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Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting is the rich, fluffy, slightly tangy frosting that makes everything it touches taste like a bakery dessert. Real melted chocolate plus cocoa-free, pure chocolate flavor gives it a deep, fudgy taste, while cream cheese keeps it from being cloyingly sweet. It whips up in minutes and pipes beautifully. I slather it on everything from cupcakes to graham crackers, and Maddie just eats it by the spoonful. If you love a cream cheese frosting, it is the chocolate cousin to the one on our lemon cake.
Made with melted semi-sweet chocolate, tangy cream cheese, butter, and powdered sugar, this chocolate cream cheese frosting is silky, pipeable, and ready in minutes.
Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 10 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 0 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 15 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 4 cups
- ⚡ Calories: 150kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Rich, fudgy chocolate balanced by tangy cream cheese, light and fluffy
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, on par with our coconut frosting
Quick Answer
To make chocolate cream cheese frosting, melt semi-sweet chocolate chips in the microwave in short bursts and let them cool for about ten minutes. Cream softened cream cheese and butter together until smooth, then beat in the cooled melted chocolate. Add the powdered sugar a little at a time, mix in vanilla and salt, then whip everything on medium-high for about three minutes until light and fluffy. The result is a rich, pipeable chocolate cream cheese frosting that is tangy, fudgy, and perfect for cakes, cupcakes, and brownies. Use it right away while it is soft and spreadable.
Jump to:
- Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting FAQs
- Other Recommended Frosting and Cake Recipes
- Best Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Real melted chocolate. Using melted semi-sweet chocolate instead of just cocoa powder gives this chocolate cream cheese frosting a deep, glossy, fudge-like flavor.
- Cream cheese cuts the sweetness. Tangy cream cheese balances the powdered sugar so the frosting tastes rich, not tooth-achingly sweet.
- The right butter-to-cheese ratio. Equal parts butter and cream cheese give a frosting that is sturdy enough to pipe but still soft and creamy.
- Whipping makes it fluffy. A few minutes of high-speed whipping at the end adds air, giving the frosting that light, billowy texture.
- A pinch of salt sharpens it. Fine sea salt wakes up the chocolate and keeps the whole frosting tasting balanced.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It is rich and fudgy from real melted chocolate, with just enough tang from the cream cheese.
- It whips up in about ten minutes and pipes like a dream on cakes and cupcakes.
- It is endlessly versatile, just like our coconut frosting, and works on almost any dessert.
- It earns a spot in the rotation right next to our this slow cooker applesauce.
Key Ingredients
Just six simple ingredients make this rich, pipeable chocolate frosting.
- Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips: Melted and cooled, they give the frosting its deep, real-chocolate flavor. Use a good-quality brand for the best taste.
- Cream Cheese: Softened full-fat block cream cheese adds the signature tang and creamy body. Avoid the spreadable tub kind.
- Unsalted Butter: Softened butter adds richness and helps the frosting hold its shape for piping.
- Powdered Sugar: Sifted powdered sugar sweetens and thickens the frosting to a pipeable consistency.
- Vanilla and Fine Sea Salt: Vanilla rounds out the chocolate, and a little salt keeps it from tasting flat or overly sweet.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
This chocolate cream cheese frosting is easy to dress up.
- Make it darker: Use dark or bittersweet chocolate chips for a more intense, less sweet frosting.
- Add espresso: Stir in a teaspoon of instant espresso powder to deepen the chocolate flavor.
- Make it mocha: Add a splash of strong cooled coffee along with the vanilla.
- Spice it up: A pinch of cinnamon or cayenne gives a Mexican-chocolate twist.
- Stiffen for piping: Add a little more powdered sugar, or chill briefly, for tall, structured swirls.
- In the mood for something different? Our carrot bundt cake scratches a similar itch.
How to Make Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
- Melt the semi-sweet chocolate chips in the microwave in 15-second bursts, stirring between each, until smooth. Let cool for about 10 minutes.
- Cream the softened cream cheese and butter together with a mixer until completely smooth and combined.
- Add the cooled melted chocolate and mix until fully incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add the powdered sugar a little at a time, mixing and scraping until it is all incorporated.
- Stir in the vanilla and salt until evenly combined.
- Whip on medium-high speed for about 3 minutes until light and fluffy, then use immediately.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Soften the butter and cream cheese fully so the frosting whips up smooth with no lumps.
- Cool the melted chocolate for about 10 minutes before adding, so it does not melt the butter and thin the frosting.
- Sift the powdered sugar for the silkiest, lump-free frosting.
- Add sugar gradually and scrape the bowl often for an evenly mixed frosting.
- Whip at the end for a few minutes to get that light, fluffy, pipeable texture.
- Use it right away while soft, or rewhip briefly if it has been chilled.
- Make it a full spread. Our melt-in-your-mouth pecan sandies rounds out the table.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
This chocolate cream cheese frosting is endlessly useful. Pipe it onto cupcakes, spread it thick between cake layers, or swirl it over a sheet cake or pan of brownies.
It is the perfect finish for chocolate, vanilla, red velvet, or banana cakes, and it tastes amazing on our chocolate espresso cake.
Try it on cookies, graham crackers, or as a dip for fruit and pretzels. For another decadent topping, whip up our chocolate whipped cream.
Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting FAQs
Yes. Because it contains cream cheese, this frosting should be refrigerated. A frosted cake can sit out for a couple of hours for serving, but store leftovers in the fridge and bring to room temperature before serving again.
This frosting is delicious on chocolate, vanilla, red velvet, and banana cakes and cupcakes, as well as brownies, cookies, and graham crackers. It also makes a great dip for fruit and pretzels.
For a thicker, more pipeable frosting, beat in additional sifted powdered sugar a quarter cup at a time, or chill the frosting for 15 to 20 minutes to firm it up before piping.
Yes. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week, or freeze for up to three months. Let it come to room temperature and rewhip briefly to restore the fluffy texture before using.
Runny frosting usually means the melted chocolate was too warm or the cream cheese and butter were too soft. Chill the frosting for a bit and rewhip, and make sure to cool the chocolate before adding it next time.
Melted chocolate gives the richest flavor and best texture, but you can add a few tablespoons of cocoa powder for extra chocolate depth. Using only cocoa powder will give a lighter, less fudgy frosting.
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Still filling out the menu? Readers love pairing this one with our Mississippi mud brownies, cheesecake stuffed strawberries, carrot cake, and baileys cupcakes.
And when you are planning next week’s dinners, our Oreo cupcakes, peanut butter dip, pumpkin sheet cake, and Hummingbird Cake keep the same easy comfort going.
Best Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips melted
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 8 ounces unsalted butter softened
- 4 cups powdered sugar sifted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
- Place the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl and cook in 15-second intervals, stirring in between until melted. Let cool for 10 minutes.1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- Place the cream cheese and butter into the body of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, and cream until smooth and combined. You can also use a large bowl and hand mixer.8 ounces cream cheese, 8 ounces unsalted butter
- Add and stir the melted chocolate, scraping down the sides as needed to fully mix it into the cream cheese and butter.
- Add the powdered sugar a little at a time until it is all mixed in, and scrape the sides as needed.4 cups powdered sugar
- Stir in the vanilla and salt.1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- Place the mixer on medium-high speed and whip for 3 minutes until light and fluffy. Use immediately.
Notes
- Use Full Fat Cream Cheese: It makes the frosting rich and creamy. Reduced-fat or fat-free versions just don’t cut it.
- Sift Your Powdered Sugar: This helps make the frosting smooth and lump-free.
- Don’t Overmix: Mix just until everything is combined to avoid making the frosting runny.
- Chill Your Bowl: For best results, chill your mixing bowl before the addition of cream cheese.
- Add Flavor Gradually: Taste as you go when adding extra flavors like extracts or spices.
- Use High-Quality Chocolate: The better the chocolate, the better the frosting will taste.
Nutrition
Love This Recipe?
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Your piping is so cute. Could you please include the type and number of tip you are using, maybe in the “Dana’s tips/tricks or notes,” for those of us who are not familiar with cake/cupcake designs. Thank you.
So pretty. You might have included it and I missed it, but what size tip did you use?
Awesome! I will definately make this delicious frosting!