Tag Archives: chocolate

Avocado Brownies

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Avocado brownies? Why? Because they are moist, soft, rich and delicious! Almost paleo (minus the sugar) and very rich, I would not give these to kids but they are a nice grown-up treat! Cut into squares and eat warm or store in the freezer for a cool dark chocolate treat!

avocado brownie blog

Ingredients

  • 2 large, ripe avocados, mashed until creamy (about 1 cup)
  • 8 ounces semisweet or dark chocolate, melted
  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup rice flour
  • 1/4 cup cocoa powder, sifted
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 350° F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or grease baking dish.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together mashed avocados, melted chocolate and coconut oil until smooth and creamy. Whisk in sugar. Mix in eggs, one at a time, until well combined. Add vanilla.
  • In a small bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Stir dry mixture into avocado mixture until just combined — be careful not to overmix! Spread batter into the prepared pan.
  • Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool and then cut into squares.

Modified slightly from the original and thanks PCC Natural Markets

dit-elle-Esther

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

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I posted this for Valentine’s Day two years ago, but it is a timeless recipe. You simply can’t go wrong with chocolate covered strawberries! Need a quick, elegant and delicious dessert? Try this! Happy Valentine’s Day! 🙂

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Ingredients

  • 1 cup dark chocolate chips
  • ⅓ cup coconut oil
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1-2 lbs strawberries

Directions

  1. Combine chocolate chips and coconut oil in microwave safe dish
  2. Heat for 1 minute and stir
  3. Heat for additional time (in short amounts, stirring in between till chocolate is smooth and runny)
  4. Stir in vanilla extract
  5. Place in refrigerator for 15-30 minutes to thicken a little
  6. Remove from refrigerator, stir – ready for dipping!
  7. Dip clean dry fruit in chocolate and place on parchment paper lined baking sheet
  8. Put in fridge to set/harden
Blog chocorange

Orange wedges dipped in chocolate are pretty awesome too!

Thanks ElanasPantry for the frosting recipe that lends itself so well for dipping! 🙂

dit-elle-Esther

Marzipan Chocolate Miniature Sandwiches

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I grew up making marzipan, but just last year discovered the secret ingredient to marzipan perfection.. rose water! See the recipe here. This year I made tiny Marzipan “sandwiches” for a holiday party. You roll a bit of marzipan into a ball and press two discs of chocolate to make the sandwich. I found dark chocolate ‘discs’ at the local gourmet foods grocery store, but chocolate coins could work well too! Because the marzipan is quite sweet, the less sweet dark chocolate is a nice complement!

I made these for Christmas, but marzipan is popular year round in Scandinavia and Germany (especially again around Easter).

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Ingredients

  • One batch of Marzipan (you can also find this pre-made at some grocery stores.. look for almond paste if not marzipan)
  • Chocolate ‘discs’ (dark chocolate, should be around 1″ in diameter)

Directions

  • Roll a bit of marzipan into a ball (the size of a large marble) and press two discs of chocolate to make the sandwich.
  • Store in an air tight container and refrigerated for a week or more, or frozen for a month or so!

Super Mom Tip: Marzipan has the consistency of play dough and is a lot of fun for (older) kids to roll into various shapes and cut out with small cookie cutters, or decorate with chocolate chips!

Enjoy!

dit-elle-Esther

Pistachio Cherry Bark

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Chocolate bark is a lovely and festive holiday treat! This was my first batch and it was easy to make and as delicious as it looks. I used crushed pistachios and pecans, dried cherries, toasted coconut and sea salt to top melted dark chocolate – make this for an easy dessert, hostess gift or party favor! 🙂

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Ingredients

  • 5 oz dark chocolate (e.g. 65-70% cacao), roughly chopped
  • 2 tsp coconut oil
  • 1 tsp maple syrup
  • Parchment paper
  • 3 Tbsp crushed pistachios
  • 3 Tbsp crushed pecans
  • 3 Tbsp toasted coconut flakes
  • 3 Tbsp dried cherries, chopped
  • 1/2 tsp coarse sea salt

Directions

  • In a double boiler or heatproof bowl over simmering water, melt chocolate, coconut oil and syrup, stirring until just melted and smooth.
  • Pour onto baking sheet lined with parchment paper and spread with spatula until 1/4 inch thick.
  • Top with nuts, coconut flakes, cherries and salt
  • Freeze until set, about 3 hours
  • Remove and break into pieces
  • Serve chilled
  • Store in airtight container in cool place

dit-elle-Esther

Dark Chocolate Covered Figs with Sea Salt

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I recently posted about my fig tree. I finally had a chance to dip some of the figs in chocolate. Something about the combination of juicy ripe figs, dark sweet chocolate and sea salt.. amazing! These were SO yummy!

chocolate covered fig

This fig had just been dipped. As soon as you set these in the fridge to cool the chocolate will harden and set with a matte finish. 🙂

Ingredients

  • 12 figs, rinsed and dry
  • 1 cup chocolate chips (I used 1/2 and 1/2 dark and sem-sweet chunks)
  • Sea salt for garnish

Directions

  • Put chocolate in a bowl and microwave for ~1 minute or until melted
  • Stir chocolate with a spoon to even out consistency
  • Dip figs in chocolate
  • Place on parchment paper covered cookie sheet and sprinkle some sea salt on
  • Set in fridge to cool
  • Enjoy! 🙂

dit-elle-Esther

Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Rich almond meal, butter, maple syrup, chocolate chips.. a delicious combination of ingredients that make a wonderful gluten free, grain free, paleo(ish) cookie! 🙂

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Ingredients

  • 2 cups blanched almond flour
  • ½ teaspoon celtic sea salt (I omitted this and the cookies were great!)
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ cup butter, room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • ½ cup maple syrup
  • ½ cup chocolate chips

Instructions

  • In a food processor , combine almond flour, salt, and baking soda
  • Pulse in butter, vanilla, and maple syrup until dough forms
  • Remove blade from processor and stir in chocolate chunks by hand
  • Scoop dough one level tablespoon at a time onto a parchment lined baking sheet
  • Press balls of dough down gently
  • Bake at 350° for 7-10 minutes
  • Cool for 15 minutes (do not handle prior or cookies will break)
  • Serve

Thanks ElanasPantry!

dit-elle-Esther

Cherry Garcia Smoothie

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I was inspired by Lauren’s recent Healthy Cherry Garcia recipe and decided to make a super easy smoothie version. You really can’t go wrong with frozen cherries, chocolate and coconut milk or other milk base.

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Ingredients

  • 1 cup coconut milk
  • 1/2 cup frozen cherries
  • 1/2 oz or large chunk of chocolate
  • 1 Tbsp chocolate icecream or 1 tsp other sweetener like agave

Directions

  • Blend all ingredients together until smooth
  • Top with some chopped chocolate or chocolate covered almonds

dit-elle-Esther

Marzipan

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Marzipan is a totally delicious treat with Scandinavian roots. In it’s most simple form – it’s ground almonds and honey. You work the two ingredients together into a sticky dough and then make balls or a loaf that you cut into slices. I remember as a kid making marzipan..  I don’t think you could get almond meal/flour in the stores where we lived in Norway so this was quite the cooking project.. First you had to blanche, dry and grind almonds (or just grind them with skins intact) with a hand held grinder until you had a fine almond meal. Then you would work in the honey. The best part was making shapes with mini cookie cutters. We would often make marzipan for Easter. We would roll the dough into small egg shapes and dip them in chocolate. After they were dry we wrapped them in tinfoil and hid them outside for our Easter egg hunt!

You can definitely make the honey/almond version, but the recipe below is a total winner. You use almond meal (yes, from a bag! :)), powdered sugar, egg whites, almond essence and the secret ingredient – rose water! Totally delicious and tastes like marzipan from a gourmet candy shop in Europe. I’ve made about 5 batches in the last few months but they kept disappearing (house elves?). I finally got a chance to dip them in chocolate and take some pictures! 🙂

Have fun, unleash the creativity and enjoy!

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Ingredients

  • 1½ cups almond flour/meal
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoons pure almond extract
  • 3/4 teaspoon quality food grade rose water (it is strong!)
  • 1 egg white (this is a few tablespoons and I used pasteurized egg whites from a carton)

Instructions

  1. Place the almond flour and powdered sugar in a food processor and pulse until combined and any lumps are broken up. Add the almond extract, rose water and egg white and process until a thick dough is formed. If the mass is still too wet and sticky, add more powdered sugar and ground almonds. Keep in mind that it will become firmer after it’s been refrigerated.
  2. Turn the almond marzipan out onto a work surface and knead it a few times. Form it into a log, wrap it up in plastic wrap and refrigerate.
  3. This will keep for at least a month in the refrigerator or up to 6 months in the freezer. Bring to room temperature before using in any recipe.
  4. Makes about 12 ounces of marzipan or almond paste

I modified this from the original – thanks for the inspiration Daringgourmet.com

dit-elle-Esther

Chocolate Chia Pudding

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This is a basic and yummy chocolate chia pudding! I eat it for breakfast, or as a power snack. What’s the big deal about chia? Is it just a fad? Well, 2013 definitely seemed to be “year of the chia” but it’s stuck around. Chia seeds are supposed to be rich in omega-3 fatty acids, and packed with vitamins and minerals. They can be eaten raw or soaked (they absorb ~12 times weight in liquid when soaked) and are an easy add to smoothies, energy bars, yogurt, and more.

I made another pudding with chia seeds recently, the Raw “Tapioca” Pudding. That recipe called for cashews and was very yummy, but this one is nut free. You can adjust the amount of sweetness to taste. Lauren also made a Chia Pudding with Blackberries and Honey and that is another great staple recipe.

Enjoy!

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Ingredients

  • 1 (13.5 ounce) can coconut milk, blended
  • 1/2 cup water
  • ¼ cup chia seeds
  • 2 tablespoon cacao powder
  • 1 Tbsp agave, maple syrup or honey
  • sprinkle of celtic sea salt

Instructions

  1. Combine blended coconut milk, water, and chia seeds in a jar and shake well
  2. Add cacao powder, stevia, and salt and shake well
  3. Refrigerate overnight to let chia seeds soften and absorb liquid
  4. Serve and enjoy! 🙂

Inspired and slightly modified from the original. Thanks Elana’s Pantry!

dit-elle-Esther

Apricot Coconut Chocolate Bonbons

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These bonbons or ‘candy’ balls are very simple to make. Apricot, coconut, orange zest yumminess – AND – you can dip them in chocolate for even more flavorful goodness. Every evening I ask the kids to choose an activity that we do together after dinner. Playtime, go for a walk, do arts and crafts, or do a cooking project.. Last night they chose cooking project! I let them measure, sample, and then we mix everything up, and they helped make these balls. Blog apricot coconut bonbons-1 Blog apricot coconut bonbons-2 Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups unsulfured dried apricots
  • 1 cup shredded coconut (unsweetened)
  • 1 tablespoon orange zest
  • 1 tablespoon virgin coconut oil, melted if solid

Raw chocolate

  • 2 tablespoons virgin coconut oil, melted if solid
  • 2 tablespoons raw cacao powder (or regular cocoa)
  • 1 tablespoons pure maple or coconut syrup
  • pinch fine sea salt

Directions

  • Place apricots, coconut, zest and coconut oil into a food processor and pulse until a rough paste forms.
  • Shape mixture into balls and place ‘bites’ onto a plate and pop in the freezer for 10-15 minutes to firm up
  • Combine raw chocolate ingredients in a small bowl until smooth. Remove bites from the freezer and one at a time, quickly dip half into the raw chocolate mixture. It will set instantly. Eat straight away or store in the fridge or freezer in a airtight container.

Source: Thanks MyDarlingLemonThyme for the inspiration! dit-elle-Esther