This rich and fudgy Chocolate Avocado Frosting is dairy-free, refined sugar-free and made with just 4 ingredients! You only need 5 minutes to whip this frosting together, and it’s the perfect texture to frost cakes, cupcakes or brownies!
Today, I’m finally sharing my go-to chocolate frosting recipe! It’s quick, easy and wholesome, and my favorite icing to use for this chocolate zucchini cake!
This avocado frosting has such a smooth and creamy buttercream texture, you would never guess that the main ingredient is fruit!
If you love smooth and creamy frostings as much as we do, you’ll also love this peanut butter chocolate frosting or this peanut butter cream cheese frosting (with a vegan option included in the recipe).
Table of contents
Why you’ll love this recipe
- It doesn’t contain any butter or cream cheese. This frosting is dairy-free with avocado acting in place of the butter and cream cheese, which are usually the main ingredients in frostings.
- You can’t taste the avocado! While I like the taste of avocado, I know it’s not for everyone. No worries. The avocado adds a creamy texture, but the flavor of the cocoa and maple syrup totally disguise it.
- It’s quick and easy to make. You just need 5 minutes and 4 ingredients. I usually make it in my smoothie blender cup for an extra smooth consistency and easy clean up!
Details on the ingredients
Avocado – You’ll need one large ripe avocado for the frosting (or two small avocados). Ripe avocados have a creamy texture and blend easily. Both essential for this recipe!
Cocoa – You can use dutch-processed or natural cocoa. Dutch-processed is darker in colour compared to natural cocoa, so it will create a darker chocolate frosting. Natural cocoa is lighter in colour and has a slightly sharper taste. I’ve used both in this recipe and they both taste great.
Maple Syrup – To naturally sweeten the frosting, you’ll want to use pure maple syrup. You can also use honey or agave syrup. (Just note that the frosting won’t be vegan if you use honey).
Almond milk – The avocado frosting is super thick so I normally add 2-3 tablespoons of unsweetened almond milk to thin it out and help it blend together. You can use another type of milk, but I recommend staying with unsweetened.
How to make chocolate avocado frosting
Add the avocado, cocoa, maple syrup and 2 tablespoons of nut milk to a small blender or food processor. Blend until smooth and creamy. (You may need to stop a few times and scrape down the sides with a spatula).
If the frosting is too thick, just add another tablespoon of almond milk. (Be careful not to add too much as you don’t want the frosting to be runny).
Frequently asked questions
Avocado frosting should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will thicken a bit once chilled, so before frosting your cake, give it a good stir and let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes so it can soften to a spreadable consistency.
If stored properly, chocolate avocado frosting should last for 3-4 days.
If the frosting isn’t thick enough for you, you can blend in a little bit more cocoa until it reaches your desired consistency. Just note that the frosting does firm up a bit in the fridge so you may not need to add extra cocoa.
If the frosting is too thick or you want to enjoy the frosting as a pudding, just blend in some more almond milk until it reaches a thinner consistency.
Yes, you can freeze this frosting. Store it in an airtight container in the freezer and defrost in the refrigerator before using. I’ve frozen slices of cake topped with this frosting and it maintained the same taste and texture once defrosted.
Additional recipe tips
- For the smoothest and creamiest results, use a high powered blender or food processor. Smaller is also better since the recipe only makes one cup of frosting. I like to use the smoothie cup that came with my blender.
- You can also use an electric mixer, and this is how I used to make the frosting all of the time. You still get creamy results, but you may end up with some flecks of avocado in the frosting.
- If you decide to use an electric mixer, you may wish to add the cocoa in small portions and beat after each addition. This will help minimize the cocoa dust.
- The frosting is rich and chocolatey but not overly sweet. If you like sweeter frostings, you can add a little more maple syrup, but make sure to cut back on the amount of milk used. Otherwise, the frosting will be too runny.
- To enhance the flavor of the other ingredients, try adding a pinch of sea salt.
- The recipe makes about 1 cup of frosting, which is enough to top a single layer 8 or 9 inch round or square cake. For a layer cake, you’ll want to double the recipe.
Ways to use avocado frosting
- We think this frosting would be perfect for some of our favorite cakes like this almond flour chocolate cake and this almond flour orange cake.
- It’s also delicious on this lemon almond flour cake (also pictured in this post), chocolate air fryer cake or this banana cake with oil.
- Use it as a frosting for cupcakes like these chocolate zucchini cupcakes, vanilla almond flour cupcakes or almond flour chocolate cupcakes.
- It would be an amazing decadent topping on these raspberry brownies or salted almond butter brownies or use it in place of the chocolate buttercream frosting on these tahini brownies!
- It’s a great substitute for coconut whipped cream. Try it on this blood orange chocolate cake or on this chai cake.
If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear what you think in the comments below!
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Chocolate Avocado Frosting
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 1 cup
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Blend
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This rich and fudgy Chocolate Avocado Frosting is dairy-free, refined sugar-free and made with just 4 ingredients! You only need 5 minutes to whip this frosting together, and it’s the perfect texture to frost cakes, cupcakes or brownies!
Ingredients
- 1 large ripe avocado (or 2 small), peeled and pitted
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 2–3 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk
Instructions
- Add the avocado, cocoa, maple syrup and 2 tablespoons of milk to a small blender or food processor. Blend until smooth and creamy. (You may need to stop a few times and scrape down the sides with a spatula).
- If the frosting is too thick, just add the remaining tablespoon of almond milk. (Be careful not to add too much as you don’t want the frosting to be runny).
- Use immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator and use within 3-4 days.
Notes
- For the smoothest and creamiest results, use a high powered blender or food processor. Smaller is also better since the recipe only makes one cup of frosting. I like to use the smoothie cup that came with my blender.
- You can also use an electric mixer. You still get creamy results, but you may end up with some flecks of avocado in the frosting.
- If you decide to use a mixer, you may wish to add the cocoa in small portions and beat after each addition. This will help minimize the cocoa dust.
- The frosting is rich and chocolatey but not overly sweet. If you like sweeter frostings, you can use a little bit more maple syrup but cut back on the milk so the frosting doesn’t get runny.
- The recipe makes about one cup, which is enough to top a single layer 8 or 9 inch round or square cake. For a layer cake, you’ll want to double the recipe.
- If the frosting doesn’t seem thick enough, it will thicken a bit in the fridge. You can also blend in a little more cocoa to help thicken it.
- For a thinner frosting, just blend in more milk.
- Be sure to check out the other sections above the recipe card for more detailed advice and suggestions for making this recipe.
Can I pipe with this frosting on my cupcakes? After I defrost the frosting, do I need to re-whip or blend in a food processor again before I pipe it on my cupcakes?
Hi Connie. Yes, you can pipe this frosting on cupcakes. If you want a thicker consistency for piping, you can add a little more cocoa, a little less milk or let it firm up slightly in the fridge. Once defrosted, you don’t need to re-whip or blend the frosting. Just defrost in the fridge, then let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes and stir it until it’s a more spreadable consistency. Hope that helps!
I’ve tried a chocolate avocado mousse first time ever this year, and I wasn’t really impressed. Maybe you need a few attempts to start liking its texture but mostly the aftertaste. Or maybe you just need to use it as a frosting on something super delicious (like those peppermint mocha brownies!) 🙂 Anyway, this frosting looks quite lovely – silky, smooth, and fudgy!
So quick and so easy and looks delicious!
I will be putting this in everything..haha.
I love that this is dairy-free
It’s definitely a great topping for so many desserts. Thanks Terry!