Quick and easy homemade gourmet chocolate (ice cube candy) with multiple filling ideas. Pack these fancy chocolate in a pretty box for a nice homemade gift.
Coming up with a name for today's post was so hard. I know many people won't agree with the name but it was better than calling them "chocolate ice cubes!" As you have probably guessed, these homemade candies are made in ice cube trays. You can use a fancy mold but this is the way my dear Mom made them. Back in the day when I was little, they didn't have cool molds or cute ice trays readily available at stores. So, my mom was smart and used whatever was on hand. Now these chocolates are not only delicious, but nostalgic too. The possibilities for fillings are endless, making them a sweet surprise on top of everything else! These How to Make Chocolate Leaves {With Mint} and Crockpot Candy {Chocolate Peanut Clusters} are additional unique ways to enjoy chocolate.
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Table of contents
How to make homemade gourmet chocolate in ice cube tray?
- Melt chocolate- Paint a thick layer into the ice cube tray.
- Freeze tray- Then, fill it with add-ins.
- Cover add-ins with chocolate- Spread it smoothly.
- Freeze again- Until chocolate is fully set.
- Remove chocolates- Gently. Enjoy.
Chocolate candy filling ideas
Marshmallows- In the form of marshmallow creme or actual marshmallows.
Chopped nuts- Such as walnuts, pecans, peanuts, almonds, pistachios, or cashews.
Nut butters- Such as Nutella, peanut, almond, cashew, or sunbutter.
Fresh fruit- Like strawberries or maraschino cherries.
Ganache- Such as this Easy Chocolate Ganache {2 Ingredients}
Crushed cookies- Like Oreos, biscoff, graham crackers, or chocolate chip cookies.
Dried fruit- Like cranberries, blueberries, cherries, or apricots.
Other candies- Such as truffles or even mini m&ms.
Edible cookie dough- Because cookie dough makes everything better.
Frostings- Such as Chocolate Buttercream Frosting Recipe, American Buttercream Frosting Recipe, or Best Cream Cheese Frosting.
Sauces- Like this How To Make Homemade Caramel Sauce and Hot Fudge Sauce {Chocolate Fudge Sauce}.
Crushed pretzels- For a salty and sweet version.
Jams/pie fillings- How to Make Strawberry Pie Filling, How to Make Cherry Pie Filling, How to Make Blueberry Pie Filling, How to Make Raspberry Pie Filling, or Easy Homemade Strawberry Jam.
Variations for fancy chocolate
Use a fancy chocolate mold- Simply follow the same tutorial to make cool shapes.
Add sea salt- Before the top layer of the chocolate sets add a sprinkle of sea salt.
Add espresso powder- To the melted chocolate for a coffee version.
Add spices- Such as ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, or even all spice to the melted chocolate.
Add extracts- Such as vanilla, almond, maple, or bourbon.
Tips and techniques for ice cube candy
Wash and pat fruit dry- Because this prevents water from collecting in the chocolates and then creating ice in them when frozen.
Your chocolate coating that you brush in the trays must be thick- If it's too thin, it will stick to the trays and crack when the candies are finally removed from the tray, or it would become too hard to remove them from the trays.
How to melt chocolate? Melt chocolate in the microwave in 30 second increments until smooth, stirring between each interval.
How to remove candies from ice cube trays? Flip the ice cube tray gently onto a baking tray, lined with wax paper and tap it a bit until the chocolate cubes fall out.
Storage
Refrigerate- In a sealed container, separated by sheets of wax paper for up to 1 week.
Freeze- This is not recommended since the chocolate topping can sometimes crack upon thawing.
Room temperature- If there are perishable fillings (such as fresh fruits, jams e.t.c), those cannot be stored at room temperature for more than 2-3 hours because they can go bad. However, non-perishable fillings (such as marshmallows, nuts, Nutella) can be stored in a covered box, separated by sheets of wax paper for up to 3 days.
More easy candy recipes
- Chocolate Bark
- Easy Chocolate Caramel (Salted)
- Easy Caramel Fudge (2 Ingredients)
- Condensed Milk Fudge (Cranberry and Pistachio)
- Maple Fudge (With Maple Syrup)
- Spicy Chocolate Fudge Footballs
- Chocolate Covered Potato Chips
- Chocolate Truffles
- Coffee Fudge
Recipe
Homemade Gourmet Chocolate (Ice Cube Candy)
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Ingredients
- 2 cups Melted chocolate Semisweet, dark, milk or even white
- 2 cups Fillings Such as nuts, Nutella, peanut butter, jams, preserves, fresh berries, marshmallows, marshmallow creme or fluff, caramel sauce, crushed oreos, thick ganache
Instructions
- Melt chocolate in the microwave in 30 second increments until smooth.
- Use a paintbrush to paint a thick coating of chocolate in each cavity of an ice cube tray.
- Freeze this tray for 10 minutes.
- Remove tray from the freezer and fill it with your choice of add-ins.
- Pour spoonfuls of chocolate on top of your add-ins and spread it smoothly.
- Freeze tray again for 15-20 minutes or until chocolate is fully set.
- Flip the tray gently onto a tray, lined with wax paper and tap it a bit until the chocolate cubes fall out. Enjoy.
Notes
- Read all my tips above.
- Leftovers can be stored in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
An automated tool is used to calculate the nutritional information. As such, I cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information provided for any recipe on this site.
Mary
This is so cool! I've never seen this before, now I can't wait to try. I think fruit inside would be great- strawberries or blackberries sound delish!!
Abeer Rizvi
Omg yes! Blackberries are sooooo good in these. I didn't like them as a kid but I tried them last Summer and YUMMMM!
Laura Dembowski
Omg! I can't even. Using an ice cube tray is genius. It makes it so easy and doable. Can't tell you how excited I am to try this. Cherries first!
Abeer Rizvi
Hahaha... cherries are always a good choice!
Mando
Im thrilled I found your post for these delights I cant wait to make them!they look so delicious and the idea of ice cubes is sooooo great!!!!
Abeer Rizvi
Let me know what add-ins you try out and how your family and friends enjoy them. They are sooooo much fun to make!
Reney
This is such a simple technique and not intimidating at all. I actually love the nostalgic look of the ice cube tray molds.
Abeer Rizvi
It truly is nostalgic and brings back such happy memories from my childhood
Rachel
How long can I freeze these for?
Abeer Rizvi
You only need to freeze them until the chocolate hardens. After that, you can keep it in the fridge or even at room temperature (as long as it's not too hot where you live).
Dani
These look awesome. Would semi-sweet chocolate chips work the same if melted?
Abeer Rizvi
Yes, you can use any chocolate you like. I have even used white chocolate
Ivy Johnston
How long will they last with fresh fruit in chocolate?
Abeer Rizvi
Any chocolate cubes with fresh fruits should be kept in the refrigerator and be good for up to 3 days.
Christy
What kind of chocolate do you buy? Is it the nestle chocolate chips?
Abeer Rizvi
You can use any chocolate you like: Nestle chocolate chips or you can even use baking chocolate bars.
Su
This is perfect for what I had planned for today. I have been busy dehydrating fruit and veggies and now figure I can use the dried fruit in the chocolates! And as the dehydrator is humming away with beetroot in it at the moment ........beetroot chocolate.......can but try......
Abeer Rizvi
hahaha... beetroot chocolate. I have honestly never tried that but let me know how it turns out!
E
Do you spray the tray w cooking spray first so they don't stick?
Abeer Rizvi
You don't have to spray oil. The chocolate never sticks to the tray. Once the tray is removed from the freezer, you just have to tap on the sides and bottom and the cubes will just fall out easily.
Laurie
What kind of carmel would you use to make it creamy?
Abeer Rizvi
You can use caramel topping. I know Smuckers sells it in jars. I think it was in the ice cream aisle.
You can also thin out caramel my heating it on low heat and mixing in a little bit of heavy cream or full fat milk.
Let me know how it goes!
Melissa
How long in advance do you think we can make it ? I would give them in like one week but have time now is it to long ?
Abeer Rizvi
If you are using fillings like peanut butter, marshmallows and nuts, you can make them a week in advance. Just make sure to keep them in the fridge in a sealed container. However, if you are using fresh fruits or fruit fillings, I won't recommend making them too far in advance... maybe 2 days ahead only.
Erin P
What brand of chocolate did you use?
Abeer Rizvi
I am a big fan of Ghiradelli chocolate and used that but you can use whatever brand you like.
Beth
Can these be stored room temperature or do they have to be refrigerated?
Abeer Rizvi
If it's not too hot in your kitchen, they should be fine at room temperature.
Michelle
Do you need to temper the chocolate first?
Abeer Rizvi
I usually don't and they turn out fine.
Linda
How to make creme fillings??
Abeer Rizvi
I just use store bought fillings... jam, peanut butter, nutella e.t.c.
AGB
You can make a great cream filling using powdered sugar and essence.
Just mix 1 cup of powdered sugar with 1 teaspoon of vanilla essence (or your choice of essence, strawberry essence was a family favorite) and add water 1 teaspoon at a time until you reach the texture/consistency you like.
You can easily double the recipe as this is enough for barely 15 bonbons.
Abeer Rizvi
That sounds delicious. Can't wait to try that!