note 3).
Your black buttercream is now ready. If you find it's a little soft for your liking, just pop it into the fridge for 15-30 minutes and then rewhip it until it's smooth (see note 4). Different black cocoa brands may be stronger than others, so if you find your buttercream tastes a little strong for your liking, see note 5 below.

Video

Notes

Note 1. If your mixture is very thick to the point that it's not mixing well, just add in an extra tablespoon of hot milk and this should loosen it up.

Note 2. If you notice that your black paste has thickened up a lot and is hard to get out of your bowl, just heat it up in the microwave for about 5-10 seconds and this will loosen up the mixture and make it easier to pour. Be careful not to overheat it otherwise this will affect the texture of the final buttercream.

Note 3. You don't want to overmix the buttercream as this will start turning your buttercream grey. The more air you whip into it, the lighter your buttercream is going to get. Mix until it's just combined and you can finish off any additional mixing with a spatula.

Note 4. Because this recipe uses melted chocolate and hot milk, your final buttercream may be a little soft and that's just because the ingredients haven't had time to set. If you do find it's not as firm as you need it to be, just pop it into the fridge for 15 to 30 minutes and then rewhip it to get it nice and smooth again and you're good to go. Just remember not to overwhip it. The buttercream shouldn't be hard after refrigerating as we are only chilling it for a short time, so rewhipping is just to get rid of any air bubbles that may have formed.

Note 5. If you find that the black cocoa is a little over powering for you, or your buttercream is not sweet enough, feel free to add more icing sugar or fold in some more melted chocolate to suit your taste.

Nutrition

Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.

Keyword: black buttercream, black cocoa frosting, black frosting

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