My Raw Chocolate Recipe ?

I like my chocolate sugar-free, raw, and preferably in the shape of a piggie. All of which can be hard to find at a cost I want to pay. So, I got in the kitchen to create a recipe with all the benefits of raw cocoa beans without the sugar.

You will see stevia and lakanto listed in the ingredients below. These natural sweeteners don’t feed harmful yeast or bacteria, making this chocolate a perfect treat for those who are healing a health condition and/or on The Body Ecology Diet (B.E.D.). If you have diabetes or blood sugar imbalances, then you can enjoy these too, because the sweeteners used do not have an influence on blood sugar or insulin release.

Recipe 

Makes: 6-12 depending on type of mold

Ingredients

6 Tbsp virgin, cold-pressed coconut oil and/or raw cocoa butter

4 Tbsp raw, organic cocoa powder

7-10 drops NuNatural vanilla stevia* or 1-2 Tbsp lakanto (see tips and tricks below)

1 Tsp almond or vanilla extract, glycerin-based

1 pinch sea salt (optional)

Method

• Bring a pot of water to a simmer. Place another pot or bowl inside the 1st one to create a double-boiler. This method will help keep the temperature below 115 degrees F and keep the cocoa and coconut oil in their raw state.
• Add coconut oil to the inside bowl and allow to melt.
• Whisk in cacao powder and stir, stir, stir until lump free.
• Whisk in stevia, almond extract, and salt if using.
• Pour into candy molds or tiny muffin tins – here’s the piggie mold I love ?
• Fridge, or freeze, until solid.
• Store in freezer, so they don’t get soft or melt.

Tips & Tricks

• Chocolate is an oil-based vegetable fat and this is why to never mix chocolate with water.
• Start with 7 drops of stevia and add more (by the drop) if you want go sweeter.
• Use 1-2 tablespoons of lakanto sweetener instead of stevia. I grind lakanto to a fine powder with a coffee grinder for a smoother chocolate, you could also use liquid lakanto (not sure how much, I’ve never used).
• I like to blend raw cocoa butter with coconut oil; I use 3 tablespoons of each.
• Go minty with 3 drops mint essential oil, add more stevia, + eliminate almond extract.
• Add 2-4 tablespoons of coconut milk to make a creamier chocolate.
• Make a chocolate bark by spreading the melted mixture onto parchment paper.
• I like this mold and mini baking cups – the kids love the ones with fun patterns of course.
• Add in minced unsweetened dried cranberries or raw almonds.
• A perfect treat for anyone on GAPS or The Body Ecology Diet (B.E.D).
• A fun stocking stuffer, I pop a couple in tiny cellophane bags and tie with colorful ribbon. I also package them in little boxes for birthday gifts ?

*Stevia is 300 times sweeter than sugar, so use less of it. Start with 7 drops and sweeten to taste. The more you add, the less bitter your chocolate will be.

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