Chocolate Covered Coconut Popsicles (Vegan and lactose free!)

Enjoying making popsicles with the kids on summer afternoons is not only fun for them, but it also helps us, the older ones, eat as a treat. We chose to make fruit popsicles, yogurt popsicles, one color, many colors... But since no one at home has any intolerances, I hadn't thought about making them vegan and lactose-free until now!

The other day, a friend of my son's came to our house with certain intolerances and we took the opportunity to prepare this recipe that he had wanted to try for a long time. We all loved the result!

These popsicles are made with coconut milk, almond milk, vanilla (both a few drops of Bourbon vanilla extract and seeds from a vanilla pod) and a little agave syrup… Easy to prepare and delicious!! But the best part was making this chocolate coating and decorating them with a crunchy almond topping that gives it that crunchy touch that no one will be able to resist!!!

They are made in a moment , and with our ZOKU molds you can have them ready in a few hours in the freezer. I don't have to say that the popsicles were a success and the kids loved them!!!

Ingredients

For the poles:

• 400ml coconut milk
• 110 ml almond milk
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• Seeds from half a vanilla pod
• 125ml agave syrup
• Pinch of salt

For the chocolate coating

• 175g dark chocolate
• 3 tbsp coconut oil
• 50 g of crunchy almonds to decorate or your favorite topping

Elaboration

1. In a food processor or with a mixer , beat all the ingredients for the popsicles and beat for a few seconds until all the ingredients are well integrated.
2. We divide the mixture into our Zoku molds up to the mark, leaving a small space for when it increases in volume when frozen.
3. We freeze for at least 3 hours.
4. Prepare the chocolate coating by placing the chocolate and coconut oil in a bowl and melting it in a bain-marie (you can use the Nordic Ware saucepan for this). Stir well and let it cool for a few minutes (it will remain liquid for a while). You can also use the microwave to melt it, but be very careful and do it at 30-second intervals so as not to overdo it and burn the chocolate.
5. We prepare a baking sheet to support the popsicles once we have put the topping on them. We remove the popsicles from the moulds one by one and we quickly submerge them until they are halfway covered, we let them drain, we sprinkle the crunchy almonds and we place them on the baking sheet on a tray. We repeat as quickly as possible with the other popsicles and we put them in the freezer again for about 10 more minutes.
6. Enjoy!!!

Grades

• I have used the traditional Zoku molds (mine is the Mod Pop , which you fill with the mixture and put in the freezer for a few hours to freeze and make the popsicles. But you can use the Quick Pop ice cream makers , which magically turn your mixture into popsicles in just 5 or 6 minutes, so it's just prepare and serve.
• If you use the Quick Pop ice cream maker, the Quick Pops case will be very helpful when making the topping. The base will help you keep the pops upright and without touching anything after applying the chocolate and crocanti.
• If you use another traditional mold but with different sizes or designs (like the fun Fish Pops or the minipops ) you may have more or less mix left over, but the process will be exactly the same.