It’s no secret that I used to be a little bit of a chocoholic (before I went dairy free… more about that here). I thought my world was going to end when I had to give up regular chocolate, but what I didn’t know was that since finding Cacao and making my own chocolate, I have never looked back. I can’t even remember the last time I had any ‘normal’ store bought chocolate, it would have to be at least 6 months ago!

Looking for a little occasional sweet treat, myself and Irondad tried our hand at our own chocolate recipe. We have adapted it a bit along the way (usually each time we make it) so the quantities are a bit of a personal taste thing – I don’t claim to be a top chef. Feel free to play around with it and adapt it to your own taste (let me know if you find a winning combo!).

Fruit & Nut ‘Chocolate’ Recipe

Ingredients

6 Tbsp (heaped) Organic Crunchy Peanut Butter

4 Tbsp (heaped) Organic Coconut Oil (very soft to runny)

4 Tbsp Rice Malt Syrup  (Alternatively you can use Honey or Maple Syrup, which ever you prefer)

2 1/2 Tbsp Raw Cacao Powder

1 tsp Natural Vanilla Extract

Pinch of salt (I use Pink Himalayan Rock Salt)

1/4 cup desiccated coconut

1/3 cup diced dried apricots *

1/3 cup dried cranberries *

(*we like ours quite ‘fruity’ so you could add a little extra of both)

3/4 cup dry roasted almonds, roughly chopped

3/4 cup cashews, roughly chopped

(you could use any nuts you prefer – this amount makes it quite chunky)

shredded coconut flakes for sprinkling on top

Directions

Place all ingredients (except for the nuts) into a medium mixing bowl and mix until well combined. Then stir in the chopped nuts, this will make it quite thick.

Pour mixture into a loaf tin (I use a silicon one and it pops straight out easily once frozen)

Sprinkle desired amount of shredded coconut over the top.

Place in the freezer to set. I leave it for a few hours as I like it really cold and firm. The longer you leave it in there the firmer it will become.

Once it’s ready I slice it into either cubes or slices depending on the size you want and then store it in an air tight container and leave in freezer as it melts very easily at room temperature.

Enjoy and good luck not wanting to eat the whole batch in one sitting!

xx