Frozen Crio Bru

Frozen Crio Bru is a cold version of my favorite hot drink and perfect for a light, chocolatey, cool down everyday of the week.  Healthy + Chocolate + Pressure Cooker = My happy life with Crio Bru.

This post is sponsored by Crio Bru.

I hate summer.  Yep, I said it.  Perhaps hate is too strong of a word.  When I was 9 months pregnant with twins in July, HATE, was definitely the right word.  But since my belly doesn’t look like a torpedo anymore, I’ll stick with, “I really dislike summer.”  To further avoid sounding too negative, let me explain.

I actually love the lazy mornings, my vegetable garden, family cookouts, dirt biking with my kiddos, and days at the lake with our 20 year old Jet Ski, but I super duper dislike being hot!

Let me break down why Summer and I just can’t be best friends

-My enjoyable morning runs turn into a sticky sweat fest and fly attacks

-I have to watch my sister Cami get a perfect tan while I freckle and burn

-My treasured motorcycle adventures with my husband turn into suffocating heat waves under all the protective gear

-Camping . . . well at least the peer pressure to go camping, which I so expertly dismiss.

-Bugs.  So many bugs.

-and finally, the most painful of all, is the fact that drinking a big cup of piping hot Crio Bru next to my AC vent just isn’t the same.

While I feel hopeless about solving those other scenarios, Summer time Crio – I’ve got in the bag!

Have you ever heard of Frozen Hot Chocolate?  It’s good, but come on, swimsuit season is not the time to be drinking 1400 calories in one sitting.  But this Frozen Crio Bru, is light, cool, and refreshing, and still a chocolate lovers dream come true.

*This post contains my affiliate links, which allows me a small portion of each sell made through my links at absolutely no extra cost to you.  

If you’re new to Crio Bru, I’m about to make your life complete.  Crio Bru is made from 100% roasted and ground cocoa beans and is brewed like coffee.  However I incorporate my beloved electric pressure cooker to make my Bru even more intense like shown here and here.  I also share other delicious recipes in our Master the Electric Pressure Cooker cookbook (now available for preorder on Amazon!).  There are many different varieties but my favorite flavor is Ghana Light Roast and their seasonal Peppermint flavor.  Crio Bru is low in calories, and contains no fat, dairy, sugar, sodium, or gluten.  It contains nearly zero caffeine and instead boasts an energizing effect in the form of antioxidants, theobromine, magnesium and other vitamins and minerals.  Now that’s a food label to LOVE!

For Frozen Crio Bru, I use the help of my favorite pressure cookers (Instant Pot and Fagor Lux Multicooker) to brew a double strength batch of Crio Bru, freeze it into ice cubes, and in minutes, I can blend me a chocolatey frosty drink that will cure all my bitter feelings about my makeup melting off my face!  (I’m especially partial to these ice cube trays, no more spills!)

While this frozen drink is amazing without a single garnish, I must say the the contrast of cold Crio with a smooth, lucisous dollop of chocolate whipped cream and shaving of dark chocolate over top for texture, is out. of. this. WORLD – while still being a reasonable dessert option for bikini season (not that I would ever be caught dead in a bikini, but, you know).

I will now let you go start a batch of Crio Bru in your pressure cooker or jump on Amazon to overnight 6 bags to your doorstep.  You know you must, because Crio Bru is Life!

This post is sponsored by Crio Bru, but I assure you, my deep, undying professions of love for Crio Bru are all my own!

Frozen Crio Bru

Print Recipe

★★★★★

5 from 1 reviews

A light, refreshing, chilled version of the best drink of all time-Crio Bru! With a handy supply of frozen Crio Bru cubes handy in your freezer, your wait time to chocolatey heaven is seconds away!

• Author: TIDBITS
• Yield: 1 serving 1x
• Category: Drinks, Dessert

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• For Crio Bru
• 2 cups water
• 2 cups milk (I like Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk)
• 1/2 cup Crio Bru grounds
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup (or up to 1/2 cup if you’re not a dark chocolate fan)
• For Frozen Crio
• 12 cubes of frozen crio
• 1/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or milk of your choice), plus more if needed
• 1/2 frozen banana, sliced into disks (can substitute half of an avocado)
• For Chocolate Whipped Cream
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• Mini chocolate chips or chocolate shavings for garnish

Instructions

1. Pour water, milk, syrup, and Crio Bru into the pressure cooker pot.
2. Secure the lid and turn pressure release knob to a sealed position. Cook at high pressure for 5 minutes.
3. When cooking is complete, use a natural release for 10 minutes and then release any remaining pressure.
4. Place a fine mesh sieve over a large bowl and pour Crio Bru through the sieve to filter out the grounds.
5. Let Crio cool slightly, then pour into ice cube trays (my trays fit about 1 tablespoon per cube). Freeze until solid then transfer to a gallon size freezer bag.
6. To make Frozen Crio Bru: Add 12 cubes of frozen Crio Bru, milk, and banana to a high powered blender and blend until smooth. Add more milk if needed to help it blend. Grab a spoon and a smoothie straw and Enjoy!
7. Optional: Top with a dollop of chocolate whipped cream and a sprinkle of mini chocolate chips or chocolate shavings
8. To make Chocolate Whipped Cream: Add cream, cocoa powder, powdered sugar, and vanilla to a high powered blender. Blend on medium speed until thick. (This can also be done with a bowl and a hand mixer). Store in a sealed container in the fridge. Will stay thick up to 5 days.

Notes

If you don’t have enough ice cube trays to freeze all of the Crio Bru, you have 2 options:
1) Store remaining Crio Bru in fridge. When cubes are frozen solid, transfer them to a gallon size ziplock bag and pour more refrigerated Crio Bru into the trays.
2) Drink the remaining Crio Bru cold from the fridge-it’s amazing!

Also, for my sugar free peeps out there, you can brew the Crio Bru without the maple syrup, then add 2-3 dates to the blender for a little sweetness.