"White Chocolates" Made with Cocoa Butter, Nut Butters & Honey

Although we call these “White Chocolates,” just like the recipe they’re adapted from, they’re not actually white chocolates. They’re better!! In addition to being delicious, these treats are packed with healthy fats and only a scant amount of honey per serving. They perfectly satisfy a craving for a decadent treat.

You can play around with nut and seed butters here. I usually use peanut butter and roasted cashew butter as the recipe is written, but I imagine that almond butter and/or tahini would also be nice. If you use a different combination, please leave a comment!

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“White Chocolates’ Made with Cocoa Butter, Nut Butters & Honey
Adapted from Raw Vanilla White Chocolates (pg 389) in Nourishing Meals by Alissa Segersten & Tom Malterre.

Notes: I make these in square-shaped silicon ice trays (the ones they sell as cocktail ice trays), but if you don’t have silicone molds you could also pour the mixture into a glass Pyrex or something of the sort, chill to firm up, then slice into serving-sized squares and store.

Special equipment:
High-speed blender

8 oz cocoa butter
½ cup creamy roasted, salted peanut butter
½ cup roasted cashew butter
¼ cup raw honey
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon sea salt

Place the cocoa butter in a saucepan and gently melt on the stove over low heat. Once fully melted, pour the melted cocoa butter into your high speed blender and add the rest of the ingredients. Blend until creamy and fully incorporated, then carefully pour the mixture into your silicon molds or other container (see note). Place into the freezer or refrigerator to chill. Either is fine; I like the slightly softer texture that the refrigerator yields, but freezer space is often easier to come by.

These are perfect after dinner when you don’t have much room left, but are craving a small treat to end the meal and the day :)

Enjoy!!

Chocolate Port Balls

This is my version of a traditional Czech recipe for rum balls (rumovi kulicky) that my mom made every December when I was growing up. I've made them a little healthier, but both of my parents have declared them just as delicious.

These are vegan because they use coconut oil instead of butter (as in the original recipe). You could easily use either. I also use coconut sugar here instead of refined white sugar and you don’t miss a thing.

This recipe isn't hard to make, but it does involve a 3-step process so read it all the way through before beginning. First you soak the chopped raisins in port for 24 hours (you can let them soak for several days in the refrigerator, which is what I usually do). Then you make the chocolate mixture, but you need to let it sit and harden a bit before rolling them into balls. Usually letting it sit in the fridge for 30 minutes does the trick.

Enjoy!

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Chocolate Port Balls

Notes: For the dark chocolate I use either 70% dark chocolate chips or one and a half Trader Joe's fair trade organic 73% dark chocolate bars (100g each).

Special equipment:
Food processor

150 grams seedless raisins, chopped (such as Thompson)
Port to cover the raisins (about 1 cup)
150 grams walnuts, ground
150 grams dark chocolate
50 grams coconut oil
100 grams coconut sugar
Unsweetened cocoa powder for rolling (you'll need about 1/4 cup)

Place the chopped raisins into a bowl and pour in the port until they are just submerged. Cover the bowl and place it in the fridge for 2-24 hours.

When you're ready to make the chocolate balls, first grind the walnuts in a food processor so that they're finely ground but not yet walnut butter. (Walnut butter will start to form along the bottom edge of the bowl quite quickly if you're not careful.) If you don't have a food processor, you can chop them very finely by hand.

Next set up a double broiler with two saucepans adding about an inch of water to the bigger one and setting it on the stove over low to medium heat (just enough to get it to a very low simmer). Add the dark chocolate and coconut oil to the smaller saucepan, place it inside the bigger one, and stir until the chocolate and coconut oil are melted and smooth. Turn off the heat, remove the top pan (the one with the chocolate and oil mixture), dry off the bottom and place it on the counter (using a hot pad if needed).

Quickly strain the raisins the discard the port. I use a fine mesh strainer for this and give it a quick shake or two, but I let the raisins stay quite moist with port (this will make you very popular with family and friends).

Add the raisins, ground walnuts and coconut sugar to the chocolate mixture and stir well. It'll be too runny to form into balls at this point, so let it sit on the countertop or in the fridge long enough to solidify a bit, but still be pliable enough to roll. If the mixture gets to hard, just leave it out somewhere to soften again.

When you have a rollable consistency, set up a large plate with cocoa powder (I don't measure it out I just pour some onto the plate and pour more as I go if needed) and a glass bowl for storage. Scoop out some of the chocolate mixture (I use about one tablespoon full, although you can certainly go bigger or smaller), quickly use your hands to roll the mixture into a ball, roll in cocoa powder to coat, and place into the glass bowl. Work like this until you're through the entire chocolate mixture. Your hands will be a chocolate mess by the time you're through.

We store these in the freezer and take one or two out and let sit at room temperature for 10-20 minutes before eating. I like to have one with a cup of tea, my husband likes a small bit of port. Either way, they don't disappoint :)

Gluten-Free & Vegan Gingerbread Cake

This is a wonderfully rich and moist gingerbread cake - dark from a full cup of molasses and full of flavor. This cake screams HOLIDAYS and it is our Christmas morning tradition. I make it first thing in the morning (see note below for more detail) and we eat it after opening gifts. It's wonderful with coffee or ginger tea.

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Gluten-Free & Vegan Gingerbread Cake

Adapted from the Gingerbread Snacking Cake on smittenkitchen.com.

Notes: Taste your molasses before using it - it should be deep and rich but also good, not bitter or harsh. Because there's a full cup, it can make or break the cake.

Everything in this cake happens quite quickly, so it's helpful to have your dry ingredients whisked together and your wet ingredients measured out beforehand. Because I make this on Christmas morning, I prepare my dry ingredients in a bowl the night before. Then I set out the baking soda, molasses and coconut sugar before I go to bed, along with the pan, so in the morning all I have to do in terms of preparation is peel and grate the ginger and make the chia seed slurry.

Also, the original recipe calls for lining the bottom of the baking dish with parchment paper so you can easily cool the cake on a wire rack. I skip this and simply let the cake cool in the pan and then slice and serve straight from there. Butt if you'd like to cool on a rack, I suggest using the parchment as it's hard to turn the entire cake out without it.

Recipe updated 1/1/2023

Dry Ingredients:
170 grams teff flour
75 grams amaranth flour, plus more for dusting pan
105 grams arrowroot powder
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 teaspoons baking powder

Wet Ingredients:
1 cup water
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup coconut oil, plus more for greasing pan
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1 cup unsulfured blackstrap molasses
1/2 - 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger (gently placed onto the spoon, not tightly packed)
2 teaspoons ground chia seeds whisked with 6 tablespoons very hot water, prepared just before adding to the batter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease the bottom and sides of a 9x13 inch baking dish with coconut oil, then dust with amaranth flour.

Combine the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and whisk together well.

In a large saucepan (I recommend at least 3 quart), bring the water to a gentle boil, add the baking soda (this will delightfully remind you of a grade school science experiment), remove from heat and let sit for 5 minutes. Next, whisk in the coconut oil until melted, then add the coconut sugar, molasses and fresh ginger and mix well. Finally, prepare the ground chia seed / hot water mixture (I whisk it with a fork - it should be the consistency of beaten eggs as this is your egg substitute), making sure that there aren't any large chia clumps in it. Add the chia mixture to the saucepan and stir everything together so that it's homogenous and smooth.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet and whisk until just combined. Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Place pan on cooling rack. When cooled (or at least mostly cooled), sliced and enjoy!

Serve on its own, or with a dollop of whipped cream or whipped coconut cream. My kids insist on homemade whipped cream, and because I make this on Christmas, I always oblige.

Enjoy and happy holidays however you celebrate!!