Yes that's right, vegan, healthy, raw, antioxidant rich CHOCOLATE (that still tastes decadent). 
Is it normal (read: healthy) to be in love with a food so much? Let's not answer that ;) I seriously can't believe I haven't been making this forever! No more will I forgo making a recipe because I am out of baking chocolate/chocolate chips. Or become moody because all I want is a piece of chocolate and there is none to be found. Because this is just so easy and healthful that as long as you have 3 basic pantry ingredients, you can make it! The Ingredients Cacao:
- high in antioxidants which protects the cells from toxins and promotes health in so many ways such as improving circulation and reducing cardiovascular risk and repairing and resisting damage done by free radicals, reducing cancers
- increases serotonin and other neurotransmitters- promotes a positive outlook and just makes us feel good!
- rich in minerals like magnesium (deficiencies linked to heart disease, diabetes and joint problems), sulfur (a beauty mineral- helps detoxify your system and promotes healthy skin!), calcium, iron, copper, manganese and potassium
Coconut oil:
- yes it is composed of mostly saturated fats BUT much of the fatty acids come from lauric acid might is a medium chain fatty acid that is claimed to help combat both viruses and bacteria
- lauric acid also helps prevent heart problems like high cholesterol and blood pressure through it's promotion of "good" cholesterol (HDL) and reduction of "bad" cholesterol (LDL). Also reduces injury to arteries!
- promotes weight loss by increasing metabolism- the fatty acids are super easily absorbed so can be burned instead of being stored. It also supports our organs, such as the pancreas allowing us to burn more energy.
- improves digestions and helps with digestive related problems such as IBS. Also improves absorption of vitamins and minerals! (I can personally attest to this benefit)
I could go on and on about these two stellar ingredients, but basically they act as major health, beauty and mental boosters. They make you look good and feel good from the inside out!
but I remember eating healthy, vegan, raw chocolate :)
I've made this a few times now, using slightly different recipes every time and while I have a favourite, they are all awesome and I suspect they are widely open to interpretation. I stuck to the basic chocolate flavour for now but I seriously can't wait to start incorporating other flavours and textures by adding flavour extracts like peppermint or orange and other add-ins like almonds and goji berries. I serisously have so many ideas of what to do with this I am bursting! I'm going to share with you 2 recipes that I used over the course of my chocolate-making adventure and highlight how they differ and my impressions on the applications they would be best for and finish off with a recipe that includes one of the chocolates. But I mean, just take the basic recipe and go with it! It's so easy, it's almost impossible to mess up! Although it has to be said that I actually did mess up once because of a stupid mistake. BUT don't worry. None of you will make it because you can learn from my example. Do as I say, not as I do (except DO make this because it is amazing).
Procedure: The procedure for both recipes is the same. First, melt the coconut oil over a low heat. REMOVE from the heat as soon as it's melted. Do not leave it on the heat and proceed with the next few steps. If you do, you will be left with chocolate with a funky texture. I think in the chocolate world this has something to do with improper tempering of the chocolate. Basically heating it too much making it get kind of pasty and chunky. It still tasted good but definitely not visually appealing and doesn't have as nice of a mouth-feel. After taking it off the heat sift in the cacao powder and whisk until completely combined. Then add in the sweetener of choice. And that's it! You are ready to do whatever you please! Drizzle it over fruit, pour it into molds or just spread it on a baking sheet and make bars. To get the chocolate to set, put it in the fridge for 10-15 min. One thing to be careful of, is this chocolate gets melty pretty fast, so you should store it in the fridge and be prepared to have a little chocolate left on your fingers after eating it. A little mess never hurt anyone :) Note: I used agave and stevia as my sweeteners in these recipes, but feel free to play around: maple syrup (not raw though) and coconut nectar could be used and honey for the non-vegans! Experiment and see what tastes you like the best!
Raw Chocolate Recipe #1 (Gluten-free, Raw, Refined Sugar-Free)
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
- 2/3 cup cacao powder
- 2 tbsp agave/coconut nectar/maple syrup
- 5 drops stevia
This one was sweeter than the others, probably really good for people who tend to be into milk chocolate. I found I could detect the stevia in it, which I didn't mind but I think it definitely lended to the intense sweetness. Really nice in small doses for those sweet cravings. If you love sweet chocolate, this one is for you. *And for all the Canadian's out there, these chocolate loonies taste wayyyy better than the cheap ones you buy in the store.
Raw Chocolate Recipe #2 (Vegan, Gluten-Free, Raw, Refined Sugar-Free)
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
- 2/3 cup cacao powder
- 4 tbsp agave nectar/coconut nectar/maple syrup
This one is still sweet, but more of a chocolately taste. This would be great to make bars with maybe chopped up nuts and dried fruit. Or some peppermint extract and cacao nibs. The possibilities are endless.
Raw Chocolate Recipe #3 (Vegan, Gluten-Free, Raw, Refined-Sugar Free)
- 1/4 cup coconut oil
- 2/3 cup cacao powder
- 2 tbsp agave nectar
- 5 drops chocolate stevia (I used Sweet Leaf brand)
This one was my favourite. The texture was the same as recipe #1, a little runnier than above. I found that the flavour that came from the agave and the chocolate stevia made for an incredibly rich chocolate, that was, for lack of a better word, more chocolatey than the other two. I have always been partial to darker chocolate so perhaps this is why I enjoyed it so much. I was also ridiculously happy with the way I used this chocolate. Raw Almond Butter Cups. Step aside Reese's there's a new cup in town.
Raw Almond Butter Cups (Vegan, Gluten-Free, Raw, Refined-Sugar Free)
- 1 recipe of Raw Chocolate (I used #3, but any will work!)
- 1/4 cup raw almond butter
- 1/4 + 1/8 tsp nutritional yeast (trust me here. It helps give the filling a "Reese's taste")
- 8 drops vanilla creme stevia (or some agave to taste)
- pinch of salt
First, you need some muffin liners. I made 4 normal sized ones and 6 min sized. Fill the bottoms of each liner with chocolate making sure the bottom and sides are covered. Should look like this: 
Put them in the freezer to harden for 10 min and while you wait, mix up the filling. When the chocolate has set, take out of the freezer and put some of the almond butter in the center of the cups. I used about 1 1/2 tsp of the filling for the larger ones and 3/4 tsp for the small. Like so: 
Next spoon in more chocolate on top of the almond butter and spread it out to the sides of the cups, completely covering the almond butter. Make sure there are no gaps or there will be almond butter peaking through the finished products! Return to the freezer for another 10 min or so until the chocolate has set. Then take them out and try not to eat every single one. It's tough, believe me! 
I had a little chocolate left over so I decided to dip some strawberries in.
And just in time for St. Patrick's Day:
A little pot of gold with chocolate money :)
Wishing you all a wonderful, chocolate-filled day!
I am submitting this recipe to Wellness Weekends, Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Allergy Friendly Fridays and Allergy Free Wednesdays!
hello there!! I have a number of questions, hope you could help.
i’m from the Philippines and ther’s an abundant supply of coconut products here. I use vco ( virgin coconut oil) to make raw cookies. can I use the same with your raw chocos? thing is, it is not in a solid state so no need to liquefy it. do I have to just heat it a bit? also, I bought cacao butter, what should be the proportions for it?
so excited to try your recipe!!! :D
Pingback: Allergy-Friendly Chocolate Search: Part Deux | Dairy-Free Switzerland
Made recipe #2 this afternoon with ground hazelnuts and raisins. So easy to make, and quite delicious. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Oooh sounds delicious! So glad you enjoyed it!
I just found you whilst looking to make vegan chocolate spread! So pleased I have :)
I was wondering if this would work with cacao that has been roasted? I have a big block of 100% cacao but says its been roasted. Thanks
I definitely think it could!
Wow, this looks awesome to make. Can any of these chocolate recipes be made with just the stevia for sweetness?
Absolutely!
Hi! I found your blog a month ago and have done this chocolate recipe twice a week since. Delicious! Thanks for sharing. Do you have any tips of what can I do to make it harder? I like the way it is. But it would be nice to have a bit more confidence that it won’t melt if I want to take a bar to work, or want to leave it out of the fridge a little longer. Thanks much!
That’s awesome, so glad you like it!
Unfortunately, that’s one of the negatives of working with coconut oil- depending on your climate and temperature of the room, it can get quite melty. You could try subbing in some coconut butter, but apart from that you might have to venture into cocoa butter! That’s what really gives store bought chocolate it’s hardness outside of the fridge.
can i use canola oil instead of coconut oil? will it affect the taste or texture?
Canola oil wouldn’t work the same since coconut oil hardens at room temperature whereas canola oil doesn’t. You would just be left with chocolate sauce!
Hey, for the Almond butter cups, could I use some peanut butter instead, and replace the yeast with coconut flour? I heard you can eat coconut flour raw.
Ya I don't see why not! In fact, there's so little yeast in there you could probably just take it out. It's mostly for that savoury flavouring, not texture!
can you use ghee as a substitue for the coconut oil? i’ve seen the two interchangeable in other recipes. thanks!
You know, I’m not 100% sure Katie. I haven’t cooked with ghee too much and I’m not sure about the flavour and how this would work, considering such a high volume would be needed. Let me know if you try it, sorry I couldn’t be more help!
Pingback: Raw Vegan Chocolate | Raw Vegan Power
You should also try hot and spicy using the very refined flavor of the sichuan pepper, or the hot chillies , just a hint…..
Let me know if you like it,
Ioana
I finally bought some coconut oil and raw cacao (actually, they only had cacao nibs, so I hope i can grind them into powder) and I’ve been searching for raw chocolate recipes. Interesting that most recipes call for equal amount of coconut oil and cacao powder (1/4 cup & 1/4 cup or 1/2 and 1/2 cup), and a few call for just a tiny bit more of cacao powder (like 1/4 cup of oil and 1/4 cup + 1 t of cacao) but yours calls for more than 2x as much of cacao powder than coconut oil. In theory I am kind of drawn to your idea, I rather want my chocolate to taste like chocolate than coconut oil. I am wondering though how you came to the conclusion of adding this much cacao and how does this differ from recipes adding equal or close to equal amounts of cacao? (if you’ve tried recipes like such) And though I do have agave, I am wondering if raw honey would work with these recipes?
Hi Kat! You know I’m not really sure why others call for such a higher proportion of coconut oil than mine, I haven’t tried any of them! But I do know my recipe takes super chocolatey- less filler ;) feel free to experiment though, I wish I could be more help! And yes raw honey would work very well! I’ve actually tried that and it tastes delicious! The honey flavour definitely comes through though whereas the agave is more neutral. If that doesn’t bother you, go for it!
Thanks, I will be experimenting today and let you know! Actually, I think honey would be fab with chocolate. I was at folklore market here the other day and they had all sorts of honey like cinnamon honey and likerice (sp?) honey and hazelnut-chocolate-honey! Now for the hazelnut-chocolate-honey, talk about amazingness, couldn't believe it, it is like nutella and honey but all natural (doubt it was raw, but who knows, the man didn't really understand my question about raw)…I kind of want to try to recreate it… So anyways, I think a honey-flavored chocolate bar would rule.
how that hazelnut-chocolate honey sounds unreal!!
Let me know how your experiments go!
Pingback: Raw Vegan Chocolate - Raw Vegan Power
Pingback: Homemade Chocolate by The Veggie Nook | Vegan + Gluten-Free + Raw | @vegamuffin
Pingback: Olivbladet
I can’t believe a recipe can be so simple, delicious, and packed full of nutrients. Great work. Can’t wait to try the reese’s imitations!
Thanks April! I hope you like them :)
Since you say this melts pretty fast, do you think this would be less melty if I used sugar instead of liquid sweetener?
It might but the meltiness is mostly from the coconut oil since if it’s above a certain temperature the oil starts to liquify- pitfalls of using coconut oil as opposed to cacao butter. But I still like it as it’s so healthful and melts in your mouth!
Thank you sooo much for yournyummy recipes and especially for nutritional information!you are absolitely magnificent and your recipes are too!!!raw chocolate that i made with your recipe went in no time!!! it just mepletd in the mouth and boosted my endorphins so much i felt in love with the world! and amazingly endorphins with no nasties and no side-effects!!! awesome:))) now im making your raw almond buttercups!exciting!:)
Wow thank you so much Aurika! I really hope you love the almond butter cups, they are so much better than Reese’s I promise! Thanks for commenting and I hope to see you around here more often :)
Pingback: sugar-free carob almond butter cups | the veggie nook
Gabby, what’s your say on agave syrup? I went out and bought some today, but when I got home and did some research, I was surprised to see that it has a really high fructose content and is though to be unhealthier than most other sweeteners.
Hey there!
So my view on agave had changed a bit in recent months, something I have been meaning to write a post on. Since I’m in the midst of a sugar-free challenge, now might be the perfect time!
I don’t personally use agave as one of my main sweeteners anymore. It’s pretty highly refined and processed, is not a traditional food, isn’t local, is depleting indigenous Mexican plants and is pretty high in fructose (92%). It also uses a patented process to be made which kind of weirds me out- patents on food?? Now I’m not saying throw it away! Use small amounts and not as your main sweetener. Just last week I put a little in my coffee since that was the best option the coffee shop I was at had. Just don’t rely on it. If you want to make the chocolate I recommend either a mix of coconut nectar and stevia or all of one of those, or maple syrup, or local raw honey if you eat honey. I hope this helps!
For the second recipe, are you supposed to chop the chocolate when it’s still soft or when it’s completely solid?
After it’s solid :)
Thank you! They all look so delicious. I'll try making a batch for the next family get-together. They're very skepticle of Vegan food. Let's see if they can tell the difference! ; )
Awesome, I hope they like them! We’ll change the way they view vegan food one step at a time :)
Oh my, Gabby this is incredible! Let me tell you – this is my first visit to your blog, and also coming on my first week into raw-veganism – you might be a lifesaver right now. Ok, I might be exaggerating a tiny bit, but I have been in such fear that chocolate wasn’t RAW. But you tell me otherwise, and give us 3 recipes plus another bonus to make the Raw- vegan nut butter cups. I’ma make some immediately, and Gabby I have to say congrats on all your awards for being a great blogger! my favorite might be that you got awarded for great storytelling :D I enjoyed reading this, and will return.
I just saw you state cocao and cocoa are different, where would one get the cocao powder you speak of?
SO glad you are liking this chocolate recipe! Being, raw DOES NOT mean no chocolate, if it did, there is no way I’d be into it ;) I need me some chocolate! Thanks so much for all your kind words, I really appreciate it and I’m so glad I’ve been able to help!
In regard to cacao powder, you will be able to find it at any health food store, or you can easily get it online. I’m not sure where you’re based, but if you are in Canada, I suggest Upaya naturals, or if you are in the U.S. amazin sells it! Just let me know where you are based and I can send you some links. But ya, health food stores always have it if you have access to one!
Just made recipe #3, and cannot get it to liquefy. Followed the recipe measurements to a “t” but ended up with a crumbly mixture instead of something pourable. Tried adding more coconut oil, but no luck — crumbles just got more moist. Any suggestions?
Oh no! Did you maybe leave it over the heat when you added in the cacao and sweetener? Because that does cause it to clump if it’s overheated. Are you using cacao or cocoa? They might be different. Is the coconut oil fully melted?
I LOVE this post so much!
All the chocolates looks so good. YUM!
x
Thank you Catherine! Raw Chocolate really is something else ;)
Thank you for these amazing recipes! I’ve tried making recipe #2 on two occasions and both times, adding the sirup turned the mixture harder. I was then unable to just “pour” the mixture in my molds but had to press them down. Any reason why? This said, it still tasted very good each time!
Hmm well that is the thickest of the recipes, maybe it’s just being heated a little too long? And I would make sure not to let it cool down too much either before pouring. You could always try adding a little extra coconut oil too to help thin it out! I hope this helps!
Pingback: raw chocolate-coated key lime pie and giveaway winner | the veggie nook
I made this awesome chocolates using dishfor making ice cubes and so I got plenty of little chocolates :)))) it’s delicious! Taste exactly the same as the ones from raw restaurant on my street! :D whats a success ! Btw r u from Ireland? Thank u :)
Awesome, what a great idea! I’m really glad you liked it :) I am always making up batches of this, so versatile!
I’m not from Ireland, I just lived there for a year. But I miss is terribly and feel homesick if that’s even a thing after living there for such a short time. I fell in love with the country and the people! Is that where you’re from??
We can’t have coconut due to allergies, wonder what I could use instead?
The only thing I can think of would be cacao butter since it needs to be an oil that’s solid at room temperature. You could always try a vegan butter substitute but I can’t vouch for the results with that! Let me know if you figure something out!
I love this page, your recipes are great. Can’t wait to try making one of these. Beats paying high prices for similar products from health food stores.
Agreed :) and more satisfying!
yamm. i wonder if i could omit stevia from #1? maybe adding more agave or adding maple?
Ya you for sure could! Just add sweetness according to your preference. This chocolate is very forgiving.
Pingback: Raw Chocolate « s17healthshare
Can you use carob powder instead of cacao powder?
I can’t imagine why not! Just keep an eye on the sweetness since carob is sweeter than cacao and adjust it to your taste!
Oh, drooooollll… Awesome, indeed!
:)
definitely just bookmarked this post girl!!! can’t wait to try all these out =)
Let me know how you like it! Be careful, it’s addictive ;)
Pingback: The Prodigal Daughter Returns (Or How Candy Bars Came Back Into My Life) « anunrefinedvegan
Your chocolate looks to die for and those almond butter cups are awesome!
Try them out! You will not be disappointed :)
You had me at chocolate! Everything looks absolutely amazing and I want to make (and especially eat) all of these treats!
Thank you! You can bet all of it was gone faster than I’d like to admit ;)
Yum! I’ve been trying all kinds of homemade chocolate recipes lately to avoid the refined sugar in store-bought chips and bars. yours looks like it worked out perfectly so I’ll be trying one of your recipes next! have you tried baking the chunks into cookies or anything? just wondering if they’ll keep their form or melt in the oven.
Also I would have never thought to put nutritional yeast in pb/almond butter cups but I could see how it would make them more reese’s-like! Thanks for sharing this!!
I haven’t tried them in cookies yet but it’s on my list of things to do soon, so I’ll let you know how it turns out!
And the nutritional yeast really adds that Reese’s quality, it’s amazing. I wonder what other sweet things I can add it to….lol
One word. Awesome. That is all.
Shirley
Thank you Shirley! Thanks for stopping by :)
Get out!! I’m speechless… but very impressed!
It’s so easy, but looks impressive, which really is the best kind of recipe :)
Agreed. I absolutely must try it. It’s so cool.
Gorgeous! They all look awesome Gabby…too funny as you said! Great minds…or even better great minds AND chocolate lovers!! :)
That looks so amazing drizzled over the fresh strawberries!!!
Chocolate covered strawberries are one of my favs! I just had to when I had a little chocolate left over!
wow! love the sound of these! I’ve used cacao butter in raw chocs before and coconut oil in some other creations – this sounds like a perfect match though. Loving the sound of the nut butter filled ones too! Can’t wait to try them :) xx
Ya it seemed like a good way to use 2 ingredients I tend to keep in the pantry. I’ve never bought cacao butter before, but I like that coconut oil can be used for so many other things. And now I know it makes delicious chocoalte!