Whether you like light milk or dark chocolate, you can make your own healthy batch at home in 30 minutes, including setting time in the fridge. Now that I make my own homemade chocolate bars at home, I try to find ways to make my special treat as healthy and wholesome as possible, and this is where the coconut oil comes in.
Benefits of Coconut Oil
Coconut oil has many health benefits, reasons why it is called a miracle oil, and science has unlocked the secrets to its therapeutic and healing properties.If you take coconut oil regularly, you can make healthy snacks and add it to cereals, oatmeal, and smoothies like I do. In fact, you can use coconut oil in more foods than you can ever imagine. It is for those with a sweet tooth who still want something tasty without the unhealthy tag.
Here, I will describe how I make chocolates with virgin coconut oil. It satisfies my chocolate cravings without making me feel unhealthy. I call them my guilt-free treats.
Guilt-Free Homemade Chocolate Slabs
You can be as creative as you like when you make yours. This means you can add dried fruits and/or nuts of your choice (I love to use raisins, marshmallows, mango, pistachio nuts, and walnuts). You can also add seeds if you wish. For example, pumpkin or sunflower seeds. Remember, these are meant to be healthy chocolate snacks.
Ingredients
- Pure dark cocoa powder (unsweetened)
- 1/3 cup virgin cold-pressed coconut oil (must be virgin oil). If it is solid, warm gently to liquify it. My favourite brand ever is the unrefined Viva Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil.
- Sweetener, preferably powdered Stevia (if you have a sweet tooth like me). You can also use maple syrup, agave nectar, or honey.
- 1/2 teaspoon of any flavouring (vanilla, almond, or mint)
- Chopped cherries, desiccated coconut, or ginger
- Chopped nuts
Preparation Items
- Mixing bowl
- Spatula or wooden spoon
- Ice cube tray, baking tray, or chocolate mould (I use ice cube trays most of the time because I like to pop mine right into my mouth)
Preparation time - 10 minutes
Directions
- Mix the cocoa powder, coconut oil, and sweetener in a bowl. Use a wooden spoon. Ensure you mix them thoroughly till all lumps disappear. Mix well until you have a nice smooth paste.
- Add your desired flavouring and continue to stir the mix.
- Make a base layer in the ice cube or baking tray with the chopped maraschino cherries, nuts, or whatever you wish. If you use a baking tray, line it with greaseproof paper first.
- Pour your coconut oil and cocoa mix over this base layer, 1/2 an inch thick (if you like your chocolate bars thin) and 1 inch if you prefer the thick slabs.
- Gently shake the chocolate mould.
- Place the tray in the fridge and store it there until it solidifies. This shouldn’t take more than 30 minutes.
If you use an ice tray or thin baking tin, once the chocolate becomes a solid block, you can cut (or break) it into squares while still in the tray. You can use a warm knife if it is difficult to cut through. Keep your healthy chocolate bars in the refrigerator until you are ready to eat them to avoid melting at room temperature.
Enjoy Your Coconut Oil Chocolates
You will love these chocolate treats, not only because they are so delicious, especially if you can get creative with your toppings, but also because they provide a nutritional source of quick energy with great health benefits.Related Article: