Fudge popsicles remind me of hot summer camp days, merry-go-rounds, and city parks (I grew up in New York City). When I went to camp, counselors handed these pops out in record time (but not fast enough), while we sat patiently in the grass, sweat dripping down our faces. I couldn’t get the wrapper off soon enough.
You can use any kind of milk for this recipe since the cocoa dominates the flavor. You’ll just need some time, about 6 hours, for the pops to freeze.
If you don’t have pop molds, you can use paper cups and sticks. Pour the final mixture in the cups and let them freeze for 30 minutes before inserting the sticks in so they stay in place.
Some pop molds I like:
- Tovolo Groovy Ice Pop Molds
- Fox Run Ice Pop Maker (metal with wood sticks, so no plastic)
- Preworks Freezer Pop Maker (metal with wood sticks, so no plastic)
I haven’t tried it yet, but I’m curious to know how the pop will taste if I use puréed banana in place of the gelatin to make it plant-based. Let us know if you try it.
More pop ideas
Fudge Popsicles {dairy free}
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups coconut milk or other milk, divided
- 2 1/2 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
- 1/2 cup maple syrup or honey
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Place 1/4 cup of the milk in a bowl and sprinkle the gelatin on top. Let it sit for a few minutes to disolve.
- Add the remaining ingredients in a saucepan and stir while gently heating the mixture over medium heat for a few minutes, or until it begins to steam but not boil.
- Add the gelatin-milk mixture from step 1 into the saucepan and blend the mixture using a whisk.
- Turn the heat off and cool for a few minutes and then add to popsicle molds and freeze for at least 6 hours or overnight.
I made these just yesterday. It took them a long time to finally freeze completely through…….easily 36 hours. The mixture also separated into layers…..is that normal? I cooked all the ingredients for about 10 minutes and allowed it to cool before putting it in the molds. I followed your recipe exactly, using full-fat coconut milk. They taste great but just didn’t quite turn out like I had expected.
Sorry to hear. I’ve not had issue with recipe when I make it with coconut milk so not sure what to say. What brand of coconut milk did you use? Also, I use unsweetened non-alkaline cocoa instead of Dutch processed cocoa.
Hi Debbie. This is a long time coming, but I updated the recipe to use gelatin for more even results. Let me know if you try it! thanks again, Erica
Wow, 1/8 cup of honey per serving is a lot of sweetener.
You can probably reduce it from 2 tablespoons to one tablespoon or swap the honey out for bananas to sweeten them.
I made these for my son, age 7, and he is LOVING them! What a great treat for those following a Specific Carbo Diet. 🙂
Just fyi – they aren’t for folks on SCD mainly because of the cocoa.
Will be trying this differantly real soon – cannot eat anything with that contains corn products so store bought fudgesicles are out of the picture til now. I can make my own – yes this is great thank you!
Kelly – thanks! I had no idea. What a great discovery 🙂
Just thought I’d share that this recipe makes awesome HOT CHOCOLATE! I made a double-recipe (using coconut milk and ghee) to fill my popsicle molds and had some leftovers. My daughter and I have really been enjoying our hot chocolate.
Made these over 4th of July weekend for my fiance’s brother and his family – they are definitely kid- and adult-approved! Thanks for the great recipe!
Susan – I agree – a bit of milk with the banana could change everything.
Thanks Erica, I saw your amended version and did reduce the cocoa in the banana version. I think the banana puree version still might work if the banana is a partial substitute for the milk, rather than replacing the entire amount. Maybe half and half, or 3/4 milk to a 1/4 puree.
Susan – thanks for trying this recipe with almond milk. I haven’t used almond milk in a while. Sounds like cocoa doesn’t dissolve well in almond milk. Just fyi – I lowered (but in half) the amount of cocoa that I add now – it is a very intense flavor – my younger son likes it but my older one does not.
Well, my son’s allergic to both milk and coconut, so the first time I used almond milk, and it was less than successful, turning out more like ice milk with a filmy fudge taste.
Then I tried the pureed bananas and sifted the cocoa and whisked the mixture briskly so that it was well blended. They took forever to freeze and I finally left them overnight. This morning all eight of the sticks pulled out without the fudge, so I ended up scooping it all into a bowl to serve later. The taste is very intense – a banana fudge frozen custard. I think it’ll be too much for the son I made it for, but I’m sure his brother will polish it off post haste.
I made these a few days ago with coconut milk, and also replaced the water with half coconut half water. They were AMAZING!
I also added some heering liquer to it, I love chocolate cherry and coconut together.
While I was making pancakes a few berries fell into the mixture, wow, what a great addition!
This passed the fiance test, and I am definitly making them again with real cherries in them!
Ann, I bet you could use carob chips, but I haven’t tried. Cocoa powder is processed to remove most of the cocoa butter, so it’s different than chocolate or carob.
Caren, I haven’t tried it, but a butter sub, or oil would probably work. If you use Ghee, (clarified butter), that will take care of the milk solids. I bet there’s soy butter as well.
Thanks for the great recipe! I need to make these dairy free. Any ideas for replacing the butter?
This recipe looks wonderful, im just wondering if you think it would work if you put carob chips in a food processor and just used a half cup of that instead of cocoa?
I would say if you use stevia, to really go with what you feel. Stevia is a stronger flavor and you won’t need as much of it to sweeten these so maybe start with a few tablespoons and go on from there.
This recipe + my Zoku popsicle maker = HEAVEN. Thank you so much for sharing. They’re delicious. Way better than store bought…
Thanks for the recipe! I made these yesterday and they are delicious! I used high fat cocoa powder from Penzey’s spices and made 1/2 of the batch with shredded coconut. So very good and rich, like eating a frozen brownie! I “politely” offered some to my boyfriend, but inside I’m hoping he doesn’t take me up on the offer so I can eat them all over the next week!
These are absolutely amazing. I’m boring and only used plain milk and white sugar, but they are so delicious!! Way better than store bought because the cocoa flavor is so much more intense. Thanks for the great recipe!!
Katherine – I’ve never used stevia, but I’m sure you can. I just don’t know the amount you need. Maybe someone can chime in if they use it regularly. There’s usually a ratio to go by.
Could you use stivia in place of the sugar?
I need to make this!! I have some popsicle holders yearning to be a part of this.
I am going to try these soon. I love the fact that they seem very simple to make! Thanks for sharing!!
These look delicious. Let us know how it works adding the pureed banana…I might just try it myself.
My motto is, you can never have “too much” chocolate!
BTW – Love the design that your popsicle forms make.
I’ve been craving fudge popsicles. Yours look much better than the ones from the grocery store. Love your blog!
Hi Jan. This makes from 4 to 5 pops.
How many pops does this recipe make?
Oh boy these look good and I like that they don’t have pudding mix and other junk. Thanks … can’t wait to make and enjoy!!
This is very cool! Homemade fudge pops, what a great summer idea!
Mmm fudgsicles are the best!!
Katie, great tip! thanks!
I have used Natural Value Natural Coconut Milk with A-MAZING results. It separates a lot in the can because it has absolutely no fillers or gums or anything, but I think it tastes 100 times better as a result. And for those on the SCD, it’s “legal” : ) The company confirmed that the only ingredients are coconut and water — woo hoo! Just thought someone might want to know; I definitely looked for a long time before finding it.
P.S. If anyone decides to go this route, make sure not to get he Organic kind; ironically, it has all the gummy fillers in it but the Natural kind does not. Cheers!
@Kat – no need to get molds if you have paper cups and some kind of stick to place in them. Athough I love pop molds. @Jacquie – I used a can of coconut milk I had left over from last summer (risky, I know). The brand is Thai Kitchen I think. It has gum additives though. I’ll gather up some coconut milk sources and post.
What a great idea for the popsicle mood – simple is better!! I have silicone molds and they’re a pain to pour into. I’m doing the cups from now on!!im about to pour these – can’t wait to try them in a few hours! Thanks for another wonderful recipe
I know what you mean. Silicone is flexible and non-stick but it’s hard to get stuff out of it.
we had a hot humid day here – those look wonderfully refreshing. i haven’t used coconut milk before – other than for daiquiris – which is not really cooking. but i think that is condensed (or something) and i’m guessing that is perhaps not what you used. where do you get coconut milk? is there a particular brand that you like?
thanks.
Oh my.. I’m gonna have to try these ASAP
Thank you!
Ugh! I don’t have popsicle molds.. ok I’ll get some just for this 🙂