While I love my recipe for chocolate frosting using heavy cream and chocolate, I like this one even more for a few reasons: It’s dairy free and it’s made with cocoa powder, maple syrup, coconut oil, and coconut milk. I can also easily adjust it to my liking.

I’ve been experimenting for a while with cocoa as the key ingredient for chocolate frosting. There are a lot of recipes out there that use unsweetened chocolate and baking chocolate, but I like to avoid the additives in chocolate bars. I’m also trying to focus on plant-based eating to minimize my impact on animals and the planet, so this hits that mark well for me since it’s made of plant-based ingredients.

And another beautiful thing about this recipe: You can work with it just like dairy-based buttercream. It can be piped using a pastry bag to create decorative frosting on cakes and cupcakes. The frosting can be at room temperature or a bit cooler. If it’s a bit on the warm side just put in the refrigerator for 10 minutes or so.

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Milk Chocolate Buttercream Frosting {dairy free}

If you prefer, you can use another nut, or a seed butter such as pumpkin butter or sunflower butter. Just make sure it's smooth and unsalted.

To make a smaller batch of this recipe, which I do often, cut the ingredients in half from the recipe: 2 tablespoons coconut oil, 2 1/2 tablespoons cocoa powder, 3 tablespoons maple syrup, 1 tablespoon almond butter, and 3 tablespoons coconut milk.

Servings: servings

Calories: 122kcal

Ingredients

1/4 cup coconut oil
5 tablespoons cocoa powder
6 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons almond butter smooth, unsalted, roasted or raw, no additives
6 tablespoons coconut milk full fat
pinch of salt optional

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Melt the coconut oil in a glass bowl over a double boiler (saucepan with simmering water).
Once the oil is melted (and clear), turn off the heat and add the cocoa powder and blend well with a whisk.
Add the maple syrup and whisk unti well blended.
Add the coconut milk and whisk well again.
Add the almond butter and whisk the frosting for a minute or so, unti it is blended a lightly whipped.
Frost cupcakes and cakes. Store it covered in the refrigerator for a few weeks.

Nutrition

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Comments

Kathleen Kristek

May 31, 2021 at 5:41 am

Hi! Can the maple syrup be substituted with honey to make is SCD legal? Thanks

- Erica
  
  May 31, 2021 at 8:11 am
  
  Unfortunately, cocoa is not SCD legal, but you can replace the maple syrup with honey.
  
Rebecca

April 2, 2021 at 11:21 pm

Hi there 🙂 Looks great! I’m guessing the second coconut oil mentioned in the list is coconut milk as per the recipe 🙂 x

- Erica
  
  April 2, 2021 at 11:43 pm
  
  Thanks! Already fixed that. Yes, the second is coconut milk 🙂