Sweet dairy-free fun for Valentine’s Day
I love making my own chocolates. Homemade chocolates allow me to control both the ingredients, and the sugar content. It’s really quite easy too.
I started doing this when my kids were wee and first diagnosed with food sensitivities.
They didn’t like dark chocolate and with Valentine’s Day around the corner, I needed chocolate that was safe for them to enjoy.
I like to use Cocoa Camino’s unsweetened chocolate when I make my own, but you could use any unsweetened dairy-free chocolate.
Just try to stick to one that has as few ingredients as possible, and make sure it’s both gluten and dairy-free if you have allergies or sensitivities.
What’s nice about this recipe for Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Cups is the fact that you can do it in steps.
This makes it a lot easier, especially if you like to plan ahead. These little bites of chocolate heaven might seem like a lot of work, but they’re totally worth it, especially if they’re a Valentine’s treat for you or your loved ones.
Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Cups
Chocolate Coating 100 grams of unsweetened chocolate
4 tablespoons maple syrup or agave
4 tablespoons coconut oil 1 teaspoon vanilla a pinch of sea salt Cheesecake Filling 1 cup soaked, drained and rinsed raw cashews (soak for at least 4 hours) 1/3 cup maple syrup ½ tablespoon vanilla a pinch sea salt 3 tablespoons liquefied ½ cup frozen raspberries Chocolate Coating 1. Set aside a mini cupcake/muffin pan. I use silicone muffin pans and they make these cups really easy to pop out. You could also use candy foil cups to line the muffin pan.
2. In a double boiler (or a glass bowl over a pot of water), gradually melt chocolate with maple syrup and coconut oil. When melted, stir in vanilla and a pinch of sea salt.
3. Fill each cup of a mini muffin pan with approximately ½-3/4 teaspoon of the melted chocolate. Gently tap pan to ensure even distribution of chocolate. Freeze until hard (at least 15 minutes). Meanwhile, make Cheesecake filling
4. To make the cheesecake filling, combine drained cashews, maple syrup, vanilla, sea salt, coconut oil, and raspberries in your blender. Blend until smooth and creamy.
5. Remove chilled chocolate from freezer and spoon in approximately 1/2 heaping teaspoon of the Cheesecake filling. Gently tap pan to ensure even distribution of filling. Return to freezer for about 20 minutes.
6. Remove from freezer and fill cups with remaining chocolate – approximately ¾ teaspoon for each cup. Gently tap pan to ensure even distribution of chocolate. Freeze or refrigerate until hard.
7. Use a knife to help you pop the Strawberry and Chocolate Cheesecake Cups out of the pan. As mentioned, a silicone pan works best here. Store in the fridge as chocolate will melt in your hands AND in your mouth.
Yield: 12 mini cups. coconut oil,