Coconut Easter Chicks and Coconut-Chocolate Truffles with Vita Coco

Coconut oil is truly a super ingredient if ever there was one - with its health credentials and its many varied uses from cooking, to health and beauty, this is one must-have product!

My preferred way of using Vita Coco Coconut oil is in savoury dishes - I stir it through pasta, noodles, and quinoa, I roast butternut squash with it, I use it to stir-fry my favourite veggies. Lots of dishes are given a healthy and tasty makeover by using Coconut oil instead of butter or vegetable oil.

But with this being Easter season, I have decided upon a sweet recipe rather than savoury for the Vita Coco #SwearByIt challenge. This is a really fun and simple recipe and makes a great alternative to Easter eggs if you get fed up of all that chocolate over Easter.

Apart from a bit of melting for the truffle part of the recipe, it is otherwise a 'no-cook' recipe so it is super easy for the kids to join in with.

They will love making these cute little Coconut Easter Chicks! I've made a video to show just how simple and quick this recipe is to make and I also show you how to make some little egg shaped coconut and chocolate truffles to go alongside the chicks.

So here's the recipe video:



And here it is step-by-step...

Ingredients for coconut chicks (makes 2-3 chicks):
30g Vita Coco coconut oil
40g icing sugar
30g dessicated coconut
10 ml milk
Yellow food colouring gel
Small piece of orange fondant icing for beak and feet
Small piece of black fondant icing for eyes

Method:

• Soften the Vita Coco coconut oil by mixing with a spoon.
• Add in the icing sugar and mix well with the milk. Add the milk very gradually as you may not need all of it.
• Add in the dessicated coconut and mix with a tiny drop of yellow food colouring gel. Add enough to get your desired shade of yellow.
• Roll one larger ball for the body and one smaller ball for the head to make your chick.
• Add the details like the beak and the eyes.

Making the Coconut Easter Chicks

Ingredients for Coconut-Chocolate truffle eggs (makes 10-12 truffles):
30g plain chocolate
8g Vita Coco coconut oil
35g icing sugar

To coat - a selection of:
cocoa powder
freeze-dried raspberry pieces
sprinkles
crushed pistachios
gold / shimmery edible lustre dust

Method:

• Melt the chocolate - I like to do this by breaking the chocolate into a bowl and warming over a pan of water on the hob. Don't let the bowl touch the water.
• Melt the coconut oil - I did this in a microwaveable jug, in short bursts on low power.
• Mix the melted coconut oil into the melted chocolate. Then add in the icing sugar and mix well. It will look like a chocolate 'dough'.
• Pick off small pieces and roll into an 'egg' shape.
• Roll these 'eggs' into the various coatings to make them look super.
• Arrange them around your cute easter chicks.
• Enjoy!

Making the coconut chocolate egg-shaped truffles

If you like the flavour of coconut, you will love these - The chicks taste fabulous with the flavour of Vita Coco coconut oil mixed in with the dessicated coconut and the truffles are just gorgeous with the coconut oil merging with dark chocolate to give an incredible flavour.  

Now just as you were thinking these are way too specific for Easter, just think about the possibilities...With a little creative thinking the shape and colour of these tasty coconut treats can be adapted throughout the year. Instead of yellow chicks, how about pink hearts for Valentines day? or keep them white and they would make perfect little snowmen at Christmas. The truffles don't need to be egg-shaped either - and would make delicious truffles anytime of year - perhaps a tasty birthday gift or end of term pressie for the teacher. There are so many brilliant possibilities for this recipe.

As it's Easter weekend, for now, we'll enjoy them as these cute Easter chicks. 

This recipe is an entry into the #Swearbyit challenge with Vita Coco. Find more great coconut oil recipes and tips on using coconut oil at www.swearbyit.com

Vita Coco kindly sent me a 250ml jar of Vita Coco coconut oil. All opinions and ideas are my own.