Baked Goods/ Desserts

Carob (Chocolate) Frosting

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Carob (Chocolate) Frosting

This recipe makes a GREAT frosting that is rich and full of flavor.  We use this frosting over our vanilla cake.  The Carob powder adds a rich chocolate taste while the maple syrup and the coconut milk create the most perfect sweetness to this frosting.  The ghee gives a buttery nutty flavor that makes your mouth water with each bite.

This is not your traditional fluffy frosting.  The Carob (Chocolate) Frosting is the type of frosting that you pour over the cake layers and lightly, with a spatula, spread the frosting where you want it to go.  Think liquid fudge.  Note, the frosting is best after it has had time to chill on the cake.  Mom said, that my paternal Grandmother made a similar version of this frosting with cocoa powder. She was always in the kitchen cooking something new. I think mom and I like cooking and being in the kitchen as much as she did.

We use Carob powder because it is caffeine-free.  But even though we do not use caffeine we still crave chocolate.  So this is our way of having chocolate without the effects of caffeine. Carob is delicious and sweet in its own right. We love using carob; because, it is easy to work with and it does not have the bitterness like cocoa.

So how do you make this delicious frosting?

Instructions:

Take a small saucepan (1 qt. or larger) and add all the ingredients on the list to the pan.  Place the small sauce pan on the stove eye (burner) and cook on medium heat stirring constantly with a spoon.  After all the ingredients are mixed together take a whisk and beat the mixture until it is smooth.  This will take somewhere around a minute.

  Don’t throw the whisk into the sink, yet, we may use it again at the end.  Place the whisk, to the side, on a saucer or plate for later.  You are going to want to continue cooking and stirring the mixture with the spoon until the mixture comes to a boil.  Now that the mixture has come to a boil reduce the heat to simmer and cook for an additional five to ten minutes stirring frequently.  The key here is to not let the frosting stick to the bottom of the pan. Stirring helps prevent this.  After your timer goes off, letting you know that your five minutes are up, set the pan off the eye (burner) and allow to cool.  

Follow the visual step-by-step guide located above for additional information on making this recipe.

This step is optional.  At this time you can take the whisk and whip the frosting.  This allows air into the frosting which allows it to cool a little faster.  Only whip the frosting for about a minute.

Allow the frosting to rest now.  After the frosting cools which takes about 30 minutes it is ready to be used on the cake layers. If you try to spread the hot frosting on the cake layers one of two things will happen. The frosting will run off the layers into the plate, and even onto the counter the plate is sitting on, and puddle. Leaving very little frosting on the cake layers. Or the frosting will absorb into the cake layers causing the layers to turn to mush. We do not want either of these things to happen.

Note: After you have frosted the cake layers place the cake in the fridge to allow all the flavors to blend together perfectly.

Hope you enjoy!!

You can find our Everyday Vanilla Cake Layer Recipe Here.

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  • Lisa
    June 27, 2019 at 6:43 am

    Hi
    I tried to make the carob frosting but the coconut oil separated and set at the top of the frosting? What did I do wrong?

    • Vanessa & Valancie
      June 27, 2019 at 10:04 pm

      Hello Lisa,

      Sorry to hear that the Carob (Chocolate) frosting did not turn out great. We remade the frosting today following the recipe provided online using the 1/4 cup coconut oil (we tested with Dr. Bonner’s virgin coconut oil). We wanted to make sure that the recipe did not have an error before we responded. Following the recipe, our frosting did not separate. Could you give us some more information about how you made the Carob (Chocolate) Frosting? We really enjoy making and eating the frosting and we would like to help, so you can enjoy it too.

      Here are some suggestions:

      1.) If the coconut milk was not 100% pure coconut milk, it could be causing the problem. Some brands of coconut milk have additives that may interfere with the combining of ingredients for the frosting.

      2.) The coconut oil needs to be at room temperature (in its solid state). Using to much oil could cause the oil to sit on top of the frosting. Preventing it from absorbing into the Carob. Carob does a really good job absorbing oil.

      As of right now the only other thing that we can tell you is we are not sure what happened. Again, if you can give us more details we will try to assist.

      As for the ingredients we use: Dr. Bonner’s Organic Virgin Coconut Oil, Pure Organic Vermont Maple Syrup, The Australian Company Organic Pure Carob Powder Roasted and Aroy-D Coconut Milk.

      Vanessa & Valancie

      • Lisa
        June 30, 2019 at 3:17 pm

        Hi. Thank you for replying. I think it may be the coconut milk as mine was not 100% coconut. I tried the recipe using water instead of the coconut milk and the first time, it worked very well, but the second time, the coconut oil sat on top of the frosting. I will try again using natural coconut milk. Thank you.

  • Donna
    March 16, 2020 at 1:15 pm

    Coconut oil does not harden as it cooks. When you cook for 5 minutes the ghee is thickening the frosting.

    • Vanessa & Valancie
      March 18, 2020 at 8:41 pm

      Hello Healthymom34,

      We are glad to hear that the ghee thickened the frosting for you.