Vegan Magic Shell (V, GF, DF): a refined-sugar free, 3-ingredient recipe for the perfect homemade magic shell. Vegan, Paleo, Dairy Free, Gluten Free.
Do you remember when you were a little kid and so many things in the world seemed almost magical?
Some things were scary (monsters under the bed, garbage disposals, all vegetables), some were wayyy cool (bouncy houses, giant bubble makers, hoverboards), and some were just straight-up weird/inexplicable (egg slicers, rules, Barney, gravity).
But one of the coolest things, by far, was magic shell. I don’t know if you’ve heard of magic shell ‘round your parts, but it’s this fascinating marvel of science and food that made frozen desserts *that* much better. It came in these wide, flat plastic bottles, colored to look just like shiny, melted chocolate. In fact, it’s still available in grocery stores today! Suddenly, this sounds like some kind of commercial.
See how this Homemade Magic Shell is made!
Ahem.
Well, if you were really lucky, you could get your mom or dad to splurge on one of these said bottles. That is, after you already convinced them to buy one of those large paint-bucket-sized ice cream vats. You’d rush home, pretend to help put away the groceries, all the while keeping a hawk eye on two very important things: the ice cream and the magic shell.
Once everything was put away (not with help from you, of course), you’d bring out the bowls and get ready for something magical to happen. One, two, three scoops of ice cream into each bowl. And then, the good part.
One shake, two shakes, three to be safe. The bottle of magic shell had to be well-incorporated, naturally. 😉 You’d flip the cap, tip the bottle and a most mystical and fantastical river of melted chocolate started pouring out.
The scent of chocolate filled the air, and everyone gathered around in awe. Even the adults.
As the magic shell made its glossy way over every ice cream scoop mountain, something quite miraculous happened: it started to harden.
My Vegan Ice Cream Bars, made with this dreamy and unicorn-magical vegan magic shell. 🙂
The chocolate gloss turned frosty. The soft meltiness turned into hardened deliciousness. Your cold ice cream mountains had frozen the magic shell river.
The best part? Still yet to come. You’d grab a sturdy spoon and start digging in. The crack of that shell was just everything and more. Even better than a Kinder surprise egg with an extra surprise on the inside. 😉
Do you remember that? I do. And I still dream about the yummy moments that made being a kid so much fun. That, and yelling “tag, you’re it, Boogerhead!!!” til my lungs burned. And now that my lungs are a bit more mature and less inclined towards burn-y actions, I can still have magic shell. In fact, you and I can have vegan magic shell.
With just three simple ingredients, you’re on your way to nearly color-changing levels of magic. Okay, this vegan magic shell doesn’t change colors. But still! Add coconut oil, maple syrup and cocoa powder to a bowl. Whisk until you’ve made your very own melty-chocolate awesomeness. Grab your ice cream vat, or your nice cream, or a frozen peanut butter coconut bite, and get ready for some vegan magic shell action. Who says we can’t be kids again?
Check it out, this Vegan Magic Shell is:
- made with just 3 ingredients
- refined sugar free
- super easy to make
- vegan, gluten free, dairy free, paleo
- perfect for pouring on everything (okay, not hot stuff, unless you want to.) 😉
- plant-based and allergy-friendly
- perfectly sweet, rich and chocolatey
- kinda magical, don’t you think?
Hey, maybe Barney isn’t as weird anymore (scratch that), and monsters aren’t as scary, but we can still dream about hoverboards, bouncy houses and maybe even making the biggest bubble while running across the beach. With the sun setting. 🙂 And while enjoying some vegan magic shell on nice cream.
Perfect day, right? Tell me about your perfect day below, and maybe, just maybe, one of your childhood favorites that you’ll enjoy today. In the meantime, I’ll be here, thinking of all the things, excuse me, foods to put this magic shell on. You with me? 😉
Sending you all my love and maybe even a dove, xo Demeter. ❤️
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- ¼ cup melted coconut oil
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- Add coconut oil, cocoa powder and maple syrup to a medium bowl.
- Whisk until smooth and thickened, like melted chocolate. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Use immediately. Pour over frozen treats--magic shell will harden when chilled. See storing notes below.
- Pour this tasty magic shell over these recipes: Toasted Coconut Chocolate Chip Nice Cream, 4 Ingredient Strawberry Sorbet, Gluten Free Vegan Brownies.
- Adapted from these recipes with magic shell: Vegan Ice Cream Bars, Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Popsicles, Chocolate Covered Strawberry Ice Cream Bars.
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Chocolate-covered DESSERT BLISS: Vegan Ice Cream Bars (Paleo, V, GF, DF).
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Rebecca @ Strength and Sunshine says
Surprisingly I was never a fan of the hardened magic shell :O It just falls off when you bit in and gets in the way :/
But you know…since you’re offering this magic shell to us…..I’ll take it…I mean it IS chocolate 😉
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Oh darn! That’s too bad. This one might just change your mind. 😉 Chocolate, right? xo
Jessica @ Citrus Blossom Bliss says
Magic shell really was magical. Okay, it still is!! I’m loving this vegan version. I hear you can basically make your own vegan chocolate bar the same way by mixing up something lovely like this and chilling it flat on parchment. LOVE! And my dream day/something that used to happen when I was a kid was that my aunt and her boyfriend would bring over a box of puppies and let them loose in our backyard for us to play with (he was a beagle dog breeder). I would be SO happy if this happened now 🙂 Have an awesome day, friend!
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Oh YEAH, it is! Maybe even more magical as adults–perhaps because most “adult” foods are a tad boring? 😉 Yep, vegan chocolate is just like this! Puppies: that sounds like the cutest thing! What could possibly cheer you up more than all of those cuties? 🙂 Thanks Jessica!
Dawn @ Girl Heart Food says
That chocolate shell!! I totally remember having bottles of that in the home when I was a kid and watching the magic as it hardened on the cold ice cream. I have so many fun memories as a kid, sliding in the Winter with my friends (to think about the hills we would slide down now, I must have been crazy…underneath that snow was rocks galore, lol) and in the Summer playing tag and hide and seek, riding my bike to the store to get a little snack, catching crickets. Good times! Getting a little older and going to dances, the fun of getting ready. Oh, memories…..so many 🙂
I bet this shell is even delish on it’s own without the ice cream 😉 Pinned, of course. Have a lovely week, my friend. xoxo
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
So much nostalgia, right? 🙂 Those rocks: Woah!!! Something about being a kid made us all so fearless. 🙂 Hide and seek plus biking to get snacks: perfect day. Thank you for sharing so many fun memories, Dawn. <3 Yep, you can eat it all by itself. Thank you, my dear! Have a wonderful week. xoxo
[email protected] says
I couldn’t agree more – the crack of that shell was everything and more!! And I’m loving the look of the crackled pieces in your photos! Now, I know it’s not PC to eat ice cream with chocolate sauce for breakfast – but I think I need to make an allowance here… And as far as those memories of yours…love ’em. I do have to say – Barney came into my life when I was a parent, and my toddler-aged daughter adored him!! So I adored him too! 😉 Have a great day, lovely! xo
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
That crack–something about it just made your dessert so much more special. 🙂 PC: As my friend Annie (Hehehe) would say, forgettaboutit! It’s summer, and life is short, why not pour this ALL over anything and everything you’d like? 🙂 Barney: fascinating. Just fascinating. Lol. Have a great day, my dear! xo
Anne says
I put the chocolate sauce on my smoothie bowls and have that for breakfast!
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Ooh what a fun idea! 😊
Natalie | Feasting on Fruit says
Wait, stop everything, I need to rewind summer so I can pour magic shell on EVERYTHING!!!! So many nice cream bowls I have eaten these past few months that were sadly shell-less…what a a waste. I was pretty persuasive at the grocery store, so plenty of magic shell-ing went down at my house as a kid. Sometimes I would pour it on so thick that it couldn’t even harden all the way because the top layer wasn’t touching actual ice cream…ah gluttony 😀 But it’s magic + chocolate–who wouldn’t want as much of that as possible! Now of course I already love it squiggled onto ice cream bars, but the thought of a little frozen pb coconut bite covered in a sweet cocoa shell is very much calling my name. I never thought to put it on non-ice cream things! Confession of how weird I am: magic shell always makes me think of geology. Hear me out, it really is like an edible lesson in earthquakes (my spoon) and tectonic plates (those shards of chocolate shell) and the alien monsters who want to eat our planet (ME!) Off to go make up for lost magic shell dousing time! xo
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
LOL. Oopsy!! You know, when I shot and wrote this (that sounds strangely violent), I was thinking, “should I have released this sooner??” DARN. I should have! 😉 Oh dude… pouring it on so thick that it didn’t harden? That’s hardcore! But not… because it didn’t harden. <--Dork alert! Lol. This magic shell tastes good on EVERYTHING. Well, except shoes. And savory biscuits. Um... 😉 Oh Natalie, I am all there with you in thinking of magic shell in geology! After all, I did mention rivers of chocolate and mountains of ice cream. It's settled, we both want to eat the world. Ahem. 😉 Thanks my friend! xo
Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice says
Kids are so innocent and I agree, everything was so magical back then! I used to love those strawberry dipped cones from Dairy Queen…I could never get over the hard shell. And nowadays, I realize just how easy it is to make my own. I can’t get over how simple this recipe is, Demeter! I’ve never made my own before, but I definitely need to try this out. This is WAY better than the store bough (and DQ) kind! Love! Pinned of course! Hope you’re having a great Monday!
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Yup… and so fun! 🙂 So, ridiculously easy, right? Funny how it all seemed so hard until we figured it out. Thank you for pinning and for stopping by, Gayle. Hope you have a rockin’ Monday! 🙂
Evi @ greenevi says
You won’t believe this, but I’ve just talked about magic shell with my boyfriend last week. Okay, we didn’t know it’s called magic shell, actually I didn’t even know it’s a thing. But he just told me how much he loved this magical hardened chocolate glaze when he was small. He said it too, that the crack of the chocolate shell was the best thing ever 🙂
However I quickly stopped him dreaming about it, because it’s surely not vegan…right? Oh no, I was so wrong!
He’ll be so so so happy when I’ll show him this recipe tonight. I guess I also have to get him a jar of coconut oil right now to make this if I don’t want him to use mine from the bathroom which I use for my hair 😉
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Oh, of course… I never believe anything you say. <-- JOKE, joke!! Lol. That's so funny! All the way across the globe and we're all talking about the same things. It's for realsies such a small world. 🙂 The crack is totally the best part! Give your bf a huge high-five for me. 😉 Yup, let's get two different jars--one for beauty and one, far, far away, for eating. 😉 Can't wait to hear what he thinks! Thanks Evi. 🙂
Loreto Nardelli says
Hi Demeter. You sure have a way of taking us through memory lane. This takes me back to the time of Nestle Quick both chocolate and strawberry And the chocolate magic shell yum and fun. Wonderful post and so many creative fum memories.
Thank you Demeter
Have a most fantastic week.
Loreto
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Hi Loreto! Thank you–as long as that lane makes you feel nice and happy. 🙂 Oh yeah!! There was a strawberry version too, wasn’t there? I guess lil me only had eyes for chocolate. 🙂 Thank you, Loreto. Hope you have a most wonderful week! Say hello to Nicoletta for me. 🙂
Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary says
Hahaha. I definitely remember all the scary, cool and weird stuff from my childhood. Do you remember moon shoes?! OMG, I could bounce all around our yard with those things strapped to my feet. And Barney? Dude I was never a fan… he freaked me out. But my little pony and strawberry short cake?! YESSS! So my jam! lol. Annnnyways, Heck yes to Magic Shell Twinning!! This explains so much about our friendship. We are twinsies.. but opposites at the same time! You are milk chocolate and I am white chocolate! Equally delicious and totally perfect. Hahaha. Yes, we are perfect in our own quirky ways. Your magic shell looks amazing, lady! I’ll have to make this for Boy, I’m pretty sure he will prefer your chocolate-chocolate (like real chocolate) version better than my white chocolate (he calls it fake chocolate) version! Cheers, sweetness! xoxo
Oh, pinned!
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
You would SO remember all of the “good” stuff!! Lol. I do not remember moon shoes at all! They sound terrifying and amazing, all at once. <--that's a rockin' 90s toy for ya. 😉 Barney--let's stop talking about him... ya know, before he comes and gets us... J/k! Ish... Magic Shell Twinning: YUP, this is totally why we're besties. Plus, the conveyor belt and shared weird clothness. 😉 Opposites attract and trade BFF bracelets, right? <3 Can't wait to hear what Boy thinks! I, for one, think white chocolate is real! Like My Little Pony, riiiiight? 😉 <3 Much love to you, my dear. xo
Laura ~ Raise Your Garden says
You are making me seriously consider why I have not attempted any sort of magic shell in my life before. Can you put it on salads? How about it? Do I have your permission!!!
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Attempt it, attempt it! 😉 Why not? You have my permission to do exactly as you’d please. 🙂
Marsha | Marsha's Baking Addiction says
I totally want to go and make some ice cream (or just buy some 😉 ) so I can pour this magic shell all over! So simple and looks delicious! 🙂
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Yeah! Time to make MBA’s perfect ice cream? 😉 Once you pour it, you’ll instantly smile. 🙂 Thanks Marsha!
Puja Darshan says
This looks gorgeous, so delicious and very creative! Lovely recipe Demeter. Loved the magic shell part. Really a great share. Pinned
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Thank you so much Puja! 🙂 The magic shell just makes it all delicious. 🙂
karrie @ Tasty Ever After says
I remember when magic shell was a brand new product and we were so amazed by this chocolate sauce that harden after pouring it over ice cream. There was so much magic in that little bottle, as well as a bunch of junk ingredients 😉 We didn’t care because we were kids and lived our lives dangerously and always on the edge. lol! I’m very happy that I can still have my amazing magic shell minus all that junk. Thanks friend for keeping me healthy while satisfying my chocolate cravings at the same time 🙂
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
It was the coolest! Simply the coolest. 🙂 True, true, as kids we would just about eat anything! Lol. Thanks for sharing your childhood memories of this magical delight. 🙂 Hopefully you get a chance to try this and experience that magic all over again. Big hugs to ya, Karebear. xo
Kushi says
Simple yet so delicious. I just want to make some ice cream so that I can use these beauties. I love your pics!
mira says
Yay, I love magic shells! Thanks for the reminder! All ice cream on this page looks amazing! Can’t wait to try them all!
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Yay for delicious dessert reminders! 🙂 Thanks so much, Mira! 🙂
Miranda says
Wow, I love magic shell on ice cream! I’d love to try making my own now!
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
It’s simply the tastiest thing! You totally should! 😉
Megan @ Meg is Well says
I would beg my parents all the time for magic shell but it mostly remained an extra cool treat I got to sneak in at a friend’s house. I always have these ingredients in my pantry so now I get to have it whenever I want! That really is magic.
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Parents always wielded the control of magic shell… Lol. So happy that you have all of these ingredients, Megan. Enjoy! 🙂
Megan - The Emotional Baker says
Yes! I remember those magical days! My parents tried to trick me by making homemade with coffee grounds – yuck!! But today I may actually like that version 😉 Can’t wait to drench my IC with this magic shell!
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Woah!! They made what with what?? Lol. As I’m starting to learn, your parents really liked tricking you with stuff Megan! So funny that you grew to like the idea eventually. Drench away, my friend! 🙂
Kathy @ Beyond the Chicken Coop says
There are some parts of our childhood that bring back fond memories…Barney – NO! Magic Shell – YES! You just can’t go wrong with chocolate 🙂
swayam says
I still LOVE magic shell! Best part about simple vanilla ice creams to me..We add honey to ours!! But yes, drench anything icecream and just enjoy the frozen chocolate.. Magical indeed.Pinning
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
There is no age limit on magic shell!!! Not with the two of us around, at least. 😉 Frozen chocolate is the BEST. Thank you for stopping by and for pinning, Swayam. Big hugs! xo
EILEEN says
Any substitutes for the coconut oil?
Thanks
Demeter | Beaming Baker says
Hmm, I’m not sure. Maybe try melted dairy-free butter? 🙂 Try the recipe with on a really small scale to see if it works first. Good luck! 🙂