Dark Chocolate - Raw, Vegan, Paleo, Refined Sugar Free

Hey guyssssss. 

I am SO excited today. Seriously. SO Excited! I have not only managed to make a delicious Dark Chocolate...it actually tastes like dark chocolate! 

So many times I have tried to make Raw chocolate and it's always with coconut oil... and I'm not gunna lie... the taste after a while... phwoar. Well, needless to say you can get sick of it pretty quickly. 

I am in love with two brands of chocolate in this world. They are Pana Chocolate and Loving Earth. And this recipe I kid you not, is close to my favourite Dark Loving Earth Chocolate. Ok, clearly theirs has more depth of flavour, but this, I tell you, is close. Absolutely delicious and how perfect is this for Christmas! I got this amazingly cute little mould from Kmart about 3 years ago and I love it. They really have some great things if you get there at the right time. This mould cost $2 and it's silicone so you can freeze AND bake in it! I know right... your mind right now is like KABOOM!!!!!

Anyway... 

When you make this recipe, it's really important to maintain the nutritional value of the honey or maple syrup and cacao. When foods get too hot their nutrient content depletes dramatically. Especially when it comes to Raw Organic honey and Raw Organic Maple...you're spending the money to buy good honey and maple..so don't ruin it by over heating it. If you do that, you get absolutely none of the health benefits, and are just ingesting sugar. So I recommend adding the sweetener of your choice at the very last moment to make sure the mixture is as cool as humanly possible. It can be a little tricky because it also has to be warm enough that the honey or maple will somewhat melt and distribute evenly amongst the mixture. But providing you don't heat the cacao butter more than 46 degrees in the first place, you don't have to worry about this step. 

So! Things that will be helpful in making this are - Moulds and a Thermometer. A Mould is great if you want to make little chocolates like I have above. These are great because you can wrap them in little cute gift bags for presents, or to hang off your Christmas tree. However, if you don't have a mould, fear not, because you can just line a baking sheet with baking paper and pour the mixture on. You could then chop up some nuts, perhaps add some beautiful dried fruits and sprinkle on top (try grated orange zest!) and then when it's set, break it up into bark chunks. This actually looks super cute as a Chrissy gift as well if you pop the pieces of bark into little cellophane bags and tie with a ribbon. The Thermometer is going to be your friend for making sure you don't heat over 46 degrees, HOWEVER, if you are willing to compromise SLIGHTLY the nutrient value of the cacao butter, you can just place it into a sauce pan, and leave over a light heat until half of the butter is melted. Take away from the heat and then stir until the remaining pieces are melted. 

For this recipe I prefer to use the Loving Earth Cacao Butter. The reason for this is it is grated and that means all different sizes. Because some are granule sizes, it doesn't take long to heat at all.

As you can see from the picture, a lot of it is really small so it takes minimal heat to melt which means chances are you won't go over 46 degrees Celsius.  But if you want to be extra careful, get a thermometer involved :)

So with Christmas coming at us full steam ahead, I'm making sure this year (like I do every year) that I eat sweets in moderation. And while my whole family doesn't follow my eating principles, I will be making some of these beauties to take with me to my parents to at least have a semi-healthy option. 

I seem to add this into every sweet recipe that I do, and today will be no exception. So I stress, Just because there is unrefined sugar in this, it doesn't mean it's a free for all to eat as much of it in one sitting as humanly possible. Honey and Maple while having so many health benefits, is still a form of sugar and will give you the same effects as refined sugar if you eat too much. So go easy. Be mindful when you eat and savour the food and experience it. Doing this makes it likely to stop you from over indulging. 

So Enjoy - and if you try the recipe, always to be sure to comment below and let me know how you went!

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Recipe

Serves - 12 - (1 Piece per serve)

Time - 10 Minutes - 

What you need:

125 grams Organic Raw Cacao Butter

5 Tablespoons Raw Organic Cacao Powder 

2 Tablespoons Raw Organic Honey or Maple

1/2 Vanilla Bean

1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon

1/2 Teaspoon Nutmeg

What to do:

In a saucepan, melt your cacao butter to no higher than 46 Degrees Celsius to melt and then remove from heat ( If you don't have a thermometer, place over heat until half the butter is melted, turn off heat and stir to melt the rest)

Once off the heat, add the cacao powder, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir until combined. 

Add the Vanilla bean and Honey/Maple and stir until the sweeter of choice has dissolved. 

Pour into your silicone mould (no need to grease it) or pour onto your parchment paper. Place in the fridge if it is a hot day (you may notice the top of the chocolate turn white as the butter will solidify before the rest, this is normal and still fine to eat) or if it is a cool day or your kitchen is cool, leave on a table to solidify. 

Once the Chocolate has turned hard, place in the fridge for 30 minutes before handling for wrapping etc. 

Voila !

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Salted Caramel Sauce - Paleo, Vegan, Refined Sugar Free

Christmas is upon us! And despite the fact that it is only November, Christmas is EVERYWHEREEEEEE. I mean seriously. It seems to get earlier and earlier every year. Wouldn't surprise me if people start putting up their decorations in September if I'm being honest.

I myself, am dreading putting the tree up this year. With 3 kids under 3, I know my eldest will be ready to have at it the minute it's up...and my 8 month old twins that are now on the move, let just say - it's gunna be a hectic month of 'No!!!!!' and 'Don't touch!'. This year I think I will just don the Christmas lights and leave the other decorations hidden safely away until they are old enough to understand. 

Anyway! Since it is everywhere already I thought I had better get a head start to get my Christmas recipe collection up quick smart so all of you can enjoy beautiful treats, that are healthy and nourishing. 

When I say healthy and nourishing, can we please touch on the fact that this recipe still contains Sugar. It may be Raw Organic Honey ( Or raw Maple if you choose ) but at the end of the day, it is still sugar. It will react in your body the same as sugar, and cause all those nasty side effects that sugar does when you consume too much. So while it's a more easily absorbed and processed sugar by our body, and is unrefined, we just have to make sure that we aren't over doing it! A great time to practice Mindfulness with our food. 

The Keto version of this is absolutely delicious as well. You just don't add the honey or maple. Coconut cream contains its own natural sugars, so without the added sugar, you can still caramelise the coconut cream. It just won't be as sweet. But if you're keto anyway, you've most likely forgotten what sugar tastes like.

This recipe is SO super simple that it will help even the worst cooks conquer Christmas and leave a lasting impression on family and friends! I promise you!

When this sauce is warm, it is perfect to drizzle or dunk... but if you pop it in the fridge, it will also go solid, a spoonable solid... which is amazing for scooping and placing on something like a Raw Brownie ( Click HERE for our Raw Brownie Recipe ) The possibilities with this sauce are endless! I like to put my sauce on top of Banana Smoothie Bowls! It's SOOOOO yum! I am working on a recipe to post later this week with a burnt banana smoothie and caramel drizzle (yes I know... YUM!) so watch this space. 

I even made this sauce for my eldest 2nd birthday. I sliced up some beautiful fresh fruits, and drizzled this sauce over and called them Fruit Nachos. A massive hit with the kids! Especially when topped with Cacao Nibs! Yummo!

Anyhow! Enjoy and as always let me know what you think if you give it a go!

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Recipe

Serves - 5-6

Time - 20 minutes - 

What you need:

1 Can of Organic Coconut Cream (The size of the can will determine the amount of sauce you get)

2 Tablespoons of Raw Organic Honey or Maple ( Omit for Keto Version )

Pinch Salt

1/2 Vanilla Bean Pod

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What to do:

In a Deep Sauce Pan, add your Coconut Cream Contents and Honey/Maple

Bring to a boil, and then reduce to simmer.

With a whisk, mix once the mixture is boiling to remove some of the heat while lowering the heat. Once the heat bubbles subside and the mixture is simmering, keep a close eye and watch as the colour changes. This can take up to 15 minutes (longer if you have a large amount of coconut cream). Watch it carefully because there is a fine line between Caramel and Charcoal.

Once you have the desired colour (In my photo above) turn off the heat, and add your vanilla bean and salt. It will look like the mixture is somewhat separated until you stir it. Stir it well and it will thicken and turn glossy. 

Place into a jar and leave on the table during dinner. If you are making it ahead for the next day, I would suggest placing it in the fridge and bringing it out in the morning of the next day. If it isn't runny enough to drizzle by the time you need it, just place the jar in a bath of warm water until the desired consistency is reached. 

Voila!

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Gut Loving Mint Choc Smoothie

What do you think when you think of Smoothie? I bet it isn't 'Decadent', 'Rich' and 'Amazingly Good For You' all in one go!

I've starting mucking around lately with Blue Green Algae and Chlorophyll because I've been doing a bit of research as to how to increase nutrients into our diet in different ways. Normally with supplements, I'm quite picky because our gut can only absorb so much at one time. I mean don't get me wrong, if you see our 'Medicine' Cabinet, It is chocked full of Supplements, but all of those are taken on different days at different times and all of them are staggered unless its the usual, Magnesium before Bed and Calcium upon waking. So when I came across a recipe with Spirulina, I was like BAHH I'm not adding anything else. But THENNNNN I saw that its powdered and you can actually just add it to food and drinks! 

Salads, Smoothies, Drinks, Soups - you name it! These little powdered beauties can be added nearly anywhere.  

So I did it! I found Blue Green Algae (Spirulina depending on the brand you buy) and Chloraphyll. The Algae is in a powder and Chloraphyll is a liquid, with Mint Added! First of all when I opened the Chloraphyll, I put it in water with Ice, and it was amazing. SO refreshing and I can't wait to have this as a go to in Summer! *watch this space for an exciting array of iced teas*  

The Algae caught me off guard. It has the strongest most pungent smell which truth be told, turned my stomach a little bit. But once you mix it with anything, you can't taste it really because you don't use too much of it.  

I do warn you though, I think I over did it the first time I used the Algae... and the toilet was my friend that afternoon. TMI I know but I have to be honest. If you asked me to describe what came out... the answer would just be - Green - 

So go easy with it.  

If you aren't aware of the benefits of Spirulina or Algae, you can do some reading Here, and Hereare the benefits of adding Chloraphyll to your diet.  

I've searched high and low for information on if this is safe for children, and there has been nothing to indicate that it isn't unsafe. So I happily fed this to my 3 year old. He bloody loved it, and he's alive... so the proofs in the pudding! 

So there you go! If you have the stuff give it a go, and if you're up for incorporating more nutrients into your diet - but keep it fun - then this is definitely for you! The Chlorophyll I use in this particular Smoothie is by Grant's. It was only $14.00 for a bottle. But you can use any powdered Spirulina provided it's by a reputable company. There shouldn't be many issues.

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Recipe 

Serves -2- 

Time: 10 Mins

 What you need: 

1 Banana 

3 Tablespoons of Coconut Yoghurt ( No Sugar ) 

2 Cups Coconut Milk 

1/2 Teaspoon Algae 

2 Teaspoons Minted Chlorophyll 

1 Tablespoon Great Lakes Collagen/Gelatin

1 Small Handful of Spinach 

1 Tablespoons Cacao and 2 Tablespoons Extra Coconut Milk Blended together 

 - Any Toppings you like. I did Hazelnuts, Cashews, Brazil Nuts, Cacao Nibs, Chia Seeds, and a small scoop of Coyo -  

 What to do: 

In a Blender ( I used a Nutri Ninja ) add the Banana, Yoghurt, Milk, Algae, Chlorophyll and Spinach, and blend until there are no lumps and a smooth consistency is reached. If you want it more liquidy, then just add more milk.  

Mix your cacao and milk together to form a chocolate paste and pour around the sides of your glass.  

Pour in the smoothie and top with your toppings! 

I also made one in a bowl - however, it was harder to eat because it was so wet (if that even makes sense?) So if you do it in a bowl, take a quarter of the liquid away so its more Smoothie Bowl Consistency!