A Homemade Kitchen: Chocolate Shell Ice Cream Topping
Coconut oil. Have you heard about it? If you’re a vegan, you definitely have. If you shop at Whole Foods or similar grocery stores, you probably have. Coconut oil seems to be the latest fat in the food world as research is showing it’s actually much healthier then once thought (check out this New York Times article if you’re curious about the dirty deets). Many actually consider it to be a health food and it’s a great alternative to butter and other cooking fats if you suffer from allergies or are striving to be healthier.
But, let’s put health aside for a moment. Because coconut oil has another secret. It’s the key ingredient in those “magic shell” ice cream toppings that come out a liquid but harden once poured on ice cream (coconut oil is a solid at 76 degrees). And it turns out the topping is ridiculously easy to make at home. Best of all, it actually tastes better than the store-bought topping because there’s no extra sugar or artificial flavors or preservatives. And in case you’re wondering, it doesn’t taste like coconut. It’s pretty amazing.
What are you favorite coconut oil recipes?
I’d like to thank the folks from Kelapo Coconut for generously sending me a bottle of their organic, fair-trade Virgin Coconut Oil for me to experiment with. Check out their blog for more recipes & ideas.
Chocolate Shell Ice Cream Topping
From Thomas Keller via The New York Times
Makes 3/4 cup
- 7 ounces semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
- 2 tablespoons virgin coconut oil
Melt the chocolate in a small metal bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir in the coconut oil and heat until dissolved, about 1 minute. Keep the liquid lukewarm until ready to pour over the ice cream. Chocolate will harden into a shell within a few seconds when spooned over ice cream.
That's so awesome. What makes it harden?
handleheat replied: — June 18th, 2011 @ 7:36 pm
The coconut oil! It's solidifies at cool temperatures.
I use coconut oil all the time, as a butter replacement in my baking and as an oil replacement while frying or cooking. I love it! But I never made a chocolate sauce like that, great idea!
I totally can't wait to try this!
don't think it's the coconut oil that makes it harden. you could actually just pour melted chocolate over ice cream and the chocolate would harden into a shell, but that would be a thick shell because melted chocolate doesn't flow well.
the coconut oil simply thins out the chocolate and allows to to be much more fluid. the hardening still comes mainly from the chocolate freezing on contact with ice cream. you could make the same sauce with butter, so coconut oil really is just a vegan substitute
MikeW replied: — June 19th, 2011 @ 1:41 pm
Thanks! My wife is allergic to coconut, I was wondering if butter would work.
handleheat replied: — July 11th, 2011 @ 1:10 am
Mike – So sorry for the delayed response, for some reason your comment was flagged as spam :/ Butter would work, probably not as quickly as coconut oil but it should suffice
handleheat replied: — June 19th, 2011 @ 3:07 pm
Oddball – the coconut oil definitely thins out the chocolate for a nice even layer but it also helps it to harden almost instantaneously because it solidifies at 76 degrees F
KJF replied: — June 19th, 2011 @ 4:18 pm
Oddball is partially correct, partially wrong. It isn't the chocolate, it's the oil — but it's not JUST coconut oil. It's any saturated fat. Yes, coconut oil hardens at room temp, but, magic shell and ice magic (another brand) products have been around longer than coconut oil in its most current, popular form has been around. The original recipe for home cooks is chocolate a smidge of butter, and corn oil, and you'll get the exact same result, albeit not quite so thin and delicate and quick. The magic shell product when it was originally sold had sunflower oil, and now has has both, I think — sunflower and coconut. The heated saturated oils harden on standing, or in contact with the cold ice cream.
I've never tried coconut oil but this looks like a perfect way to use it!
i usually use Coconut oil when cooking thai dishes, but this is an AWESOME recipe! Must try this with the 1-ingredient [banana] ice cream for a quick, frugal, and fresh way of desserts.
To elaborate on KJF's response:
Saturated fats are solid at room temperatures because they lack double bonds. Without double bonds, the molecules can rotate to fit together tightly and thus become solid. Unsaturated fats have double bonds which make it so the molecule can't rotate and have to stay farther apart and thus liquid.
Don't try it in the microwave. I'll try it again the “right” way later today!
Just read the ingredients of Smuckers brand of chocolate shell, and there it was – Coconut oil. Gotta try this.
So yummy! I just tried it and the recipe works! Normally, I just melt chocolate and pour it on my ice cream. This is better because it hardens faster, harder, and it has a nice texture:)
P.s. I made it with the microwave! Only one dirty dish!!!!!
Coconut oil is an edible oil extracted from the kernel or meat of matured coconuts harvested from the coconut palm (Cocos nucifera). Throughout the tropical world, it has provided the primary source of fat in the diets of millions of people for generations. It has various applications in food, medicine, and industry. Because of its stability, it is slow to oxidize and, thus, resistant to rancidity, lasting up to two years owing to the high saturated fat content.^
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