For an individual treat with tea and biscuits, choose an ice lolly whose ingredient list makes clear where the dark chocolate is: in the coating, the ice cream or both. A mini-lolly selection is handy if you want a choice of portion sizes, while a tub is served in bowls. In every case, check the ingredients and allergens, and don’t assume that the word ‘dark’ means a high cocoa content.
If you’re looking for a recipe focused on dark chocolate, distinguish between the coating and the ice cream, and check the ingredients list. A name such as ‘Double Chocolate’ doesn’t necessarily mean the same thing.
Ice lollies are easy to hand out individually. Mini lollies let you offer several pieces, while a tub needs to be served into bowls. The right format also depends on how many people you’re serving.
Recipes with coatings, sauces or inclusions call for a careful look at the label. The Directorate General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control says that allergenic ingredients must be highlighted.
For a treat with tea and biscuits, first decide whether you want an individual ice lolly or would be happy to serve ice cream. Then check where the dark chocolate appears in the recipe, and read the label for the product you’ve chosen.
| What to consider | What to check | Who is it for? |
|---|---|---|
| Dark chocolate recipe | Check whether ‘dark chocolate’ refers to the coating, the ice cream or pieces mixed in. If cocoa content matters to you, look for a percentage for the ingredient in question. | With my tea, I want to find dark chocolate in the part of the dessert I’m going to enjoy, without confusing a chocolate shell with chocolate ice cream. Around 38% of consumers would put this first. |
| Format and serving | Check the number of ice lollies and, for a selection, which varieties it includes. A tub needs bowls and a spoon for serving. | If several people are having a treat, I want a format I can hand out or serve depending on the occasion. Format would be the main consideration for around 37% of consumers. |
| Label and storage | Read the ingredients, allergens and any ‘may contain’ warnings on the exact pack, and follow its storage instructions. | If I need to avoid an ingredient, the ingredients list matters more than the flavour on the front of the pack, and I need to store the product as instructed. These checks would come first for around 25% of consumers. |
Magnum describes Double Chocolat as chocolate ice cream with a cocoa coating and chocolate sauce. It doesn’t say that the coating is made with dark chocolate. By contrast, the description of the NUII Brazil Nut Chocolate ice lolly mentions a dark chocolate coating.
Decide whether you want dark chocolate in the shell, in the ice cream or simply a recipe with several layers. If a cocoa percentage is essential, look for a figure on the packaging rather than relying on the name.
ESKISS offers a tub of dark chocolate ice cream with dark chocolate flakes. It can be served with biscuits, but it doesn’t offer the ready-to-hand-out convenience of an ice lolly.
If you want an individual ice cream without preparing bowls, check that the box contains ice lollies. Choose a tub if serving it by the spoonful suits your tea-time treat.
The Carrefour Extra mini-lolly selection includes several types of coating, so not every piece is made with dark chocolate. Recipes with nuts or other inclusions also call for extra care when checking allergens.
Check what’s included in the selection and read the label on the box you actually buy, including any ‘may contain’ warnings if they’re relevant to you.
These products illustrate different recipes and formats rather than forming a ranking: dark chocolate in ice cream, a shell or flakes describes something different in each case.
Magnum describes Double Chocolat as chocolate ice cream with a cocoa coating and chocolate sauce.
Carrefour describes the Brazil Nut Chocolate ice lolly as chocolate ice cream with a dark chocolate coating.
Carrefour describes its Extra mini-lolly selection as including milk, dark and white chocolate coatings. Its Sensation range also includes milk and dark chocolate ice lollies.
E.Leclerc describes its tub as containing 96% dark chocolate ice cream and 4% dark chocolate flakes. These figures refer to the product’s components, not the cocoa content of the chocolate.
ALDI offers a tub of MUCCI dark chocolate ice cream with pieces of dark chocolate.
These two boxes suit different tastes for an individual treat: one offers a dark chocolate ice lolly, while the other contains mini mango and passion fruit sorbets coated in dark chocolate. Choose according to whether you want chocolate in the ice cream or a chocolate shell around a fruit sorbet.
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For an individual treat centred on dark chocolate, in ice lolly form. If you’re looking for a specific cocoa content or need to avoid milk, soya or traces of other allergens, check the label on the box before buying.
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For a small portion of fruity sorbet with a dark chocolate coating, rather than dark chocolate ice cream. If cocoa content or allergens affect your choice, check the ingredients and any ‘may contain’ warnings on the packaging.
No. This wording alone doesn’t tell you the cocoa percentage of the whole ice lolly or its coating. Check which part of the recipe contains dark chocolate, and look for a stated percentage on the packaging if that’s important to you.
Read the ingredients list and any ‘may contain’ warnings on the packaging for the exact product. The Directorate General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control says that allergenic ingredients must be highlighted. Don’t rely on the flavour shown on the front of the pack alone.
Yes, if you’re planning to serve the ice cream in bowls with biscuits. A tub such as the ESKISS product described by E.Leclerc works well for this, but it won’t replace the convenience of handing out individual ice lollies.
Follow the storage instructions on the packaging and put them in the freezer as soon as you get home. Also check the product’s instructions on thawing before serving or putting it back into storage.