While I was brainstorming of what Paletas I would share with you lovely people during this paleta series, the first one that came to mind was a fudge-pop. These were my favorite type of popsicle as a little me and truthfully they still are! This girl can’t live without her chocolate and I find it challenging to come across non-dairy fudge pops that are still rich in chocolate flavor, and also thick and creamy. This recipe is a sophisticated non-dairy version of the classic fudge-pop eaten back in the day, with a citrus espresso twist. If you’re not a huge fan of citrus + espresso + chocolate combination, give this one a try you may change your mind- same with the Pineapple Mango Cayenne combination from yesterday.
There’s something about citrus, chocolate, and espresso flavors that all blend very well together. If you’re a coffee drinker or chocolate connoisseur I’m sure you’ve noticed the subtle flavors of citrus while drinking and eating some high quality coffee or chocolates out there. Many of my favorite coffees have subtle citrus, orange, lemon, or grapefruit notes in them (ex. one of my favorite coffees from Stumptown or MADCAP), overall it creates a “brighter”, lighter taste versus a very bold and earthy coffee.
The citrus used in this recipes is from an orange which does a beautiful job at bringing out the more subtle citrus sweet notes in the espresso and dark chocolate. Also remember, the quality of ingredients used in a recipe will always make or break the recipe (this goes for ALL recipes)– i.e. use great quality chocolate! I’ll share a couple brands I enjoy at the bottom of this post to help lead you in the direction of chocolates that have a light citrus note. As for the espresso or coffee used in this recipe, choose one you enjoy or have on hand. I’m loving a new product from Trader Joe’s which is a cold brewed coffee concentrate.
- 2 large avocados (about 250-280g each)
- 1 cup light coconut milk, canned
- 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
- 4 Tbs. cocoa powder
- 2 Tbs. cold brewed coffee concentrate- I used Trader Joes (or 1 Tbs. ground espresso)
- 2 Tbs. orange zest
- 2 Tbs. orange juice, fresh squeezed
- 1 Tbs. raw sugar
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- Melt the semi-sweet chocolate chips in the microwave for 1 min, stirring after 30 sec.
- Simply blend and combine all ingredients into your Vitamix or high speed blender until thick and creamy.
- This mixture will be thick, therefore pouring into the molds will need the aid of a spoon!
- Spoon mixture into the popsicle molds.
- Freeze until hardened.
- Keep and store in the freezer until time of eating.
- Enjoy!
Feel free to use my Vitamix coupon code for a discount, 06-008786 or simply click the Vitamix icon on the right! This is the mold I’m using in all the paleta recipes. You can also check some of these out here, and this one is really cool too!
Some of my favorite chocolate brands// Olive & Sinclair, Mast Brothers Chocolate, Cocanú Chocolate (especially the Helvetic), NibMor, Endangered Species, Fearless Chocolate, TAZA, Valrhona Chocolate, Chocolove (especially the Orange Peel in Dark Chocolate), Greens & Black, DAGOBA organic chocolate, Scharffen Berger Chocolate, and many more (I told you I love chocolate!).
What was your favorite popsicle or ice pop as a child? Share below, I know there are other chocolate lovers out there!
Have a sweet day,
xo McKel
