I’d say I just make these for special occasions, but I’d be lying. I make these alllllll the time.
They’re delish. And they’re vegan, and dairy-free! Not that you need to be either of those things. But if you are, these are for you.
Even if you’re not, these are for you.
Now you may be thinking, uh, Shaina, this is a healthy living site, why are you telling me to eat chocolate? And didn’t you recently write a three-part series on all the ways sugar is bad for you? What kind of personal trainer are you?!
Well, to that I say, sugar IS bad for you.
I’m not telling you to go buy crap chocolate at the drug store. No. Too much sugar, of any kind, is harmful to your health. Let’s get that out of the way.
Let’s also remember that it’s almost Valentine’s Day, or as I like to call it, Chocolate Day. And if you’re going to eat chocolate anyway, you’d be making a healthier choice by eating THESE chocolates.
I’m also merely suggesting that you will always wonder what you’re missing if you don’t make and eat these chocolates. Serious FOMO. Your choice.
Also, you CAN eat chocolate as part of a healthy lifestyle.
Once/if (let’s be optimistic and go with once) you cut out processed crap, you make room for healthier versions of treats.
And I don’t want you to be sad.
The chocolate bars you buy at the store might make your body sad though. Those chocolates often come loaded with sugar, and have a long list of sketchy ingredients, some of which are weird and un-pronounceable. And generally, un-pronounceable means full of chemicals. Or more sugar. And that’s not great.
Enter these chocolates, which are rich, creamy, and chocolate-y (it’d be bad if they weren’t chocolate-y!). As a bonus, the ingredient list is fairly short, and you should be able to pronounce all the ingredients. (Seriously no judgement if you can’t though. Well, maybe a little bit of judgement. Ha ha.)
I like these with chopped almonds as the base, but you can make them nut-free and swap the almonds for something non-nutty: roasted pumpkin seeds, coconut, sunflower seeds. You choose.
Ok! So these are so easy.
You just need to:
Rich, creamy and vegan homemade chocolates!
You’ll Need: Silicon baking molds (I used mini muffin molds + heart shaped candy molds).
Roughly chop almonds, if using.
In a medium heatproof bowl, microwave the coconut oil until it melts completely. Add in the rest of the ingredients and whisk until smooth.
Taste test here. I prefer less maple syrup for a less sweet chocolate, but you may want to add another little drizzle here to up the sweetness factor.
Fill the molds with whatever add-ins you’d like to use: I used about a tsp of chopped almonds to each mold, and for some added in a sprinkle of coconut. For others I used a sprinkle of coconut plus 1 tsp pumpkin seeds. For some I just used almonds. Whatever floats your boat.
Now, using a small spoon, spoon the melted chocolate mixture into the molds. Spread until evenly filled. Sprinkle with a little sea salt, just to dust.
Place the filled chocolate molds into the fridge to set, for at least 1 hour or as long as overnight. Once set, pop them out and get one right into your mouth! Unless it’s like, 7am. Then maybe wait a bit.
You can keep these little morsels in a parchment-lined airtight container in the fridge for a couple weeks, or in the freezer for about a month. Because you’re not going to eat them all in two days. Right?! Right. You got this. Now go make some chocolates!
