I just realized that I’ve turned on my oven maybe once in the past week. What a glorious thing.
What could be worthy of turning on the oven during a heat wave, you might ask? Two words: sweet potatoes! Yes, even in the summer, heat wave be damned, I need my sweet potato fix.
This is my favourite way to eat sweet potatoes lately: Dice the sweet potato (leave the skin on), roast until tender, and then toss the cooked potato with coconut oil, sea salt, and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Finally – and here’s the best part – a generous spoonful of hemp seeds sprinkled on for good measure. The hemp seeds stick to the coconut oil, coating every delicious bite of sweet potato. I seriously drool when I think about it!
But this post isn’t about roasting things like a crazy person when it’s 40C with humidity, it’s about not roasting things! Aside from my precious sweet potatoes, I’ve been relying heavily on raw foods to make up much of my diet. Raw Pad Thai, Detox Tabbouleh, hummus and veggie wraps, fruit galore, and a huge smoothie every single morning, just to name a few. Summer rules and winter drools. Period.
Speaking of drooling. These raw almond butter cups! Oh my goodness. Eric declared them one of his favourite treats and this is coming from a non-almond butter fan. I’m not buying it, Eric. I have a peanut butter cup recipe on the blog already (oh, and peanut butter cups in a jar, let’s not forget), but I wanted to make something with the batch of raw almond butter I made recently.
For the almond base, I initially tried a combo of almond butter, coconut oil, and sweetener, which was super tasty, but the cups melted and were pretty greasy. In an effort to make the base more substantial, I reduced the almond butter and added in almond meal and a touch of oat flour. It was the perfect solution. Not only did it hold up better, but it tasted like cookie dough! What’s not to love about that? noooooothing.
I used a mini silicone muffin holder since they are so flexible and I just popped the cups out after freezing. Easy! You can certainly use a regular muffin tin lined with paper liners though. For the thick chocolate coating, I made my own chocolate using cocoa powder, coconut oil, and sweetener. Feel free to simply use melted dark chocolate if that floats your boat! I added some sliced almonds on top before freezing which added a nice crunch.
As you can see the chocolate topping started to melt during my photo shoot because it was a gazillion degrees, so I recommend enjoying these straight from the freezer for best results. Either way, I wasn’t complaining too much!
Raw Almond Butter Cups
Yield
1 dozen cups
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Chill time
45
Total time
Like the peanut butter cup candy, but so much tastier and better for you! These raw almond butter cups are the perfect solution to any sweet craving. I used a mini silicone muffin tray since they are so flexible and I just popped the cups out after freezing. You can certainly use a regular muffin tin lined with paper liners too. For the thick chocolate coating, I made my own chocolate using cocoa powder, coconut oil, and sweetener. Feel free to simply use melted dark chocolate if that's what you have on hand. Be sure to keep these chilled until just before serving and store them in the freezer for best results. I personally love them straight from the freezer.
Note: Use certified gluten-free oats to make this recipe gluten-free. NEW: See below for a nut-free version!
Ingredients
For the base
- 3/4 cup raw almonds, ground into a meal
- 1/4 cup rolled oats, ground into a flour
- 2 tablespoons raw almond butter (or nut butter of choice)
- 1.5 tablespoons coconut oil, warmed if necessary
- 1.5 tablespoons pure maple syrup (or agave nectar)
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- pinch of fine grain sea salt, to taste
For the topping
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil
- 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup (or 2 tbsp agave nectar)
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- pinch of fine grain sea salt, to taste
Directions
- Add almonds and oats into a high-speed blender and blend on high until a flour forms. Dump into a large bowl and break up any clumps with your fingers.
- Add the nut butter, coconut oil, maple syrup (or agave), cinnamon, vanilla, and salt into the bowl. Stir until thoroughly combined. The dough should be fairly sticky like cookie dough.
- Line a mini (or regular) muffin tin with paper liners or use a silicone muffin holder. Portion the dough into each muffin cup and press down until even and smooth.
- To make the chocolate sauce: Whisk together the coconut oil, sweetener, cocoa powder, and salt until no clumps remain. Spoon the sauce over top each of the cups, distributing evenly. Garnish cups with sliced almonds if desired.
- Place in the freezer in a flat area for 30-45 minutes, until firm. Pop out the cups & enjoy immediately! These are best consumed straight from the freezer.
Tip:
If looking for an oat-free option, you might be able to substitute the 1/4 cup of oats for more almond meal. My guess is that you’d need to add another 1/3-1/2 cup almonds to avoid the dough becoming too sticky. Please report back!
For a nut-free version, sub the almond meal for an equal amount of rolled oats (so use 1 cup total rolled oats). Sub the almond butter for sunflower seed butter. Works great!
Five stars — delicious. Works well with peanut butter too. A big hit with friends and family. (I wasn’t sure if the coconut oil for the chocolate should be warmed as well? It seemed to work, but maybe next time I’ll warm it before mixing.)
I made these last night. They were outstanding! My kids even ate them. I used cashew as my nut butter. I am making more today. I look forward to trying more recipes now that I have found your website!
These are delicious! Thanks for the recipe.
Where can I find the nutrition facts?
Made them tonight. Delicious!
Hi,
I realize this recipe is a bit older, but I stumbled upon it and really want to make it. However, I unfortunately have had to remove a few foods from my diet recently, as it turns out I’m quite sensitive. Oats is one of them. Is there any other gluten-free grain/flour you could use in place of that you think? Or more almond flour/meal?
Thanks!!
Natalie
sorry I just noticed your note about this. disregard :)
Just made these today.. OH MY! Delicious, absolutely delicious! Instead of using cups though, I lined an 8×8 baking dish with wax paper and just made 12 bars instead. Thank you for this recipe!
Hi – can I use something else besides the oats in order to make these kosher for passover?
Do you have any suggestions on oil substitutions? I try to stay away from oil :)
Angela, I developed a freak allergy to almonds :( and had all this almond butter and almond meal in my cabinet. So I made a triple batch of this for my pals at the gym, and for my daughter. I could not taste it, but I got great feedback! I ate the leftover chocolate topping! Wow! That was amazing! My daughter’s only comment was that she wanted more almonds on top for the crunch. I’m going to try your other nut free version. Thanks!
Yummmeeee!! These went down an absolute treat. I didn’t have enough almonds for the almond butter so used cashews instead. They were so tasty. Going to try another batch with almonds-just to compare :-) Might have to make double the quantity too, they went in no time!
Very easy to make, very tasty and very popular. Thankyou
PERFECTION! Husband said he could eat a hundred of them!
Oh! Just made these tonight! Scrumptious! What a treat :)
Thank you! I posted my thank you pic on Instagram
hi! Wondering if there’s nutrition information per serving somewhere that I missed?
These were AMAZING! My sister in law made vegan deserts just for me as a part of the graduation celebration for my niece. She brought out the Motherload cake from Claim Jumper and then she brought out two vegan deserts for me. One bite … and OH MY GOODNESS! I thanked everyone for not being vegan, took the tray and went to the living room and enjoyed … four … one after the other.
I kept thanking her and hugging her and kissing her and thanking her. She was just laughing so hard. I asked for the recipe and I will definitely make some at home, with a few substitutions.
Hi Angela,
I made these with peanut butter (I didn’t have almond) and they were delicious. I kept them in the freezer but they never fully froze, or at least the maple syrup never froze and would pour out like one of those alcohol filled chocolates. Is this normal? Could I use a different sweetener that would solidify better? Thanks!
Anna, did you use coconut oil? That’s what makes it solidify.
Hi, thanks so much for sharing this amazing recipe. I prepared two batches for my daughters graduation party here at my home since we were going to have a couple of vegan family members. Well, everyone loved them and people were fighting –in a friendly way– for them. I just finished preparing another batch at my daughters request for a sleepover with her friends. I did add a bit more oats since I felt they were in the amazing oily side of the nuts the first time, perhaps we can each eat more and not feel so guilty tonigh. Thanks again!
Why is there no Nutritional Information for this recipe??
These are very yummy. I am trying to kick candida and altered the recipe slightly. I also have interstitial cystitis and cannot have chocolate so I used carob powder instead. In addition, I cannot have agave so I used powdered organic stevia instead. The base was too dry and crumbly so I added more nut butter. I have not had anything this decadent since changing my diet 2 months ago. Before this I had resigned to thinking I would never have dessert ever again.
I never comment, but I just made these and added a date caramel, and they are AMAZING. Props to you.
Thanks for the amazing recipe. I didn’t have any ground almonds so I substituted these with desiccated coconut, which I blended with the oats. They turned out AMAZING! I had been craving a sweet treat, and these were super easy to make and I just happened to have most of the ingredients already!
I’m wondering if I can use dates instead of the coconut oil. Do you think it would work for the base part? Also, would you think cayenne pepper would be good? I used it in my own chocolate/nut balls and it tasted really good.
June
OMG! I’ve made these twice now and absolutely love them. This second time, however, I was all out of almonds, so I used raw walnuts instead: STILL AWESOME!
Delicious. Yes, I tried it but changed it slightly for my own liking :-)
Ohhhh man I just made these tonight and they’re so crazy delicious!! My whole family loves them, I think I’ll have to hide them haha
I make these all the time. They’re quick & easy, and not to mention a super yummy treat!
Thanks for the comment, Sarah! It’s always so neat to hear when a recipe of mine has become a staple. :)
Yup… these are awesome! I used a regular sized muffin tin with liners but next time I think I’ll make little balls and press a thumbprint into them and fill with the chocolate for a smaller bite of decadence.
Great idea, Lonnie! I’d love to hear how they work out! :)
Hi Angela,
you have really good recipes on your site, yuuummiiee!
You inspired me and I create a similar recipe, you can look on this site:
https://kuchenfuerdich.wordpress.com/2016/08/14/natuerlich-und-suendig-gut-mandel-erdnuss-mini-gugl/
Have a good week, best regards.
Jenny
I made these for my family yesterday and they were so so good. The recipe is wonderful!! Thankyou so much I will be making them time and time again.
I’m so happy to hear they were such a hit, Deanna! Thanks for taking the time to let me know :)
Thank you so much for posting this delicious and quick dessert! I shared it with my FB group “super Quick Plant Based Recipes” https://www.facebook.com/SuperQuickPBRecipes/ – where I feature PB recipes that take only 20 min. or less. My group will love this and your site!
Hi Angela I just found your website and your recipe for the almond butter cups I’m going to make it but substitute with Guidry organic farms Certified Organic Pecan Butter
I cannot wait to see how they turn out !! We own and operate Guidry Organic Farms
In Lafayette Louisiana and would love to send you as a gift our very own Certified Organic Pecan Butter as well as our Certified Organic Pecan Oil . The Pecan oil is fantastic for your diced sweetpotato recipe and any other of your roasted vegetables or sautéed vegetables it can be used in salad dressings or two sauté fish .. please feel free to check out our website and send me your address can so I can send you some of our products to try out.. again
Thank you for your recipe and I can’t wait to try it !! Kind Regards Connie Guidry
Made these this week. They are absolutely delicious. I highly recommend ! First time on this website and I’m looking forward to trying more recipes.
Hey Michele, Thanks for trying out the almond butter cups! So happy you enjoyed them. And welcome to the blog! :)
Omg so good!
I just made these. They’re amazing. I was so impatient and wanted to try them. They sat in the freezer for 15 minutes. I took one out. The top was hard but the center had not froze. It was wonderful. It reminded me of biting into a chocolate bar with caramel oozing out.
I’m so glad you loved them Michelle! They are a big hit over here too :)