Cocoa Butter Bunnies

Cocoa Butter Bunnies: Solid lotion bars made with naturally sweet smelling cocoa butter and tinted with shimmering mica.

Spring is here and it’s time to start celebrating all things cute and colorful. These sweet little Cocoa Butter Bunnies are perfect for sharing with family and friends during spring holidays. They make a great Easter treats, party favors, or hostess gifts. We used a chocolate mold to give our bunnies a classic shape, but you could easily make this recipe your own by using molds shaped like flowers, birds, or whatever you like.

The recipe for our Cocoa Butter Bunnies starts off with a great big portion of pure cocoa butter. Cocoa butter has a naturally delicious aroma that is reminiscent of the Easter bunny’s favorite treat, chocolate. We added a small dollop of coconut oil to the mixture to help the bars soften quickly and spread easily. If you prefer a harder bar that melts less easily, simply omit the coconut oil from the recipe. This change will be especially helpful for those in warm climates or for artisans who ship their products far and wide.

Using pearlescent mica allows us to give our Cocoa Butter Bunnies a variety of sweet pastel colors. Using colorants is totally optional though, as the “naked” bunnies are gorgeous as well. Without mica, Cocoa Butter Bunnies come out a pale yellow or off-white color that looks a lot like white chocolate.

We chose to let the natural aroma of cocoa butter take center stage with this recipe, but if you prefer a stronger or different scent, try adding up to 1 teaspoon (5ml) of your favorite essential oil or fragrance oil. Just keep in mind that cocoa butter does have a pretty strong aroma and is likely to come through in the final product. Be sure to pick an aromatic ingredient that compliments the chocolatey smell of pure cocoa butter.

Or, if you would like to take your Cocoa Butter Bunnies in a different direction entirely, try using our Deodorized Cocoa Butter instead. Deodorized cocoa butter has little to no characteristic aroma, making it the perfect ingredient for pairing with any scent.

While we created this recipe with lotion bars in mind you can absolutely use Cocoa Butter Bunnies as bath melts. Try dropping one or two in the bath to provide a moisturizing treat for the whole body. You can even add a tablespoon or two of oat flour or sea salt to the recipe to make them even more well suited to the bath.

Cocoa Butter Bunnies

Makes about twelve 1/2-ounce lotion bars

Ingredients

• 5 ounces cocoa butter
• 1 ounce coconut oil
• 1/4 teaspoon mica* (optional)

*We used: Amber, Lavender, Pink Glimmer, Avocado, Two Tone Blue Green

Directions

1. Combine cocoa butter and coconut oil in double boiler and heat until fully melted.
2. Mixture may be added directly to molds if colorant is omitted. If using colorant, allow the mixture to cool for 5-10 minutes before adding mica. Mix well, then pour into molds. Transfer molds to refrigerator or freezer immediately.
3. Allow bunnies to chill until fully hardened (about 30 minutes) before removing from mold.

Usage & Packaging

• Bunnies should be kept cool to avoid melting. We packaged ours in small cellophane bags. They would also look great in glass jars.
• To use as lotion bars, simply rub the bars onto your skin. The bunnies will melt right away, leaving skin coated in hydrating body oil.
• To use as bath melts, drop bunnies into warm bath water. Bunnies will melt in hot water and act as bath oil.

Shelf Life & Stability: Please note that the formulations featured here on The Natural Beauty Workshop have not been challenge tested for stability or shelf life, and may not be suitable for commercial use as-is. For more information on shelf life, stability, and working with preservatives, check out the following article from our Information Library.

Looking for more seasonal bath and body project inspiration? Check out our recipes for Easter Egg Bath Bombs and Spring Carrot & Lemongrass Ginger Soap.