Healthy chocolate crackles
One thing that I loved when I was a kid was chocolate crackles. Crispy, chocolatey goodness that melted in your mouth mmmmm. However those little delights unfortunately are terribly bad for you with their sugary/refined grain/trans fat combo. Yup, little heart attack bombs. Well that’s probably an exaggeration, but they’re definitely not good for you and I haven’t eaten one for a very long time. I saw a recipe for them in a kids cookbook I was flicking through which inspired me to recreate healthy chocolate crackles – well healthier ones anyway. I have to say, I was pretty happy with this version. They’re still a treat, so don’t be tempted to go overboard, but a better for you treat.
I use cocoa butter in the recipe – the same fat that’s used in chocolate. Not only does it taste great, it has a minimal effect on cholesterol levels. Cocoa butter is made up mainly of the fatty acids of palmitic, stearic, and oleic acids. Palmitic acid is a saturated fat which increases cholesterol whilst Stearic acid, another saturated fat, appears to have a neutral effect. Oleic acid, meanwhile, is a liquid, monounsaturated fat that decreases the risk of heart disease. So all in all cocoa butter has a neutral effect on cholesterol levels. You can buy it here
Ingredients
30g cocoa butter
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1 tablespoon of almond butter
3 tablespoons of honey
2 – 3 tablespoons cocoa
1 1/2 cup puffed brown rice or puffed quinoa
2/3 cup chopped nuts (I used hazlenuts, almonds and cashews)
2/3 cup buckwheat
1/3 cup coconut
2-3 tablespoons sunflower seeds
Method:
Melt the cocoa butter, coconut oil and almond butter in a pot over a medium heat. Once melted, remove from the heat and stir the honey until combined. If the honey doesn’t melt in pop the pot back on the heat for a few minutes. Next add in the cocoa and stir until well combined. Add the rest of the dry ingredients and fold through the wet mixture. Line a small baking tray with baking paper. Press in the mixture so it’s packed in. You can also put the recipe into cupcake wrappers so they’re like the real old school crackles. Refrigerate until set! Best to store these babies in the fridge otherwise they’ll melt in a warm room. Store in an air tight container and eat within a week, or they’ll go a little soggy (still delicious though…)
Enjoy your healthy chocolate crackles!
Yum, these look delicious! What does buckwheat taste like? It’s one of those things I’ve seen heaps of recipes using it but never gotten around to buying it and trying it.
Hey Amanda, hmm it’s crunchy and a little nutty tasting. I’m not that good at describing things, but I like it! See if you can get it in the bulk bins at a health store, that way you can just try a little bit 🙂