I love chocolate, but it’s not always made with the best ingredients. This healthy Homemade Paleo Chocolate recipe solves that problem!
Made with 7 healthy ingredients, this easy chocolate bar recipe is great because it’s soy-free and dairy-free. It’s also super simple to make. All you need is cacao butter, cocoa powder, coconut butter, maple sugar, sunflower lecithin, vanilla powder, and salt.
What is sunflower lecithin?! It is a super food that contains phosphatidylcholine. Phosphatidylcholine is an important nutrient because it breaks down fat. It also helps with the formation of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that is vital for memory and mood stability.
Sunflower lecithin is key to this Homemade Paleo Chocolate recipe. The recipe will not work without this ingredient because it gives the chocolate its creamy flavor. More important, sunflower lecithin keeps the ingredients from separating. I use sunflower lecithin in my Creamsicles recipe, and add it to smoothies every day.
Homemade Paleo Chocolate
Ingredients
- 50 grams cacao butter
- 15 grams coconut butter
- 10 grams cacao powder
- 10 grams maple sugar, powdered
- 2 grams sunflower lecithin powder
- ½ gram vanilla powder
- 1 pinch celtic sea salt
Instructions
- In a very small pot over very low heat, melt cacao butter
- Stir in coconut butter, then remove from heat
- Use scale to measure dry ingredients
- Measure cacao powder and place in a small bowl
- Measure maple sugar and add to bowl
- Measure lecithin and add to bowl
- Measure vanilla powder and add to bowl
- Add salt to bowl
- Grind dry ingredients in a coffee grinder
- Use whisk to mix dry ingredients into cacao butter mixture
- Transfer mixture to chocolate bar mold
- Refrigerate for 1 hour, then serve
- Store in refrigerator for up to 1 week
I created this recipe using weight measurements rather than volume. This recipe will not work without a scale because so many of the ingredients are in such small amounts it is not possible to measure them accurately by volume. Although I know that most American are used to cooking by volume, I don’t have volume measurements for this recipe, so it does require a little flex!
Another tip? This tiny whisk is very helpful when mixing the dry ingredients into the wet. A standard size whisk didn’t work. Please note this recipe makes one chocolate bar, and I made a couple of extra for the photo. I tested this Homemade Paleo Chocolate recipe more than 50 times to make it perfect and I know you’ll love it!
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Kelli says
Thanks so much for the recipe, Ms. Elana. I love being able to eat what, for me, is clean chocolate. I made this the other day. It has good flavor but mine turned out with a grainy texture. I’m not sure what it’s due to but might throw all the dry ingredients into a coffee grinder to see if that helps with the next bar. Thanks for sharing your experiments in the kitchen with us. Most of my kids even enjoy them! =)
Elana says
Kelli, you’re welcome! If you follow the recipe and do not skip step #9 of the instructions your Homemade Paleo Chocolate will be just like mine –as creamy as can be :-)
Kelli says
HA! Leave it to me. I don’t know how I missed that. Must have been my desire to get to the chocolate ASAP! =) Well, that explains everything, and it’s good to know that will fix my issue! Thanks and sorry to have used up your time in responding…if only I’d paid closer attention.
Elana says
Kelli, you’re welcome! I’m happy to help :-)
Debbie B. says
I’m fascinated that you recognize exactly what she missed. Must be those ‘more than 50 practices’ that you’ve already had. I’m continually amazed by your patience and total understanding of how these ingredients fit together and your willingness to just share them with us. You’re a genius – Thanks for all you do.
Elana says
Debbie, thanks! Your comment made my day! I don’t know about being a genius, but I do love cooking and helping people however I can :-)
amy says
do you know if Nutiva Coconut Manna is the same as coconut butter? thanks so much for posting this. EVERY recipe i’ve made of yours comes out perfectly first time IF i use the exact same ingredients. i still mess with recipes that will still come out great too!! i have your almond flour and cupcake cookbooks and LOVE LOVE LOVE them!!
Elana says
Amy, I haven’t tried that brand so not sure exactly what it is, or if it will work in this recipe. I’m so glad to hear that every recipe you’ve made of mine turns out perfectly :-)
Karina says
While Nutiva coconut “manna” isn’t quite as delicious eaten off the spoon as Artisana coconut butter, they act almost the same in recipes. Nutiva is cheaper, perhaps because it does not say it is raw. I used Gopal coconut butter and it worked fine.
Elana says
Thanks Karina!
Christine says
Elana, I had a recipe for chocolate bars using cocoa powder, stevia and coconut oil…I really had to keep them frozen in order for them to maintain their shape (the coconut oil is all that kept it together)…this recipe is an answer to prayer! I will be finding ingredients and trying immediately! it is exactly within the limits of my diet restrictions. Thank you!
Elana says
Christine, I’m so happy this recipe has answered to your prayers!
Amanda says
I love you! Every woman deserves chocolate at least on her period! I’m allergic to sugar cane and dairy! It’s been the death of me finding any “legal” chocolate.
Could I try Palm sugar or no?
Thanks!
Elana says
Amanda, I totally agree about that! I haven’t tried making this recipe with palm sugar so not sure if that would work :-)
Heidi says
I’ve tried making homemade chocolate before with palm sugar. It will have a grainy texture but it is still very good. You could probably blast it in a high powered blender to make it more like powdered sugar and that would likely work better. We didn’t mind the graininess because it was almost like having tiny toffee bits in the chocolate.
Becky says
I’m so giddy when I see a new recipe post of yours. :) I have your almond flour cookbook and love it! Can you tell me if this chocolate recipe tastes more like a “milk” or a “dark” chocolate? Thanks for all you do to create these yummy recipes!
Elana says
Hi Becky, I’m so glad you are enjoying my first book, it has some of my favorite recipes! This tastes more like a dark chocolate to me :-)
Devon says
Any chance this recipe would work with stevia – either liquid or powder?
Elana says
Devon, I haven’t tried that so not sure :-)
Karina says
1/8 to 1/4 t. “vanilla creme” liquid stevia works just great. i left out the vanilla powder when using this. So yummy. Thanks, Elana!
Elana says
Thanks Karina!
Ruth says
Thanks! Will convert that liquid stevia to powder and try that and post.
We have candida, so even healthy maple sugar is to be avoided, if possible.
:-)
:-(
Nancy says
I have liquid sunflower lecithin. Do you think I could use that instead of the powdered form? Thanks for this recipe. I’m looking forward to trying it.
Elana says
Nancy, I haven’t tried that so not sure, if you do please let us know if it works!
Janet says
Nice but frightfully expensive for one bar. I’d rather do without. Oranges now are fabulous where I live.
Elana says
Thanks Janet! Appreciate your feedback :-)
Patricia says
I do not have the vanilla powder. Can I use regular vanilla extract? Thanks
Elana says
Patricia, I haven’t tried that so not sure. If you do please let us know how it goes :-)
Barbara Bukovnik says
Bravo Elana! You so rock in the kitchen! Haven’t made a single recipe of yours that wasn’t extraordinary yet!! I have to get a chocolate mold (thank you for the link to Amazon,) a silicon mold for chips and a scale and I could be known as the chocolate chip gal!
Elana says
Thanks Barbara! I’m so happy to hear that you’ve found every single recipe you’ve made of mine extraordinary!