By The dirt cups you grew up with, rebuilt on blended cottage cheese and avocado instead of a box of instant pudding. 11g of protein per cup and no protein powder anywhere - plus 5g of fiber, which is not something a dirt cup usually gets to say. Still crushed cookies. Still gummy worms. That part is non-negotiable 🙂
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What childhood didn't involve dirt cups?? They are the epitome of mine and Dan's so a protein version has been on our list to make for a long time. And today we finally made it happen. We adapted our viral cottage cheese mousse, and ta-da we have dirt cups!
If you like this kind of thing, our sweet cottage cheese recipes are full of it - desserts built on real food rather than a scoop of powder.
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we love our avocados!
Most healthier dirt cups pick a lane. Either they're avocado-based, which gets you the creamy texture but not much protein, or they're cottage cheese based, which gets you protein but a looser, more pudding-like consistency.
But we love using both! Plus a little banana for natural sweetness 🙂
Half an avocado brings the fat that makes blended cottage cheese behave like actual mousse instead of thin chocolate pudding. It's what lets this hold its shape in the cup, hold a gummy worm upright, and coat a spoon properly. It is also where most of the fiber in these comes from.
And no, you cannot taste it. Cocoa powder and maple syrup are more than enough to cover half an avocado 🥑
key ingredients & swaps
All substitutions are a 1:1 substitute unless otherwise noted. See the recipe card for quantities.
- Cottage cheese: The protein base. It needs to be blended completely smooth - this is the one step where rushing shows.
- Avocado: Half of one, and it needs to be properly ripe. An underripe avocado won't blend smooth and you'll get little green flecks and over ripe will be bitter. This is what makes the texture mousse rather than pudding.
- Banana: It adds natural sweetness and helps the texture, and half is deliberate (more on that below).
- Cocoa powder: Regular unsweetened. Dutch-process will give you a darker, more dramatic "dirt" color if you have it.
- Maple syrup: The sweetener. Three tablespoons is plenty we found in our testing given the cookies and gummy worms going on top are already sweet.
- Vanilla bean paste: Worth it if you have it. Extract works, just use twice as much.
- Pinch of salt: Don't skip it. Salt is what makes chocolate taste like chocolate rather than like cocoa powder.
- Oreo thins: Crushed, for the dirt. Regular Oreos work too!
- Gummy worms: Of course! I like to use Smart Sweets but use whatever you like!
This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you replace or add any ingredients, please let us know how it turned out in the comments below!
tips to nail this recipe every time
- Blend longer than feels necessary: Three to four minutes in a good blender (a tamper is helpful). Cottage cheese curds and avocado both need real time to go completely smooth, and any texture left behind is the one thing that'll give the base away.
- Use a ripe avocado: It should give easily when you press it. Underripe won't blend out and you'll see green flecks in the chocolate.
- Scrape down the sides: At least once mid-blend. Avocado likes to climb the walls of the blender and sit there.
- Add the dirt and worms right before serving: Cookies and candy go soft and weep if they sit on the mousse for hours.
quick recipe video
half a banana, not a whole one
You can use a whole banana here and it'll work. It'll also taste like banana.
Half gives you the sweetness and the creaminess without the flavor taking over - what you notice is chocolate, with something rounding it out underneath. A whole one and it becomes a chocolate banana dessert, which is a nice thing to eat but isn't what dirt cups are supposed to taste like.
If you only have a whole banana and don't want to waste half, freeze the rest for smoothies 🍌
can I make these ahead of time?
Yes! They are great for that! Make the mousse and portion it ahead, then add the cookies and worms right before serving so the cookies stay crunchy and the gummies stay firm.
troubleshooting & testing notes
It tastes bitter
I'm going to guess your avocado was too ripe. This makes everything very bitter.
It tastes like banana.
Half a banana is the limit. A whole one takes over.
The texture is grainy.
The cottage cheese didn't get blended enough. This needs a full three to four minutes - longer than you'd think for something that looks smooth at ninety seconds.
Recipe
cottage cheese dirt cups (11g protein, no protein powder)
Ingredients
the mousse
- 1 cup cottage cheese
- 3 tablespoon maple syrup
- 2-½ tablespoon cocoa powder
- ½ avocado (ripe)
- ½ banana (ripe)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)
- pinch of salt
to finish
- 8 Oreo thins (crushed)
- 9 sugar free gummy worms (or candy of choice)
Before you start!
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Instructions
- Add the 1 cup cottage cheese, 3 tbsp maple syrup, 2-½ tbsp cocoa powder, ½ avocado, ½ banana, ½ tsp vanilla bean paste, and pinch of salt to a blender.
- Blend 3 to 4 minutes until completely smooth, scraping down the sides at least once. Give it longer than feels necessary - any graininess left behind is what gives the base away.
- Divide between 3 cups or small jars. Chill as desired or serve right away.
- Crush the 8 Oreo thins and spoon over the top of each cup for the "dirt." But wait until just before serving! Then finish with the 9 sugar free gummy worms.
Video
Notes
Looking for more information?
Additional substitution information can be found above in the substitution section of this post.
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate and for informational purposes only.
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