I make italian buttercream but have only made it into chocolate a handful of times, does it make a difference which type of cocoa I use..I mean dark(dutched) or regular? It seems like when I tried with regular it didn't work out so well and I was wondering if it was the cocoa or some other fluke? When I've used the dark(preferred) it alwasy works out. Just curious because my store doesn't always have the dark.

I always use a ganache to flavor Italian Buttercream! It's much easier/ better than cocoa.

I make SMBC (close cousin) and add ganache as well....amazing flavor.

I'm a chocolate snob and a chocolate junkie, and I just find it's a lot easier to get my hands on really good dark chocolate (Valrhona, Callebaut, etc) while really good cocoa is hit or miss.

I use either ganache or melted chocolate. The cocoa powder will not dissolve into the frosting (at least not right away) and you won't get the desired effect. You can just melt down some dark chocolate (60% cacao would be good) and let it cool so it is cool to the touch yet still liquid and add it to the frosting while mixing with your mixer. Or you can make ganache and add some cooled ganache.