Vegan, gluten-free, grain-free, no bake/raw, refined sugar-free, soy-free
This homemade chocolate is made with just a few essential ingredients – virgin coconut oil, cocoa or cacao powder, and pure maple syrup. (Feel free to use whichever liquid sweetener you prefer). The virgin coconut oil replaces the cocoa butter found in traditional chocolate so while it needs to be kept in the freezer, it’s a great way to sneak some coconut oil into your day. You can also use any toppings you’d like – dried fruit, nuts, + seeds all work lovely.
It melts much faster than regular chocolate, so be sure to keep it chilled until ready to enjoy. I prefer it straight from the freezer.
Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup raw hazelnuts
- 1/4 cup raw almonds
- 1/3 cup large flake dried coconut
- 1/2 cup virgin coconut oil
- 1/2 cup cocoa or cacao powder, sifted if necessary
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup (or 10 drops of Stevia liquid)
- 1 tablespoon smooth almond butter, optional pinch fine sea salt
Method:
Preheat oven to 150’C. Line a small baking sheet with two pieces of parchment paper, one going each way. Set aside.
Add hazelnuts and almonds on a baking sheet and roast in the oven for 10 minutes. Remove baking sheet and add the coconut flakes and spread out. Continue roasting the nuts and coconut flakes for another 3-4 minutes, or until the coconut is lightly golden. Watch closely to avoid burning – coconut burns fast!
Place hazelnuts on several sheets of damp paper towel. Wrap the hazelnuts and rub them vigorously with the paper towel until the skins fall off. It’s ok if some skins don’t come off. Discard the skins and roughly chop the hazelnuts and almonds.
In a medium saucepan, melt the coconut oil over low heat. Remove from heat and whisk in the cocoa (or cacao) powder, maple syrup, and almond butter (if using) until smooth. Add a pinch of sea salt to taste. Stir in half of the almonds and hazelnuts.
With a spatula, spoon the chocolate mixture onto the prepared parchment-lined pan or sheet and smooth out until it’s about 6-10mm thick. Sprinkle on the remaining nuts and all of the coconut flakes. Place into the freezer on a flat surface for about 15 minutes, until frozen solid.
Once frozen, break apart into bark. Store in the freezer until ready to eat. I don’t recommend keeping it out on the counter long because it melts fast.
TIP:
To make this nut-free, simply omit the almond butter, hazelnuts, and almonds. It will still turn out just fine!
You can try adding toasted sunflower seeds on top for a little crunch, or dried apricots and/or goji berries for a bit of chewiness.
Did you make this recipe?
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