Vegan raspberry truffles

Are you looking for an easy truffle recipe that is vegan friendly? Check out this recipe for vegan raspberry truffles. These tasty chocolate coated truffles are filled with a raspberry filling that is made with fresh raspberries, confectioners sugar, coconut oil, coconut milk, and a splash of vanilla.

These allergy-friendly raspberry truffles are gluten free, dairy free, egg free, vegan friendly, and nut free. If you are new to making truffles, or have struggled in the past – this recipe also includes some of our best tips for shaping truffles, melting chocolate, and coating truffles with chocolate.

Chocolate raspberry truffles on a gray plate surrounded by raspberries.

What is in a vegan raspberry truffle?

These vegan raspberry truffles are made with a sugar based filling rather than a chocolate based filling. The powdered sugar in the filling helps to absorb the excess moisture from the fresh raspberries. Here are all the ingredients that are used to make these vegan raspberry truffles. 

  • Chocolate. As with many truffles, these truffles are coated in a thick layer of silky smooth chocolate. We use dark chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate, but really you can use any kind of chocolate you want to make these truffles! Dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate all pair wonderfully with raspberry! 
  • Raspberries. Raspberry is the main flavor in these vegan raspberry truffles. We use fresh raspberries rather than raspberry extract or an artificial raspberry flavoring. Fresh raspberries have a lot more water in them than other raspberry flavorings. That means that the raspberries need to be cooked to reduce the water content before they can be added to the filling. 
  • Confectioners sugar. Confectioners sugar is the main ingredient in the raspberry mixture that is used to fill these truffles. The sweetness of the sugar mellows out the sour flavor of the raspberries so that the raspberry filling tastes perfectly sweet and creamy!
  • Coconut oil. Coconut oil is used in place of butter in their recipe for raspberry truffles so that the truffles are dairy free and vegan friendly. The coconut milk should be melted before it is added to the raspberry buttercream filling so that there are no clumps of coconut oil in your truffles. After all of the ingredients are mixed, you can refrigerate the mixture so that the coconut oil solidifies again. This will help give the raspberry filling enough structure so that you can shape it into perfect little balls.
  • Coconut milk. Coconut milk is added to these raspberry truffles in place of dairy milk or heavy cream. We usually buy small cans of coconut milk in bulk online because it is our favorite non-dairy milk to use in gluten free baking. 
  • Vanilla extract. A splash of vanilla is added to these raspberry cupcakes. The vanilla mellows out the sweetness of the confectioners sugar.  

How to make raspberry truffles

How do you make raspberry truffles? Here are all the steps you need to go through to make raspberry truffles. 

  • Reduce the raspberries. Fresh raspberries have a high water content so some of the water needs to be cooked off before they can be used in the raspberry filling. The raspberries should be blended in a food processor (this is the one we use and recommend) or hand mashed with a fork before being cooked. Then the raspberries should be simmered over low heat until they have reduced to around 1/3 or 1/4 of the original volume. We recommend using a nonstick pan because this raspberry mixture can get sticky! Here’s another pro tip – spreading the raspberry mixture out into a thin layer will help the water evaporate faster. 
  • Mix the raspberry filling. After the raspberries have been reduced, it is time to mix all of the ingredients for the raspberry filling. The coconut oil should be microwaved and melted before it is added to the raspberry filling. This way there will be no clumps of coconut oil floating around in the truffles. 
  • Refrigerate & shape the raspberry filling. After the raspberry filling has been assembled, it is time to shape the raspberry filling into balls that are about 1 inch in diameter. It is generally easier to shape the raspberry filling if you refrigerate or freeze the raspberry mixture for 15 – 20 minutes first. This will help to solidify the coconut oil and give the filling more structure. 
  • Freeze the raspberry filling. After the raspberry filling has been rolled into balls, the balls should be put in the freezer for at least 45 minutes or up to a few hours. If you were having trouble getting the filling to roll into perfectly shaped balls before, you can take the balls of raspberry filling out of the freezer and re-roll them periodically. The raspberry filling will hold its shape better and be less sticky after it has started to freeze.  
  • Melt the chocolate. After the balls of raspberry filling have frozen all the way through, it is time to melt the chocolate! We recommend using a double boiler or making your own double boiler at home to melt the chocolate. Keep reading through the recipe if you want to learn how to make your own double boiler at home. 
  • Dip the raspberry filling in chocolate. The final step is to dip the frozen raspberry filling in chocolate. All you have to do after that is let the chocolate cool, then you are ready to eat your delicious raspberry truffles!

Raspberry paste in a pan being reduced for chocolate raspberry truffles.

Tips for shaping raspberry truffles

The first step for making raspberry truffles is making the raspberry filling and rolling it into balls. Shaping the raspberry filling can be a bit tricky if it is your first time making truffles. Here are some tips that will help the process go more smoothly.  

  • Refrigerate the raspberry filling before shaping the truffles. The coconut oil in the raspberry filling is melted before being added to the raspberry filling. This is done so that the coconut oil gets evenly distributed throughout the filling without any clumps. If you refrigerate the raspberry filling before shaping the truffles, the coconut oil will stiffen up again. This will give the raspberry filling more structure and make it easier to shape. 
  • Add more confectioners sugar if necessary. If you refrigerate the raspberry filling for 15 – 30 minutes and the filling is still too loose and runny to shape – you may need to add more confectioners sugar to your mixture. We recommend adding confectioners sugar 1/4 cup at a time until the filling has enough structure that you are able to shape it into small balls. It is okay if the balls flatten a little bit when you put them on the table – we will address that with our next tip!
  • Freeze the filling for 15 minutes then reshape the truffles. The next step is to put your raspberry filling in the freezer. If your balls of raspberry filling are not as round as you would like, or if they start to flatten as they rest, you should take the balls out after they have been in the freezer after 15 minute and roll them between your hands again. Repeat this process until the balls are as round as desired. The balls should be more and more solid each time you take them out. Once the balls have frozen all the way through, they will hold the exact shape they are in. 

How to melt chocolate

Chocolate is fickle and has a tendency to seize up and burn when it is not handled with caution. Here are our best tips for melting chocolate. 

  • Keep the heat on low. Chocolate can burn very easily when it is overheated even just a little. It is important to use very low heat when you are melting chocolate for these raspberry truffles. That brings us to our next tip. 
  • Use a double boiler. Chocolate needs to be heated slowly and kept at a temperature that is just high enough to keep the chocolate in liquid form. When you are heating chocolate, you really should be using a double boiler like they do at fondue restaurants. If you regularly make chocolate covered treats, we recommend picking one up. It is a luxury item – but oh boy is it a luxury! We recommend this double broiler if you are looking for an affordable option or this double boiler if you are looking for the best that money can buy. If you do not regularly melt chocolate, keep reading to learn how to make a double boiler with common kitchen supplies. 
  • Add a little coconut oil. We recommend adding a little coconut oil to the bowl or pot that you are melting your chocolate in. The higher fat content that is introduced by the oil helps to prevent chocolate from seizing up. 
  • Make sure your tools are dry. You should make sure that everything you are using to melt and stir your chocolate is dry before you put it in the chocolate! This is really important and it helps to prevent the chocolate from seizing up. 
  • Use melting chocolate for best results. Chocolate chips are specifically formulated not to melt well –  imagine if chocolate poured everywhere every time you made chocolate chip cookies! Using chocolate that is labeled as melting chocolate rather than standard chocolate chips is the best way to ensure your chocolate comes out nice and creamy. 

A homemade double broiler for making chocolate raspberry truffles.

How to make your own double boiler

Are you looking for tips on how to make your own double boiler at home? Here is how to make a double boiler at home with a few common household items. 

  • Grab a pot and a large bowl. The first thing you will need to do is grab a pot and a heat safe bowl. The bowl should be large enough that it does not touch the bottom of the pot if you put it in the pot. 
  • Add water to the pot. After you have selected the correct bowl and pot, add about 1 inch of water to the bottom of the pot. Put the bowl back in the pot and make sure that the bowl does not touch the water. 
  • Prop the bowl up using skewers (optional). Use a few skewers or toothpicks to prop the bowl up in the pot so that the side of the bowl is not actually touching the rim of the pot. This helps to prevent the bowl from getting too hot too quickly. Check out the images in this article if you need more clarification on what this looks like. 
  • Turn the heat on low to medium low and heat the water in the pot. Now all that is left is to heat up the chocolate. Add the chocolate to the bowl then turn the heat on low to medium low and heat up the pot. As the water in the pot evaporates, it will heat up the chocolate in the bowl. This may take some time to fully melt the chocolate. 

Raspberry filling for chocolate raspberry truffles being dipped in chocolate.

Tips for dipping truffles in chocolate

Is this your first time making homemade truffles? Check out these tips for dipping truffle filling in chocolate.

  • Use a toothpick to dip the truffles. If you are having trouble dipping your truffles in a smooth layer of chocolate without wiping the chocolate off of the side of the filling, try using a toothpick to dip the truffles. You can pierce the frozen truffle filling with a thin toothpick then hold the truffles by the toothpick when you dip them.
  • Slide the truffles off of a spoon. Don’t have any toothpicks? That is fine, you can also use a spoon to dip your truffles in chocolate. If you are using a spoon to dip your truffles, we recommend sliding the truffles off of the spoon so that the side of the truffle that was touching the spoon ends up on the bottom. This way there won’t be any visible patches where the chocolate got stuck to the spoon. 
  • Let the truffles cool on a drying rack. This is a big tip if you want your truffles to look perfectly pretty and presentable. You should let your truffles cook on a wire drying rack so that excess chocolate does not pool around the bottom of the truffles and solidify. If you want to let the truffles cool in the refrigerator, you can put the drying rack on top of a baking sheet to catch the drippings. 
  • Temper the chocolate to get a glossy shine on your truffles. If you want to get a chocolate coating on your truffles that is nice and glossy then you need to temper your chocolate. Essentially, that means that you need to heat your chocolate up to a specific temperature before dipping your truffles in chocolate. You will need a candy thermometer in order to do this. This is a great article that discusses how to temper chocolate.

Raspberry truffles

These tasty raspberry truffles are gluten free, vegan, and dairy free.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Resting time1 hour 15 minutes
Total Time2 hours
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian
Keyword: dairy free, egg free, gluten free, nut free, vegan, vegetarian
Servings: 16 truffles

Ingredients

  • 3 cups chocolate

Raspberry filling

  • 1 cup mashed raspberries
  • 4 cups confectioners sugar
  • 2 tbsp coconut oil
  • 1 tbsp coconut milk (1 more as needed)
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla

Instructions

  • Mash the raspberries into a paste using a fork, blender, food processor.
  • Simmer the raspberries over medium high heat for 15 - 20 minutes in a nonstick pan to cook off some of the water. When the raspberries are done cooking, they volume should be reduced to around 1/3 or 1/4 of the original volume.
  • Microwave the coconut oil for the raspberry filling and grab 1/4 cup of reduced raspberry. Combine the coconut oil, raspberry, and all of the other ingredients for the raspberry filling.
  • Refrigerate the raspberry filling for 15 minutes to allow the coconut oil to solidify.
  • Roll the raspberry filling into balls that are about 1 inch in diameter. Put these balls on a baking sheet that is lined with parchment paper.
    If the filling is too loose to roll into balls, you can try freezing the filling for a few minutes or adding more confectioners sugar 1/4 cup at a time.
  • Freeze the balls for at least 45 minutes or up to a few hours.
    You can take the balls out of the freezer every 10 - 15 minutes and re-roll them if they are not round enough. As the balls begin to freeze, they will solidify more and hold their shape better.
  • Slowly melt the chocolate over low to medium low heat using a double boiler.
    If you do not have a double boiler, you can read the instructions above on how to assemble your own double boiler out of common household items.
  • Dip the raspberry filling in chocolate then let the chocolate cool until it hardens.

Substitutions for raspberry truffles

  • Coconut milk. If you do not have coconut milk, you can use another plant based milk such as almond milk or oat milk. 

Other recipes you will love


Four chocolate coconut truffles on a gray plate. One of the truffles is cut open, revealing the coconut filling.

Are you looking for another fun recipe for vegan truffles? Check out this recipe for vegan coconut truffles. These truffles are made with coconut milk, coconut oil, and shredded coconut so they are packed with lots of creamy coconut flavor!


Completed chocolate covered oreo balls (oreo truffles)

Are you looking for a fun new way to use those gluten free Oreos that are all the rage? Check out this recipe for gluten free Oreo truffle. These truffles are made with a cream cheese filling and of course lots of mashed Oreo cookies. 


Chocolate bark with chopped hazelnuts, toasted coconut flakes, and raspberries.

Are you looking for another tasty vegan treat that is made with fresh raspberries and chocolate? Check out this recipe for vegan chocolate raspberry bark!

About The Author

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating