- 1 cup (90g) unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (120ml) heavy cream or whole milk, plus more if needed
For Assembly
- Additional rainbow sprinkles for decoration
- Cake dowels or thick straws (for tiered cake stability)
have leftover frosting, or you can scale down the frosting recipe slightly. All other instructions for baking and frosting will remain the same, just without the need for dowels or stacking a second tier.
What type of cocoa powder is best for the chocolate buttercream?
For a rich, dark chocolate flavor and color, we recommend using unsweetened natural cocoa powder or Dutch-processed cocoa powder. Dutch-processed cocoa powder is less acidic and often results in a darker color and smoother flavor. Either will work wonderfully, but make sure it’s unsweetened to control the sugar content in your frosting. Sifting the cocoa powder is crucial to avoid lumps.