Browned Butter Chocolate Frosting - 2 Ways

A friend of mine told me several weeks ago that she uses browned butter in her chocolate frosting.  I had never heard of such a thing, and had obviously not thought of it myself, so I wanted to give it a try.  I totally did it, and I totally love it. The browned butter elevates the frosting to a whole new level, and doesn't get lost in or compete with the chocolate at all, which I was slightly worried about.  I made the frosting 2 different ways, and will share both.  The first uses cocoa powder and the second uses melted chocolate chips.  The texture of the two frostings are a bit different, the cocoa powder frosting is softer and a bit lighter.  The chocolate chip version is a bit heavier and solidifies more especially when refrigerated.  Both are delicious, and will frost a 9x13 or a 9 inch layer cake.  

Browned Butter Chocolate Frosting with Cocoa Powder

1 cup butter, browned and cooled to room temperature
1/2 cup cocoa powder
4 to 5 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
6 to 7 Tablespoons milk

In a large bowl, beat together the browned butter, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar until crumbly.  Add the vanilla and 3 tablespoons of the milk and beat until incorporated.  Beat in the remaining milk, one tablespoon at a time until the desired consistency is reached.  

Browned Butter Chocolate Frosting with Melted Chocolate

1 cup (2 sticks, 16 tablespoons) butter, browned and cooled to room temperature

2 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips, melted and cooled

In a large bowl, beat together the browned butter and powdered sugar until smooth and combined. Beat in the vanilla extract.  Add the melted chocolate and beat the frosting until it is light and fluffy.  Makes about 3 cups.

Enjoy!  -Cardamommy