Magic Shell Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

What makes Magic Shell work? ›

The 'Magic' in the Shell

Both chocolate dip and Magic Shell get their magic instant-hardening ability from oils like coconut and sunflower that are high in saturated fat. As temperature drops, saturated fats harden, and coconut oil, in particular, turns firm, almost glassy, when cold.

Homemade magic shell is obviously delicious with ice cream and other frozen treats, but you can drizzle it on something as simple as frozen fruit as well! Bananas, pineapple chunks, and berries would all be delicious. It can also be used as a dip for fresh fruit, cookies, and bar desserts!

Why is Magic Shell® topping chunky? Sometimes if the bottle is stored in a cold place prior to reaching store shelves, it can cause the topping to become thick and separated. If the topping becomes thick and difficult to use, we suggest running the bottle under hot water, and shaking well to reincorporate the topping.

How to Use Coconut Oil. The next time you're dipping treats in chocolate, add a dollop of coconut oil to the melting chocolate. The more coconut oil you use, the more liquid and smooth the chocolate coating will be. As a baseline, we recommend adding one tablespoon of coconut oil per one cup of chocolate.

DO NOT REFRIGERATE. If refrigerated or stored in a cool place, Magic Shell topping will harden. Run under hot water until topping returns liquid. Store at room temperature.

More specifically, our Magic Shell Caramel Topping would have a 24 month shelf life, unopened, from the date in which it was manufactured, which would be reflected by the Best When Used By date printed on the bottle. We hope this helps!

Any leftover magic shell base can be stored in the pantry and re-melted anytime you're craving ice cream. It will harden into a firm mass, but all you have to do is melt it in the microwave in 30-second bursts. It's delicious over ice cream, sorbet, and even pieces of frozen fruit.

How does magic shell work? The secret is coconut oil. This type of oil becomes hard at temperatures below 76ºF, so it hardens in seconds when it touches cold ice cream. Like peanut butter magic shell, this recipe requires three ingredients you already have on hand.

You don't add ingredients to chocolate to make it harden, you temper it by heating it to a specific temperature, cooling it to another temperature, then heating it again. This causes the chocolate to crystalize in a way that leaves it hard and shiny. The temperatures are different for different kinds of chocolate.

It comes in several flavors, including chocolate, caramel, chocolate fudge, cupcake, cherry, and smores in addition to two unique flavours—One with chocolate, caramel, and pecans, which the company calls "Turtle Delight", and a flavor based upon the candy bars Twix, Hersheys, and Reeses.

When was the Magic Shell invented? ›

One of my favorite childhood memories was definitely discovering Magic Shell, which was introduced at some point in the 1980's. As a kid, it was literally the coolest and yummiest chocolate treat ever!

HERSHEY'S chocolate shell topping is the perfect ice cream topper that hardens in seconds to give you a crisp, chocolaty finish that you may even want to try by the spoonful. Create a delicious chocolate shell over desserts like brownies, cookies, bars and cake or anything that needs a bit of chocolaty, creamy crunch.

Dark Bittersweet Chocolate Feves or Couverture Chocolate

Chocolate feves are small, flat pieces of chocolate, similar to chocolate chips but bigger and better for melting smoothly.

The oil will help thin out the chocolate and make it easier to mix and pour. As for the appearance of the chocolate, coconut oil can remedy that, too. While burnt chocolate can lose some of its sheen and look dull, adding in some oil can revive some of that shine by helping to bring some moisture back to the chocolate.

Adding butter or oil increases the fat content of the melted chocolate, making it smoother and easier to work with. Perfectly melted chocolate will be smooth, silky, and have a shiny finish, says KitchenSeer. If your chocolate is too thick or clumpy, you may be able to save it with some room temperature butter.

When the liquid syrup at room temperature hits the cold surface of the ice cream in your bowl, its temperature drops rapidly. Once it goes below its solidification temperature, the hard chocolate shell forms almost magically.

You don't add ingredients to chocolate to make it harden, you temper it by heating it to a specific temperature, cooling it to another temperature, then heating it again. This causes the chocolate to crystalize in a way that leaves it hard and shiny. The temperatures are different for different kinds of chocolate.

Because tempered chocolate remains hard once it sets at room temperature, there is no worry of your confections melting in gift boxes or out on a dessert table (unlike when using melted chocolate chips).