Raw Easter Chocolate

[sweetgoddess]

I just threw this together and YUM!

1 cup coconut oil
3/4 cup carob ( I bet raw cacao would be even better)
4 Tbsp agave nectar ( or more to taste)
2 tsp vanilla ( next time I will use orange as I love dark orange choclate, mint would be good too)

Put coconut oil in a bowl and place in another bowl of hot water, stirring until liquified. Stir in other ingredients until smooth. Pour onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and pop into freezer for 5-10 mins. Voila-raw chocolate.

I so wish I had an easter candy mold as these would mold beautifully into little Easter shapes. ALso, you could add slivered almonds for almond bark, or use it to coat nuts/fruit.

Yeah I have my Easter chocolate for tomorrow and it's raw. Isnt the Easter bunny sweet!! ;)

[DotfromOz]

I swear I'm drooling down my shirtfront into my keyboard. (Well, not really...but you get the idea. :p)

Oh, how I wish I'd just gone ahead and ordered coconut oil online when I found out that every bit of it in semi-health food stores locally is refined!

:::::::resolving NOT to think about it as she just bought a LUVLY young coconut which is her Ostara's Day treat tomorrow:::::::::::

Wouldn't something like that be just tee-riff for goodies at a wedding or handfasting ceremony?

:::::::doing whirling yummy-yummy-yummylicious dance::::::::::

[Autumn]

WOW that sounds awesome! I wish I had the stuff to make it. Do you mean carob powder? nibs?

[sweetgoddess]

powder Autumn. Wish I had raw cacao.

My daughter and her friend loved it too.

Dot, your titles are such a riot

:D

[RawTruth]

Okay, I'm gonna give my nibs another try (doesn't that sound weird!). Your description is just so beguiling, Carmel! By the way, did you pour it into circles? drips? drops? all one piece?

[Revvell]

is hard when in da jar, ya? Soooo, when one uses coconut oil, is it in the oil state or in the hard state? If one uses it in the hard state, wouldn't it be more quantity than in the melted state?

....and dayum! Anyone know where I put my large wax melter??? Sheesh! Moving is SO troublesome!

*off to search more boxes*

Injoy ~

Revvell

[sweetgoddess]

Revvell I poured it in one sheet...then break off pieces. But you could do anything with it. I tried to peel it with a peeler to see if it made curls because it looks so real. My peeler is too big though.

I so wish I had had cocoa nibs...mmm....need to get some.

I used the oil in the liquid state just put it in a bowl and placed it in another bowl of hot water.

I think it may need more sweetner. A bit bitter, though it is still very good. The texture is EXACTLY the same as chocolate! That is too cool.

Enjoy and Merry Easter Day !

[blue_sky]

another yummy variation is to add shredded coconut to the mixture. MMMM :D

[Revvell]

Sweetgoddess :)


Revvell I used the oil in the liquid state just put it in a bowl and placed it in another bowl of hot water.

Enjoy and Merry Easter Day !

Injoy~

Revvell

[DotfromOz]

Dot, your titles are such a riot

:D


:::::::::doing her very best Elvis imitation:::::::::

"Wah, thank ya, thank ya vurry much." :D

[Cinnamon]

Just took this out of the freezer for a sample taste... YUM! It really is the perfect consistency and I added some coconut and pecans. Next time I will make it a bit sweeter, and I have got to get some candy molds as you are right Sweetgoddess they would be so cute that way!

And I did find some coconut oil that is wonderful and creamy, a much better experience than with the first jar I bought that I had to throw out, as it was bad stuff!

Thanks for the recipe... oh sooooo good!

[sweetgoddess]

Cinnamon-did you use carob? Mines a little bitter too. BUt MAN, can you believe the texture? exactly like chocolate. I used to adore dark orange chocolate by Newmans Organics. Next time I am adding orange. Though its a once in awhile thing with the coconut oil. It would be so pretty in molds wouldnt it?


RawTruth, did you try it yet? I think it definitely needs more sweetner!

[Amethyst_Rain]

just made this...wow...totally good...i put almonds in it...thanx for the tip :)

[khackett]

This might be dumb.....

where do you get carob/cacao powder? What area would it be in in, say, a Trader Joe's? Would it be there?

[Cinnamon]

Sweetgoddess-I know I would love this with carob, but my tummy has built up a terrible aversion to it! I guess I am "carob intolerant" but I really like it. So I used cocoa powder and I think that made it a bit more bitter than even carob would have.

Just more sweetener and YES the texture was perfect!! I couldn't believe it. I broke it into small pieces and am leaving it in the freezer for treats. I will try not to eat it too quickly, as you mentioned with the coconut oil in it!

I also love the dark orange chocolate by Newmans Organics so I will pick up some orange extract and also some mint as you'd mentioned, wow wouldn't that be good! I am going to look at molds the next time I am in Michael's or Joanne's in Silverdale, that would be so cute! And I am thinking to dip strawberries in the liquid mix and then freeze them. Again... yum!

Kate-I got raw carob powder in the bulk food section of our local grocery store. Granted they have a wonderful health food section that most stores wouldn't have. I haven't seen it at a Trader Joe's but maybe they'd have it too? Like I said, I love the flavor of carob and am so disappointed that it upsets my stomach so much!

[khackett]

I'll have to look around then. Thanks!!

[Rawkinlocs]

Alissa is now carrying raw carob on her site. I'm not sure if Trader Joes is the same as far as what they have in all areas, but I know the one in my area doesn't have any. In fact, I can't seem to find raw carob in ANY of the places I've checked here locally. They'll have roasted, but not raw.

[PixieGreen]

Tips on special orders:

Usually there are only one or two major health food distribution warehouses in an area [sometimes multi-state wide]. In fact, DFW, Houston and Austin are served by the same two warehouses. If your local health food store carries some common food items like Annies mac n cheese or Bob Mills grain they can probably special order most common raw items. If your item is only available in bulk your minimum order may have to be large. Smaller stores get the worst terms from warehouses so they may have to charge more. Be kind to the smaller store owners, it is extremely difficult for them to make a profit these days. :)

Christa

[PixieGreen]

Oh! And sweetgoddess, thank you for the recipe! I think this would be great poured over ice cream like a shell. In fact I'm gonna make that tonight. :)

Christa

[fruitbat]

Hello sweetgoddess and evreyone else i just thought id tell you that i made some raw chocolate it was a diffrent recipe though still on this site with raw cacoa nibs and carob and coconut oil and agarve and vanilla and evrey year i make easter eggs for my family with chocolate in loads of moulds bunnies and egg moulds and lolly moulds and i wanted to see if raw chocolate would work too and it did!
they come out perfect my little sis chelsea loved them as she cant have real chocolate cause of allergies so i done it for her i made bunnie lollys and a big bunnie and a egg but its solid not hollow as it was to runny to paint the mould like you do for real chocolate so its a big solid egg but she has it in little amounts so you should all ge some moulds for next easter it does look like real easter treats and chelsea raves about it
hope your all ok :) hope you all had a nice easter
Danielle x

[sweetgoddess]

oh. Christa, fabulous idea! yum

Danielle, how absolutely loving of you to make those Easter treats for your sister. I was allergic to milk as a child and couldnt have chocolate, and felt quite left out watching all my brothers get loads of chocolate on Easter etc. So I am sure you really made her day. Wonderful!

[AutumnBreezColordLeavz]

I just threw this together and YUM!

2 tsp vanilla ( next time I will use orange as I love dark orange choclate, mint would be good too)



Orange zest may work well
I will have to try this. sounds delish!
This is what I have in mind....
Orange zest and dates soaked together with bit of orange juice. then mix and roll into long snake like dough, then put the chocolate over. Probably could put in some walnut with the orange date mix...hmmm the possibilities....so yum!

[honeybee joy]

I had a question about the raw easter chocolate. It seems like everyone is talking about molds to put the chocolate in. Does it stay hard after taking it out of the freezer? I know X-mas is coming up, & was hoping to make raw chocolate to put in stockings!!!

[truthseeker]

You have to keep it in the freezer/fridge. Because of the coconut butter/oil in the recipe. When it's cold it hardens or solidifies, when it's warm is liquifies.

I put my creations on a plate on the table.....they don't last long enough to melt :p

I was also thinking of way to put chocolate pops in my children's Christmas stockings. I'm thinking I'm going to put the pops in pretty cellophane wrapers of some sort, tie a ribbon on the sticks, put them back into the freezer and then that morning before they get to their stockings slip'em in. They'll find them RIGHT AWAY, open them and eat'um up (before they have a chance to melt) while they're sorting through the goodies in their stockings.

[honeybee joy]

truth,

that's a nice idea.

[exurb]

OOOH thanks for posting that. I'm going to try it with my raw cacao as soon as I get more agave. Orange is a brilliant idea too!

Also I find with plain chocolate things sometimes a tiny pinch of cinnamon brings out the chocolate flavor.

[RawFoodieMom]

honeybee, thanks for reviving this thread! :) Thanks sweetgoddess for a great recipe, I will definitely try. I do have some chocolate molds somewhere but I can't remember what shapes they are. I hope I have some Christmas ones. :)

Debra

[meganthevegan]

Sweet Goddess, I've made your recipe and it is yummy. But I met a guy recently in the market who recommended adding raw almond butter (and use cacoa nibs). Try that for a twist, store in freezer. I've turned my colleagues at work and my brother and dh, all not raw onto this recipe. I will be making it for the holidays. You can also add fresh raspberries or whole almonds. Actually, I have some in the freezer now. Think I'll go have a piece!!!

[sweetgoddess]

mmmmm megan, can I have some pleassssse!!
Thanks for sharing your twist....i will definitely try that (sans cacoa)
yumminess! :)

[JoyfulSoul]

I'll definitely be trying this out. Have some raw cacao (my first ever order) coming from NFL.

[Raw_Medic]

I have a quick question for those of you that have made this...I made some last night and the coconut oil separated from the rest pretty quickly, so when I stuck it in the freezer, it came out white on top and brown underneath. It's still pretty yummy, but on the edges it's just coconut oil...so no taste...how did you all blend your ingredients together?

[truthseeker]

Just blended mine by hand in a bowl. It didn't seperate at all. I'm not sure why yours might have done that.... :confused:

[Cinnamon]

I thought it was time to bring this thread to the top again! This is the best recipe and you can be very creative with what shapes or molds you might want to use. Thank you Sweetgoddess for this keeper!

[tvillemom]

I've made mine 3 times, and 2 out of 3 times, it came out grainy, and then seperated (oily and grainy). I was wondering if someone else had this problem??
Wendi

[Linda1970]

Thanks SG for the recipe. I just made it. It is heavenly!

Anyone have problem getting the chocolate out of the mold? I oiled the mold w/coconut oil, but the chcolate would not come out of the mold.

[Sheryl]

If you freeze raw chocolate COMPLETELY solid (like overnight) it usually pops out of moulds quite easy. Try to get it out earlier... and you will end up just eating it mushed!

Cheers,
Sheryl

[aromaticwings]

If you freeze raw chocolate COMPLETELY solid (like overnight) it usually pops out of moulds quite easy. Try to get it out earlier... and you will end up just eating it mushed!

Cheers,
Sheryl

Will someone post some pics of their Easter goodies??

[Sheryl]

Darn - we ate them all without taking photos. We had about 5 different chocolates! I may have to make them again!

Cheers,
Sheryl

[Linda1970]

If you freeze raw chocolate COMPLETELY solid (like overnight) it usually pops out of moulds quite easy. Try to get it out earlier... and you will end up just eating it mushed!

Cheers,
Sheryl

Thanks Sheryl. I already have them in the freezer for 4 hours, and they are rock solid. But they still won't come out!

[Linda1970]

Will someone post some pics of their Easter goodies??

Sure, if I can get them out of my mold in one piece. :D

[Sheryl]

What kind of mould do you have them in? Is it totally solid, firm plastic or soft plastic? You may be able to warn the bottom slightly with your hand or cool water, however that would impact the detail on the chocolate if there's a pattern in our mould.

With mine which are a solid clear plastic mould, once they are really hard I can bend them a little and press the bottom, and they pop out. I have noticed that often mine *appear* completely solid, but are easier to get out a few hours later (telling me that maybe an hour or two (or less) wasn't enough for mine).

Good luck!
Sheryl

[sweetgoddess]

To get chocolate out of molds easily, turn chocolate side down on to a clean tea towel, then thump on top of each chocolate a few times. Gently lift a corner and push down on the chocolate until it pops out, doing each like that.

Pictures would be so wonderful!
Happy Easter everyone!
xo
Carmel

[wyjoz]

Photos Please? Thank You ! Always nice to see how others foods come out. Especially to all of us who are SO visual.

[Linda1970]

What kind of mould do you have them in? Is it totally solid, firm plastic or soft plastic? You may be able to warn the bottom slightly with your hand or cool water, however that would impact the detail on the chocolate if there's a pattern in our mould.

With mine which are a solid clear plastic mould, once they are really hard I can bend them a little and press the bottom, and they pop out. I have noticed that often mine *appear* completely solid, but are easier to get out a few hours later (telling me that maybe an hour or two (or less) wasn't enough for mine).

Good luck!
Sheryl

Oh oh, the chocolate is in a glass mold. :rolleyes:

[Linda1970]

I loved this very much. However, I just gave my SAD roommate a bite, and she said that she didn't like it because too much coconut taste & too grainy (not smooth enought like real chocolate is what she said). She asked me if I tried it myself, and I said yes. And she said, "and you like it?" :(

[Linda1970]

I must admit, though, that it is a bit grainy. I used cocoa nibs, and grinded them in Vitamix. No matter how long I grind it, it still turns out grainy. Anyone has any solution to this problem? Thanks so much in advance. I really want to make them into Easter chocolate for my 3-year old nephew's b-day party tomorrow.

[Sheryl]

I never found nibs went completely smooth... if you freeze them before grinding them it helps. Also make sure to grind them as smooth as you can before adding other ingredients.

If the coconut oil is too strong you could try using cacao butter (if you have it) or make other ingredients stronger (ie add a ground up vanilla bean, or some mint, or orange zest). Stronger ingredients like this can often mask the coconut, and let you enjoy the smoothness without the flavour. I love coconut... OR you could play up the coconut by adding shredded coconut and call it Coconut Joy!!

Cheers,
Sheryl

[RawTruth]

The best thing to use would be the "raw" cacao powder sold by NFL. Second best is what I've done which is to grind them in a coffee grinder, then push them through a fine mesh strainer so that only the smaller grains -- closer to powder -- fall through. Then I toss the larger grains ... or use to "dust" the tops of something else. I hope you understand what I mean -- sometimes it's hard to describe something that's so simple if you could just see it!

[Linda1970]

Thanks so so much, Sheryl & Rawtruth! Both of you have excellent tips that I will try to make my chocolate better next time. :)

[Elouet]

Dang, if today weren't already Easter I would make these for my adoreable little cousins! I'll start planning for next year, I suppose. :p Question: I know this recipe uses carob or cocoa powder (mine's not raw) but for those who use cocoa nibs, where do you buy them and are they as terribly expensive as on the internet? Thanks.

[Linda1970]

Dang, if today weren't already Easter I would make these for my adoreable little cousins! I'll start planning for next year, I suppose. :p Question: I know this recipe uses carob or cocoa powder (mine's not raw) but for those who use cocoa nibs, where do you buy them and are they as terribly expensive as on the internet? Thanks.

I bought mine from Rawguru.com.

[taysiagable]

I am currently waiting for my attempt at this recipe to form in the freezer. i used the raw cacao instead of the carob... it was very very very bitter and needed a lot more agave... i dont really know how much... i just kept adding and tasting... and adding and tasting. needless to say i feel rather sick at the moment from so much sweet so early in the day... but i think for next time I'll try less cacao...

I am going to bring these to my family easter shindig... i do hope they will go quickly... if not... my mom loves chocolate.

taysia.

[Sheryl]

You can buy raw cacao powder now. If you want it for chocolate I suggest that over nibs. It's hard to get nibs fine enough to avoid gritty chocolate.

Cheers,
Sheryl

[tvillemom]

Can anybody tell me why mine was grainy and separated into oil and a grainy glob? A friend told me that both times she tried to make this it separated as well.... :( I would really like to make these, even though Easter has passed...it's never too late for great chocolate!!
Wendi

[Cinnamon]

Bumping back up to the top! With the holidays coming up this recipe might come in handy and wow is it festive and delicious!

[RawFoodieMom]

I thought I'd bump this up with Easter right around the corner...

Does anyone know where to get chocolate molds online? I haven't been able to find any anywhere (strange, no?) I haven't been able to find any molds at all, even in non-Easter shapes... Not even in kitchen stores... :confused:

Deb

[wyjoz]

RawFoodieMom: try this and then click on links: http://aolsearch.aol.com/aol/search?encquery=a6fe985ab06673c7b05f3b9a1e3e6b3d&invocationType=keyword_rollover&ie=UTF-8

[puffysmom]

I was having a problem with my candy being grainy and never thought of sifting the chocolat. Next time I will not get nibs. It is to much work trying to get it ground find. I use a coffee grinder and eventually it gets to hot and the powder starts to cake up which is no good either. thanks RawFoodieMom...u solved my problem so now i can use the rest of the nibs.

[Cinnamon]

Yes, thank you for bumping this up again! It is a great recipe and everyone has added great ideas. Enjoy!

[jocelynAZ]

RFM -- Yes, yes....thanks a bunch for bumping this post up!! I am definitely going to try this recipe!! :)

Btw...I didn't realize the date of the original post and as I was browsing and noticed that people were already making it for Easter, I started to get confused! (Did I mix up the date for Easter? Is tomorrow really Easter? LOL!!!) Was I relieved to find that the posts were from last year and I wasn't late for Easter after all. LOL!!

[RawFoodieMom]

LOL @ Jocelyn...

I can relate... I've done that many times reading old posts! :)

Deb

[Mishka]

RawFoodieMom~

I was just thinking I should go check Target for more chocolate molds. For Valentines day, I bought some molds in the $1.00 section that were hearts and it was a rubbery mold, and was labeled to be used for ice cubes. But I use them all the time for my chocolates and they come out great. They have a bunch of seasonal stuff , so I think that would be a great place to start.
I remember when someone was asking about how to make chocolate bars not to long ago, someone gave them a link to a rawfood blog. I checked it out, and one of the ingredients he used was "lucuma" instead of agave. I've never used that sweetner have any of you? Also, I checked where he referred he got his lucuma and molds from, but it was from a raw food place in the UK. I'm sure any of the gourmet kitchen stores would have some of those more "fancy" molds...so we wouldn't have to pay shipping.
warmly,
Mishka

[RawFoodieMom]

Mishka, I'm actually just about to go check out the new Target in Watertown, NY. Until now there hasn't been one close enough to me. I'm glad I read this, I'll look for molds there!

I've never heard of that sweetener before, I wonder how it compares to Agave?

I've tried the kitchen stores with no luck, but we also have a couple of restaurant supply stores here that have a lot more gourmet type kitchen stuff so I'll try there too...

Deb

[trinity082482]

How long can the chocolate stay out without melting :confused:

[Conscious Midwife]

This might be dumb.....

where do you get carob/cacao powder? What area would it be in in, say, a Trader Joe's? Would it be there?


Alissa's Store ( click the left of your screen) has awesome Carob, pure RAW and ORGANIC all in one
Yummy:p

[Wendee]

Thanks for this recipie.

I used this recipie to drizzle on top my bananna ice cream. It formed a hard shell in about one minute or less. It was delicious. Then i decided to mix the shell into the ice cream, and i had chocolat chip ice cream, YUM!

[rachel]

Alissa's Store ( click the left of your screen) has awesome Carob, pure RAW and ORGANIC all in one
Yummy:p

That really sounds Yummy......Hope some more

new recipes arrive.....I feel great if someone update

me the latest recipes....Thanks


-------------------
Gourmet Chocolate (http://www.gourmet-chocolates.org/)

[Bingo24]

Hi - I tried these and found them incredibly bitter. . .the Raw Coconut Oil tasted gross:eek: to me. . . any suggestions for chocolate w/o the coconut oil.

Also, I found mold's at Michael's craft store - and I think Hobby Lobby carries them.

Thanks for any suggestions on the chocolate.:p

[EternalAdiemus]

How do you get the chocolate out of the mold? I have the regular hard plastic molds, not the rubbery ones. I have wanted to try it, but was afraid I would not be able to get it out.

[Damzlfly]

Any thoughts on melting the nibs instead of grinding them to get a smoother consistency? Do it the same was as warming up the coconut oil? I think I'm going to try these tonight...not like I need anymore desserts mind you...

[Gwena]

Hey Ya'll,
I make chocolate as I have a raw chocolate business. The best way to make it is the traditional way any chocolatier would.

You take cacao butter, melt it down not going above 108 degrees. You take cacao powder and add it to the butter. Next, you add your sweetener and any other ingredients you like. Mix well. Now you have to temper your chocolate or it will melt in your hands after it hardens. Tempering stablizes the chocolate. A bad temper equals bad chocolate.

To temper chocolate you have to SLOWLY bring the temperature of your mixture up to 108 degrees and slowly bring it down to 75 degrees. Easier said than done.

If you don't have a way of tempering the chocolate and want to try to make chocolate using the ingredients above, just mix all the stuff up, pour the chocolate into molds and throw into the freezer for about 15 minutes. Remove from freezer and quickly pop out of the molds. Just turn the mold over and tap it down. The chocolate should come out easy enough. Now, it won't hold well especially if your climate is warm, or if you hold it in your hands for more than 5 seconds, but they should hold long enough to eat!:p

When it comes to adding coconut butter to the chocolate, I use it to add a certain flavor to one of our chocolates, but it's not really necessary. Some like to use it because it hardens well, but if you want chocolates that will hold up even better I'd recommend using cacao butter and not coconut oil. The oil is a little too volatile near any type of heat, espcially when placed in the hand.

Regarding the question about melting down nibs. . . unfortuantely, it can't be done. There is a process called conching that takes the nibs and grinds them down to a smooth paste. A conching machine costs thousands of dollars and takes gobs of electricity to run. The casual chocolate lover probably won't want to buy one as only chocolate companies really use them. You can try doing the same thing in your food processor if you don't mind possibly burning it out, however, conching is the first step on the long journey of making a piece of chocolate. I'd recommend getting raw cacao powder, raw cacao butter and mixing the two instead. Much, much easier.

Enjoy!

[Bingo24]

Wow - THANKS GWENA!! I am definitely going to have to try that out - and all your chocolates on that website are making me drool . . . gonna have to put that on my wish list for Mother's Day. . . thank you, thank you for sharing! Blessings!:p

[Gwena]

You are very welcome! Glad I could help!:D

[Carmella]

OMG Gwena!

Thank you so much for sharing your chocolate wisdom with us all!

[tvillemom]

Maybe one way to temper your chocolate would be to leave it out room temp. for awhile before putting it in the refrigerator/freezer?? I think I'll try that next time.
Wendi

[Gwena]

You're welcome Carmela.

Regarding leaving it out to sit. That won't work. The chocolate mixture needs to be in motion during the tempering process. Try mixing it with a wire wisk for a while and then putting it into the freezer. Also, you may want to invest in a candy thermometer. You'll better be able to track the temp with one.

Happy chocolate making!:D

[tvillemom]

Thanks Gwena...I guess I could spend some time actually mixing the chocolate with a wisk. I thought that would make it "bad". I'll give it a try. I was on here actaully looking for the recipe...and forgot about the "end" of the thread. Thanks for the help. I'm off to make some chocolate. I like it in muffin liners...put in pecans, then pour some chocolate over the top...then top with more pecans...YUMMY!!
Wendi

[spiralgirl]

sweetgoddess,

Oh my this is so divine I can't stand it. Better than SAD chocolate even. The first time I made it was a few weeks ago and this stuff is so good. My mom and sister just love it. I'm about to make a batch today too. :)

Thanks so much for sharing it.

[Cinnamon]

I'm so glad to see this thread come up to the top again, this is THE best chocolate and there are so many variations to make it different depending on what you are hungry for.

I hope you are doing well Sweetgoddess, I think of you so often!!

[kyrie]

You can use a dehydrator to temper your chocolate, i.e. Excalibur etc. Maybe you can ask Sheryl of rawpleasure.com for specific instructions, as I know that is what she does with the chocolate she makes personally for herself and friends.

Good luck.

Carla