Dark Chocolate & Mascarpone Frosting
This dark Chocolate & Mascarpone Frosting is silky smooth and so delious.
This frosting is made with bittersweet chocolate, cocoa powder, sugar, sea salt, and brewed coffee, A step that brings out its intense chocolaty flavors and will make your frosting silky smooth.
This chocolate mascarpone frosting pairs well with absolutely anything you can imagine.
Before you start
Read the recipe thoroughly, and make sure you have everything you need.
Pictures scroll to → Notes and click on the clickable link for the step-by-step photos; I highly recommend this before you start, as there are two versions of the chocolate mascarpone frostings.
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- Bakers tip
→Try to use good-quality unsweetened cocoa powder possible. Dutch cocoa powder contains more fat and less starch than supermarket brands, It will give the frosting a better flavor and richness. Great brands I can recommend are Droste, Guittard, Valrhona, and Callebaut.
→ Use good-quality chocolate; I use Valrhona 66%. It makes a huge difference in taste! Always use pure chocolate when preparing this recipe. Do not use chocolate chips that are designed for chocolate chip cookies. The chocolate I am referring to is pure chocolate sold in bars or callets.
→Mascarpone is softer than cream cheese and tastes so much more heavenly than cream cheese. Mascarpone is a cross between heavy cream, sour cream, and cream cheese it is thick but still soft and creamy. You can substitute the mascarpone for cream cheese, but personally, I find mascarpone taste way better. If you plan to use cream cheese, use the brand Philadelphia original. When making these recipes with cream cheese, you need to let the cream cheese come at room temperature first.
→Heavy cream, also known as heavy whipping cream, has the highest fat content, so it whips up very well. Always use a heavy cream that is the highest in fat content. I use one with 40% fat ( 36, or 38 % is OK too). Using a cream with high fat will make for the most stable and delicious frosting. You can make heavy cream more stable if using less than 40% fat in your cream by adding two teaspoons ( 3 grams) of skimmed milk powder to the recipe before you whip up the extra-dark version.
Dark Chocolate & Mascarpone Frosting
- 125 gram bittersweet chocolate 66 to 70 %, finely chopped or callets *note
- 50 gram good quality unsweetened cocoa powder
- 140 gram white sugar
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 95 gram strongly brewed coffee or boiled water
- 500 gram heavy cream, 40% cold
- 250 gram mascarpone, semi-cold 16C°/60F°
- One teaspoon vanilla bean paste, optional
Dark Chocolate & Mascarpone Frosting
- For this frosting, I use brewed coffee; you can also use instant espresso powder and boiled water. If you don't like coffee, use boiled water, but I promise you that the chocolate mascarpone frosting won't taste like coffee, but the chocolate flavor will certainly be deep and divine! Adding hot coffee to the cocoa powder is a step that brings out its intense chocolaty flavors in this frosting, and the chocolate syrup will make your frosting super smooth.
- For the Chocolate Syrup; In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, stir together 125-gram bittersweet chocolate, 50-gram good quality unsweetened cocoa powder, 140-gram white sugar, a pinch of sea salt, and 95 grams of warm brewed coffee.
- Place over medium heat while stirring with a small whisk to dissolve the chocolate and sugar, stirring until the chocolate syrup is smooth—about 1 minute.
- Pour the warm chocolate syrup into a medium-sized bowl using a balloon whisk, or use a bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Add 250-gram semi-cold mascarpone, one teaspoon of vanilla bean paste, and 500-gram cold heavy cream. Whisk until silky smooth, at low- medium speed, or use a balloon whisk to hand whisk the mixture until the mixture is silky smooth and has the consistency of chocolate pudding.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 4 to 6 hours or until cold. It won't whip up well if it´s not fully chilled.
- When you are ready to frost your cake, Use a balloon whisk to hand whisk the frosting for a few seconds until it starts to thicken, about 10 to 30 seconds, depending on if you want a silky smooth version or a more fluffy and thick version.
- The longer you whip it, the more fluffy and thick it becomes, and the less silky smooth it will look; this version is easy to overwhip. I highly recommend using an electric hand mixer at medium-low speed or a balloon whisk to have more control. It is better to mix very little, and if needed to make it thicker, use a spatula and continue to whip by hand until you are satisfied with the consistency.
- If your frosting seems a bit sloppy, more like chocolate pudding than frosting, allow it to firm a bit more in the fridge, then beat again briefly before using.
- Use immediately or keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- When frosting a cake with a mascarpone/cream-based frosting, be careful not to run your spatula over the frosting too many times, or you'll overwork the frosting, and it'll become grainy.
For step-by-step pictures of how to make
→ Dark Chocolate & Mascarpone Frosting
Click → here
