Quick Chocolate Frosting With Cocoa Powder

Chocolate Frosting with Cocoa Powder

I love making homemade kids birthday cakes and cupcakes, but I don’t love how many things I have to pull out and wash when making them at home. To help, enter this super simple, one-bowl, no-electric-appliances-needed chocolate frosting! All you need to make this is a bowl and a spoon, and it’s a perfect recipe to cook with the kids, too, because they can make the whole thing. It’s that easy! Try this with my Healthy Chocolate Cake, Vegan Chocolate Cupcakes, or Healthy Vanilla Cupcakes. (You may also like Yogurt Frosting, Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting, and Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting.)

Chocolate Frosting without Butter

Honestly, it was by mistake that I discovered it’s possible to make a delicious frosting without butter. I wanted to make frosting for a cake and was out of my usual cream cheese and butter. But I did have Greek yogurt, so I figured it was better than nothing. Sign up for our email updates to get tips and ideas sent to your inbox. And I was SO pleasantly surprised by how good it was that it’s now become my go-to chocolate frosting!

Ingredients You Need

To make this chocolate frosting with cocoa powder recipe, you’ll need to have the following ingredients on hand and ready to go.

Plain Greek yogurt: I prefer whole-milk yogurt so it’s as creamy and thick as possible. Confectioners’ sugar: This is also known as powdered sugar. It helps the frosting thicken nicely. Cocoa powder: Look for an unsweetened variety.

TIP: There’s not a lot of confectioners’ sugar in this recipe, but the amount that’s there helps thicken the frosting and provide just enough sweetness.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Here’s a look at the general process for making this easy frosting for cakes or cupcakes. Scroll down to the bottom of the recipe for the full information. TIP: If your yogurt has any liquid on top, drain it off before you measure out the yogurt.

Recipes to Make with Chocolate Frosting

Easy Chocolate Cake Easy Vanilla Cake Football Cake Vanilla Cupcakes Chocolate Cupcakes Banana Cupcakes

How to Store

You can make this chocolate frosting with cocoa powder up to 3 days ahead. Store in an airtight container in the fridge. Drain off any liquid, stir together, and add to your cake or cupcakes.

Best Tips for Success

Dairy-free: Use a dairy-free Greek-style yogurt if needed. You can try making this with 2-4 tablespoons honey instead of confectioners’ sugar if desired. (I prefer confectioners’ sugar as it makes it more of a traditional frosting consistency. Honey will make a slightly softer frosting.) I usually make this with whole-milk plain Greek yogurt and it’s delicious. I like using SACO brand cocoa powder or Hershey’s Special Dark. This makes enough for one 9-inch cake or about 10-12 cupcakes. (If you like a lot of frosting on your cupcakes, you may want to do 1 ½ times the recipe!) Or spoon into a zip-top storage bag, seal, and trim off one corner. Pipe onto cakes or cupcakes.

If you try this recipe, please comment and rate the recipe below—I love to hear from you all!