Looking for a copycat Dunkin Donuts Frozen Hot Chocolate Recipe for a hot summer day?

Well, yes, I have a copycat recipe that’s vegan and gluten-free!

You’re so excited, right?

Okay, let me tell you about this recipe and the inspiration quick.

Recipe Inspiration – Tonsil + Adenoid Removal

Part of my story includes this,

The doctors decided a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy was necessary. By the time my tonsils and adenoids came out (the summer before my senior year of college), they were rotted. The surgeon told my mom that there were so many scars and infections that I barely had either one of them anymore.  

Sure, it’s fairly nasty. But you know what was worse than that? The surgery recovery. I have no idea why, but I actually thought I might die. To this day, I’m super confused when people tell me their recovery was “ok.”

Anyways, there were a few good things that came out of the surgery. One of them was my discovery of the DQ Frozen Hot Chocolate. And yes, I am dating myself here because I don’t even think it’s on the DQ menu anymore. Remember, I had my tonsils out before graduating from college. 

I digress.

So I couldn’t eat, sleep, or anything. But somehow slurping down one of those Frozen Hot Chocolate drinks every few days or so happened. The addiction became real.

Remember what I also stated in my story?

It took me awhile to recover, but once I did, I was sure I had found my “cure.” No tonsils and adenoids? Perfect. Illness gone.

Yeah, I didn’t care about what I ate, drank, or did back then – an ingredient list was pointless – unless it was fat-free and/or 2-points or less of Weight Watchers so that I could eat that DQ Frozen Hot Chocolate. 

Today I do care, and mostly for you. 

Truth be told, if DQ had their Frozen Hot Chocolate still, I’d maybe have one. 

But if you’re healing your gut, consider my alternative instead.

Dunkin Donuts Frozen Hot Chocolate Recipe (Copycat Vegan, Gluten-Free)

Click HERE to save this recipe for later.

I created this recipe several years back already. At the time, I used Nutiva’s Organic Hazelnut Spread. But today, I’m using Suntella instead.

Lakanto Suntella

[When you purchase Lakanto’s Suntella HERE, I make a small amount of affiliate income at no cost to you. In return, you get a jar of the incredible, Vegan chocolate and if you enter in my code AGUTSYGIRL you’ll also save 15% at checkout.]

I swapped in Suntella now because it tastes so dang good. Yes, of course, I have a jar. I should have ordered multiple, in fact, because our whole family loves it.

Suntella Facts:

• Smooth and Creamy: The Suntella spread is a mixture of decadent chocolate, sunflower seeds, and other ingredients. So yes, with the sunflower seeds it is nut and peanut-free.
• Only 2 net carbs: One serving is about 2 tablespoons. In those 2 tablespoons there are 13g of carbs, but 5g of fiber and 6g of sugar alcohol (subtract both from the total amount of carbs). Personally, I don’t care about my carbohydrate intake, but many people do – and I fully respect that.
• Stats: Suntella is high in fiber, nut-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, and contains no hydrogenated oils. It is sweetened with Lakanto Monkfruit Sweetener which has zero calories and is zero-glycemic.
• Diets: The “diets” Suntella fits into include Keto, diabetic, candida, paleo, vegan, low-carb, egg-free, and low-sugar.
• Ingredients:Sunflower Seeds, Non-GMO Lakanto Monkfruit Sweetener (Erythritol and Monk Fruit Extract), Coconut Oil, Dutched Cocoa, Sugarcane Fiber, Calcium Carbonate, Natural Chocolate Flavor, Sea Salt, Sunflower Lecithin

** I am by no means saying that Suntella is a gut healing product or that all of you will tolerate it. Anytime a sugar ends with -ol, you have to do trial-and-error. It might and might not work for you.

Other Substitutes

If you want to look for a different type of hazelnut spread, you can really swap it with any you have on hand. I would however recommend choosing spreads with no dairy or excessively added sugars. 

Both of these ingredients can be very hard on the gut and cause uncomfortable symptoms for us Gutsy girls.

Here are some of my other favorites:

• Fine and Raw Chocolate Hazelnut Butter
• Justin’s Chocolate Hazelnut and Almond Butter
• Artisana Organics Hazelnut Cacao Spread

You can also opt for a HOMEMADE hazelnut spread to make sure you know exactly what is going into your food. 

HERE is an easy recipe I found from Chocolate Covered Katie. 

If you have the time to do so, the homemade option is probably the best way to ensure you are not irritating your gut. You can add a bit less sugar and control the amount of each ingredient you add in.

I do understand this is not reasonable for everyone, myself included, so keep that in mind!

Dunkin Donuts Frozen Hot Chocolate Recipe (Copycat Vegan, Gluten-Free) using Suntella

Which Milk to Choose?

Obviously a huge part to this drink is the milk.

As it relates to the milk, the only thing I state is to choose an “alternative milk.”

Personally, I LOVE organic, raw whole milk but that’s not Vegan and many Gutsy women do not tolerate dairy so that option is out for this recipe.

Some alternative options:

1. almond milk
2. coconut milk
3. oat milk
4. hazelnut milk

In fact, I have a whole article regarding “Which Milk to Choose” that might help you determine the best option for your “dunkin frozen chocolate drink.”

Note: I’d never choose soy milk, but that’s a conversation for another day.

Whipped Cream

If the hot summer months also have you craving whipped cream, you can do that, too!

For the whip cream, there are a lot of different options. 

I personally have my own recipe, so you can check out this video HERE.

You can also purchase vegan whipped cream if you are short on time or just don’t feel like putting in all that effort.

Some good options include:

• So Delicious Coco Whip
• 365 Oat Whipped Topping
• TruWhip Plant Based Whipped Topping

Any of these would make great additions to your drink and you can top if with “chocolate syrup,” AKA more hazelnut spread. 

Other Additions

If you can tolerate them, there are some other simple ingredients that you can play around with for this recipe.

I absolutely love adding iced coffee into my drink for a little punch of caffeine. It makes into a delicious frozen coffee drink that is great for a little pick-me-up. Of course, if coffee is hard on your stomach, I would recommend finding different alternatives. 

Adding a splash of vegan french vanilla creamer is another option if you are going for that extra sweetness factor. Look for brands that minimize artificial sweeteners and concentrate on naturally occurring sugars. 

You can also add in a bit of extra cocoa powder for a bit of that extra chocolate flavor. This helps to bring in some of those extra notes of chocolate and can even out some of the sweetness too. 

Finally, if you’re looking for an interesting added complexity of salt, try adding in 1/4 packet of the Chocolate Salt from LMNT. Or, you choose your choice of flavor! (p.s. During winter, LMNT has a salted caramel so you can make a salted caramel hot chocolate!)

Why the Ingredients?

I specifically chose some of these ingredients as a sweet take on the Dunkin donuts hot chocolate recipe without the absolute gut destruction.

This simple recipe is less irritating and just as delicious. 

Coconut sugar and monkfruit are both natural sweeteners that have been proven to be much easier on the gut; they are the easiest way to add even more sweetness to this concoction.

Most artificial sweeteners found in your dunkin’ donuts drink can negatively alter your gut microbiome by altering the bacteria present. 

Studies have found that artificial sweeteners can impact our body’s ability to properly release and store glucose, which can lead to long term chronic health issues such as diabetes or obesity.

Many popular stores utilize these common sugars in their products, which is a BIG reason why we want to make our own if possible.

While the original recipe may be extremely tasty, it can also impact your health down the line. 

source

So Can I Not Drink My Favorite Summer Treats?

The moral of the story is not to villianize these drinks, but rather to point you towards options that better support your gut microbiome. Of course, everything is absolutely fine in moderation, and one icy drink will not make or break your gut health. 

Also this is not a straight up copycat version of dunkin donuts. It WILL taste different because it uses different ingredients, but it’s as close as I could get without sacrificing gut comfort. 

Sometimes you just want the d**** indulgent treat and that is TOTALLY ok. 

I hope you enjoyed this frozen chocolate drink recipe and make sure to comment down below if you have any other spin-off ideas for this creamy chocolate drink. 

It might just become your new favorite summer drink!

Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own.

If you liked this post, you might also enjoy:

1. Whipped Coffee Paleo Popsicles
2. Homemade Hot Chocolate
3. Chocolate Milkshake

Xox,
SKH