This 4-ingredient chocolate is what dreams are made of. It’s packed with antioxidants, is easy to make, and is refined sugar-free. What more could your taste buds ask for on Valentine’s day? Give me my man and this chocolate and I’m a happy lady.
When I spotted this bag of cacao butter at Organic Garage I knew I had to pick some up. Cacao butter (or cocoa butter) is the pale yellow vegetable fat extracted from cocoa beans. You can find it at most health food stores, specialty grocery stores (like Organic Garage), and of course, online (for my online vegan shopping guide, see this post).
This recipe I’m sharing today does not result in a traditional hard/waxy chocolate like the bars that you’d buy at a store. Instead, it produces a fudge-like texture that melts in your mouth sending a wave of pure bliss throughout your body. It sounds dramatic because it is!
Update: My original recipe resulted in a softer fudge-like chocolate, however I tried a batch the next day without using the blender (I mixed by hand) and this resulted in a much firmer chocolate. I’ve since updated the recipe to reflect this method as I enjoyed it even more.
I strongly suggest using these silicone baking cups if you can get your hands on some. The chocolate will easily pop right out. If you don’t have the silicone baking cups, you can simply line a baking sheet with parchment paper and then drop spoonful’s of chocolate all over the paper or you can even use paper liners. The chocolate will stick a bit to paper liners, but they will still come out.
Freeze for about 30 minutes.
“Clean” every nook and cranny of the blender.
And experience love at first bite.
Easy Homemade Vegan Chocolate
Email, print, or text this recipe
Yield: 12 servings
Ingredients:
- 120 grams cacao/cocoa butter (about 1 cup of cacao butter chunks)
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup room-temperature pure maple syrup (or liquid sweetener of choice)
- pinch of fine grain sea salt
- Flaked sea salt, for finishing
Note: I’ve changed the directions to omit the blending process. The blender seems to yield a softer, thicker mixture while simply mixing by hand resulted in a firmer chocolate that poured easily. I much preferred the chocolate when mixing by hand.
1. Gently melt the cacao butter in a pot over the lowest heat setting. Or you can use a double boiler.
2. Whisk all other ingredients (except flaked sea salt) into the pot.
3. Pour into 12 silicone cups and sprinkle with flaked sea salt (optional). Alternatively, you can use paper liners (they will stick a tiny bit but will still peel off) or line a baking sheet with parchment paper and drop spoonfuls all over the paper. Plastic chocolate molds may stick.
4. Freeze for 30 minutes or until firm. Pop chocolate out of the cups and enjoy immediately. Store in the fridge or freezer until ready to use.
For nutritional info, see here.
Instant Hot Chocolate
Simply drop a disc of vegan chocolate into a mug of steamed almond milk and stir until combined. This makes the creamiest, most delightful hot chocolate! It just might be my favourite hot drink yet.
Thank you so much for supporting Oh She Glows in The Kitchn’s blog nomination for Healthy Cooking Blog! I’m currently in second place and would appreciate any extra support you can lend today during this last day of voting.
I hope you have a lovely Valentine’s Day tomorrow no matter what you are up to. xo
Well I have a comment and a question and surprised noone on here mentioned it. Take those delicious looking chocolate discs of yours and make us a peanut butter cup out of them. The only thing that could possibly make them any better is to add peanut butter!!! I’m drooling on my keyboard. And where did you get that twig looking spoon? Soooo cute!! As soon as I can find the cocoa butter, I’m making those. I do have coconut oil, but don’t know if they will firm up as much. Good job!!!
This looks delicious!
Angela, you are a huge inspiration to me and I love looking at all of your recipes. I’m currently slowly transitioning into veganism. I have been encountering difficulties in getting enough protein each day and was wondering if maybe you could do a post on what you typically eat each day.
It’s been hard for me to stay on track and I could use some tips.
Thanks so much!
I looooove this idea if not primarily for the hot chocolate recipe at the end – hot chocolate made from actual melted chocolate is just heavenly! I have been meaning to get some of those silicone baking cups for ages too. Are they dishwasher-safe or otherwise easy to clean?
Btw this is still Anna (from the Guiltless Life) but I launched my new site today so there’s a new site name!
These look so good! I am a chocolate lover so this recipe is up my alley! Thanks for sharing :) Can’t wait to try it in hot chocolate.
Thank you so much for sharing this! I have tried melting vegan chocolate chips and reading the backs of all the powders in the grocery store to no avail. We’re scheduled to get a blizzard next week, so I will definitely have this on hand!
I need to get a frother! and that chocolate sounds amazing!
Just made this using carob powder–AMAZING. Thank you Angela!!
Wow! This is a must try this weekend! Can’t wait to try it.
Plus I VOTED for ya too!
Have a great weekend. :)
OHMYGOD! FINALLY a recipe to use the cacao butter I bought a couple months ago!! This sounds perfect…heading to the kitchen!!! Hopefully will have it posted on Instagram later!! @theveganchemist :) Thanks Angela!!!
That chocolate looks and sounds amazing! I LOOOOOVE hot chocolate. And that spoon you have in it is adorable :)
Angela, Happy belated Valentine’s Day! These little chocolates look so good, but cacao butter kinda scares me for some reason… lol
Anyways, I just wanted to ask, is it normal to think about creamy pumpkin pie smoothies every night before bed? Is it normal to think about them while feeding a baby in the middle of the night? Is it normal to leap out (okay, maybe not leap) of bed in the morning, exclaiming “this morning we are having pumpkin pie smoothies!!!!” ?!?! Thanks to you for such an amazing recipe – everyone in my house is happier because of it!
Can I use raw organic sugar instead of maple syrup??
Im not sure how the proportions would change but you could try it. I would try to swap in another liquid sweetener if possible though.
Wow, I’m SOOO glad you used Giddy Yoyo’s!!! I’ve worked for them and my sister is friend’s with her daughter. I actually have a jar of raw cacao butter from her that we use as cream!! Not only is your skin smooth and soft, but you smell yummy too :)
This looks easy to make! Have you tried adding the chocolate with rice milk?
Perfect timing! Was just thinking of making homemade chocolate bars the other day! Thanks again! :D
Wow, this looks superduperyummie!!! Love the pics of the hot chocolate!
angela, i LOVE your blog. so inspirational and every recipe of yours i’ve tried is fab. keep it up!!
The chocolate looks delicious! I was thinking of making some and sending to my boyfriend, do you think it is solid enough to ship in tuppleware?
I think it could melt…? Not sure on that one!
Hi Angela! I’m so excited to try this recipe but I can’t find any cacao butter in my town (Newfoundland is lacking in the real foods department), I was just wondering what website/store you found yours in? I looked at the shopping list you posted and was wondering if there’s a cheaper place than the vegan food store.
thanks!
I bought mine at upaya. Sadly, it is an expensive ingredient.
Oh just found this if you want to buy from upaya: http://ethicaldeal.com/deal/50-off-raw-vegan-food-and-kitchen-equipment-%28$50-value,-tax-included%29/city:toronto?sub=1&utm_source=Toronto&utm_campaign=37793b88bf-UA-17120634-1&utm_medium=email&mc_cid=37793b88bf&mc_eid=337f817864
Hi Angela, Thanks for another fab recipe! I finally had an excuse to use my new silicone mini baking cups. One question – the maple syrup on mine seemed to sink to the bottom and never harden. I was able to pop them out of the cups just the bottoms were mostly maple syrup still liquid. They were still super yummy! and I even made the hot chocolate out of them. Any idea why this happened? I will def make again but trying to figure out what needs adjustment.
Hi Marie, Hmm…I’m not sure why that happened – maybe the mixture needs to be whisked together more before pouring in? Did you make any changes to the recipe by chance?
Thanks for replying! Maybe my scale is off and I used more cacao butter than the recipe called for. I made them again today and added more cacao powder, that seemed to help. They are so yummy! Thanks again.
Hey Marie!
Same thing happened to me too!! I ended up changing the coco powder and whisking more and they turned out amazing. I totally want to try putting something in them! I might actually see if I can melt them down and use them as a chocolate dip for peanut-coconut-crispy-balls. Or in the Coconut banana bites….hmmmm
Omg… my mouth is watering. These little cups look so delicious. I’m not normally a huge chocolate lover (take it or leave it) but I recently had a Raw Almond Butter Cup from Whole Foods while on vacation and it was to die for. Ingredients were cacao powder, agave, coconut oil & almond butter. I think I’m going to try your recipe, and add some almond butter in the middle… mmmmmm!
Hi Angela,
I have been looking for a homemade vegan marshmallow recipe for ages and thought you might be the one to have it! Sadly there isn’t one on your site (that I’ve found), but do you think that is a challenge you’d take on soon? They would go great with your hot chocolate :)
Thanks!
Elizabeth
Oh my goodness, this looks wonderful. I was searching for something like this during the whole winter and just now I found your blog. Even if the first rays of spring-sun touch my skin I would love to have a hot chocolate like this right now.
looks wonderful ill try this out when i get the chance :D
Hi, i have a question: i made this and as much as i like them, i think they are a bit too greasy cause the cocoa butter is the base, right. It is not easy to eat more than two pieces, some people think it’s too heavy. Is there a way to make them less fatty and easier to eat?thanks!
You can always play around the ratios if you’d like, but I haven’t done so myself. Goodluck!
I’m new to this blog, trying to swap at processed foods for more healthier options. I’m having a difficult time giving up sweets, so I love this post! I wondered if you have a blog post that lists where you usually buy you main ingredients (pantry items) like your maple syrup, cacao, etc. Since I’m new at this I wondered if you had any helpful tips.
Thank you!
Hi Emily, Yes I do! you can find it here: http://ohsheglows.com/2012/04/09/my-vegan-pantry/ Hope this helps
Would this work well in molds too?
Thank you! thank you! thank you! For sharing this recipe. My son is allergic to soy and tree nuts and pea nuts.and there are hardly any chocolates available without soy and nut contamination. Can’t wait to try this recipe. I guess cocoa butter is going to be another staple in my pantry from now on. Beautiful photographs and pleasing write up. Keep experimenting and sharing your lovely concoctions. :-)
I attempted these TWICE with the same result each time – runny-textured chocolate that never firmed. So disappointed :(
Holy Grail of Cocoa: i adore cocoa so much that i drink it year round, cold in the summer. so when i became vegan i was distraught that every alternative milk i tried tasted terrible with cocoa. think of it like painting walls with red paint – it seems like a dark color but in fact, it’s the sheerest and if you don’t use dark primer, it will never look right. likewise, chocolate seems like an intense flavor but it is easily overwhelmed by anything other than cow’s milk, often leaving behind an aftertaste of rope (despite so many recommendations of adding cinnamon/cayenne) or too watery.
finally, in desperation, i tried the very last alternative milk on the market, Pacific Brand’s non-dairy OAT milk. cocoa nirvana at last: it’s creamy enough, doesn’t compete with the taste of cocoa and leaves no aftertaste. i sweeten mine with a PINCH of organic stevia (man, that stuff is potent!). NOW try all those vegan cocoa/hot chocolate recipes!
if you just adore soy milk or some other variety, stay with it. but if what you want is the pure, unadulterated cocoa, Oat Milk is your ticket to enjoying a true cup of cocoa sans dairy.
Hi,
I was wondering if you use sweetened or unsweetened almond milk?
Unsweetened, but you can use any kind you like!
This is so good! I only used 1/8 cup of maple syrup (I was aiming for 1/4, but I only had 1/8 left), and next time I will use a full cup of cacao powder, since they aren’t quite dark enough for my taste (I love 80%+ chocolate). Thank you, Angela!
Hey! This recipe sounds AMAZING and to die for, but sadly, I dont think my local store carries cocoa butter and I was hoping to sub it with coconut oil. Of I do that, will it still make hot chocolate? Thx!!!
Jeez, never mind the frother!!! Those chocolates look DELICIOUS! I’m going to try making them very soon and then build on the recipe by adding different ingredients.
Made them! Really, really good. I’ve been looking for an easy way to use a bunch of cocoa butter that I bought so this was perfect. Plus I’ve been craving hot chocolate so much lately. When I was done portioning the chocolate into molds, I just poured some almond milk into the pot and made hot chocolate with the remaining chocolate “residue”. It worked perfectly and I didn’t waste any chocolate!
Wow, these look delish… especially on a cold, blustery day like today! As soon as I get silicone cups and cacao butter I’m going to try this!
Some questions: Can raw cacao powder be used instead of the cocoa powder? I looked up your cocoa powder brand and read that it is Dutch processed and not raw cacao powder. I never use Dutch processed cocoa powder, so don’t know how different it would taste.. Can you please clarify for this recipe as well as all the other chocolate recipes? Do you use Dutch processed cocoa powder whenever cocoa powder is used in your recipes? Can raw cacao be substituted? Thanks!
Hi Angela,
Thank you for this recipe – I have been making it for years now!
Today I swapped the maple syrup for coconut nectar (I used a little less, a 1/3 cup), and whisked it together for a couple of minutes (coconut nectar is more dense than maple syrup, and I didn’t want it to settle on the bottom while freezing). Oh. My. Goodness. It is so delicious! A little coconuty, a little caramely, and completely more-ish! Yum!
Hi,
Do you think it’s strictly necessary to refrigerate? I’d like to make these and mail as Christmas gifts. It’s winter so I’m not really worried about them melting in transit but are they ‘perishable’? It doesn’t really seem like it based on the ingredients but it’s hard to know since I haven’t seen/made them yet.
Thanks!!
How can I make chocolate chips w this? I tried with my little chocolate mold filling syringe? But it either is too shapeless it gets stuck in the hole when it cools a bit. Any suggestions? Thanks. I make this all the time :)
My wife can’t eat cocoa powder so I am trying to find her a carob powder replacement. If I wanted to swap in carob powder, do you think it would take as much, or should I decrease the amount slightly. Thanks