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Friday, October 14, 2011

Nearly Sugar Free/Low Carb "Almond Joy" Inspired Chocolates



  I love chocolate, but sugars and carbs and not my friend. I've heard that the average American consumes over 100 lbs. of sugar per year. I refuse to be that statistic, no wonder we have so many health problems!! Here's a fun and easy recipe that uses coconut oil and cocoa powder for its base. You can easily make hundreds of flavor combinations, this is just my personal favorite. Enjoy!



Almond Joy Inspired Chocolates
      makes 12 servings
  • 1/2 cup Coconut Oil (1,040 calories)
  • 6 Tbsp. Cocoa Powder (60 calories)
  • 3 Tbsp. Coconut Flakes, unsweetened (110 calories, 2 grams carbs, 1 gram sugar)
  • 28 grams Macadamia Nuts, chopped (220 calories, 1 carb)
  • 2 Tbsp. Sugar Free Vanilla Syrup, such as Torani brand
  • 1/4 tsp. Almond Extract
  • Pinch of: salt, cinnamon, espresso powder
  • Mini muffin flexible mold pan, or candy molds
No Bake Instructions

In a glass measuring cup, 2 cup measure or higher, add the coconut oil and zap in microwave for 20 seconds to melt. If it's hot in your kitchen and the oil is already melted then skip the first step. Add the remaining ingredients, leaving out the macadamia nuts, and stir to combine. Taste to see if everything is how you like it. This comes together easily if you have a mini muffin mold or some type of candy mold where you can measure out 12 servings. Using a regular spoon add a small amount of the liquid mixture to each cup. Then evenly distribute the chopped (or crushed) macadamia nuts. Top the nuts with the remaining mixture. It's better to start out with a very thin layer of the chocolate and then add the nuts so that each cup is totally covered in the chocolate mixture. Place into the freezer for 20 minutes, or until the chocolate has set. Pop out each chocolate and store them all in a plastic baggy in the freezer. Couldn't be easier! Perfect for those who aren't so concerned about calories but really want to watch their sugars and carbs! A fun size Almond Joy is 80 calories, but also contains 10 grams of carbohydrates and 8 grams of sugar.

Per serving: 119 calories, 0.25 grams carbohydrates, 0.083 grams sugar. You can replace the macadamia nuts with any nut you prefer. I use mac nuts because they only have 1 net carb per serving, and they're made of healthy fats.

10 comments:

Dzoli said...

Those look crunchy and tasty:))

Joanne said...

I'm definitely going to try these the next time a chocolate craving hits (cough daily cough).

foodie @ Tasting Spot said...

i really like your food pictures and want to invite you to try out tastingspot.com. it's for anyone that just wants another place to submit photos and share it will other foodies. It’s still in beta version, but would love for you to start adding some photos and help get it going.

Actfastchef said...

OOoh!  I want to try to make this - the Husband and I are eating Paleo, so we are always looking for things that are low sugar, low carb :)

Emmy (WIne and Butter) said...

I just found your blog through Dani's and I'm having a look through the archives - I adore it and your photos are AMAZING! I try not to eat sugar free syrups and things (more trying to be all natural than low calorie) BUT I could totally use some regular syrup and these would be fantastic - super low sugar as well, so very suitable as a midweek treat. Cant wait to read more!

Healthy & Homemade said...

They're really yummy =D A great alternative to chocolate if you're eating carb and sugar free!

Healthy & Homemade said...

Oh my gosh seriously. I've been experimenting making different chocolates using sugar free syrups. Caramel ones are reallllly good!

Healthy & Homemade said...

Woohoo that's perfect!! =D

Healthy & Homemade said...

Thanks so much =D I was really against sugar free fake anything until I realized how much that limits my cooking abilities. Sugar is in eeeeverything, so this is a good alternative for me at the moment. I wish they would make the syrups with Stevia though!

Healthy & Homemade said...

I will check it out! Thanks for the comment.