Chocolate Hazelnut Butter Cups + Weekend Links
I hope you are enjoying the first weekend of autumn. It’s a beautiful one here in Toronto. The air is crisp but the sun is warm. It’s a perfect fall weekend to walk and bike around town. It would be great for apple picking too. I was in a mood for baking an apple pie yesterday but it was too gorgeous not to go outside. Pies will have to wait a little longer. We’re having our farm-to-table dinner and ritual later today at the farm and this warm and fresh weather should be just perfect.
Today’s simple recipe is one of my absolute favourite treats. Whenever I crave something sweet, I make a batch of these nut butter cups. I’ve made these many times with different kinds of nut butters and I must say that hazelnut butter remains my favourite. They’re like a Reese’s cup, but a hundred times healthier and tastier (at least in my opinion). I hope you get to make and enjoy these soon!
Now onto some links that caught my attention this past week.
LINKS
Alanna‘s new cookbook, Alternative Baker: Reinventing Dessert with Gluten-Free Grains and Flours was just released and I heard so many great things already, I can’t wait to get my own copy. Some mouthwatering recipes have started to pop around the web this past week, here are just a few that caught my attention: Chocolate Zucchini Layer Cake with Matcha Cream Cheese Frosting, Buckwheat Double Chocolate Cookies, Coconut Tres Leche Cake, Coconut Vanilla Chiffon Cake and Cherry Chestnut Chocolate Cookies.
Speaking of cookbooks, there’s another one that I’m really excited about, and it’s Nina‘s first cookbook Bowls of Goodness, to be released in January. Every recipe I made from her blog was fabulous. Nina has so much talent – she creates some of the most inventive and delicious vegetarian dishes I’ve seen. This book is definitely one to keep your eye out for.
Some awesome tips on how to throw a dinner party without stressing out.
I love #realdietstory – a new movement that encourages people to talk about their real diet and what goes beyond all the pretty photos and perfect lives portrayed on social media. Many bloggers and instagrammers have joined and shared their story (you can read mine in this Instagram post). Renee of Will Frolic for Food is the one who started this important conversation – you can read her story here, and see the people who have participated so far (she will keep on updating the list). If you feel inclined to share yours too, please do so!
This school replaced detention with meditation and it’s just amazing. Let’s hope other schools will follow that lead.
B12 deficiency is extremely common and has serious consequences (it is estimated that about 40% of us are deficient). Learn how to know if you’re deficient in this article, and what you can do about it.
Google’s The Hidden World of the National Parks project is pretty awesome.
I’ve been really into routines lately and I’m loving this fall wellness routine. Seems like the perfect way to slowly ease into this new season.
Portions: 9
Ingredients For the chocolate
- ½ cup coconut oil
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- ¾ cup 2 tbsp raw cacao powder
- Pinch of sea salt
- ½ cup hazelnut butter*
- 2 tsp pure maple syrup
- 1 tbsp mesquite powder - optional but delicious!
- ¼ tsp pure vanilla extract
- Pinch of sea salt
- Hazelnuts, to garnish (optional)
Instructions For the chocolate
- In a double boiler (or a glass or stainless steel bowl placed over a pot of simmering water) melt coconut oil. Once melted, add maple syrup. Then add cacao powder and sea salt and whisk to combine. Remove from heat. Taste and add more maple syrup or sea salt if needed.
- Pour ½ tablespoon of the thin chocolate sauce in 9 silicon or paper muffin cups. It should be just enough to cover the bottom. Set the remaining chocolate sauce aside. Place cups in the freezer to set for about 10-15 minutes.
- In a small bowl, mix together hazelnut butter, maple syrup, mesquite powder (if using), vanilla extract and sea salt. Taste and add more maple syrup if you'd like. Place in the fridge to thicken slightly.
- Remove muffin cups from the freezer and hazelnut butter mixture from the fridge. Separate hazelnut butter into 9 equals parts and roll between your hands to form little balls (the dough may still be a little soft, that's ok, it will work well too). Place each one onto the chocolate cups, and flatten slightly with your hands. The ball should cover almost the entire surface, leaving just a bit of space around. Drizzle the remaining chocolate sauce (you might first need to reheat it slightly to thin) on top of the hazelnut butter filling to cover.
- Top with a couple hazelnuts or chopped hazelnuts if desired, and place in the freezer to set for at least 20-25 minutes (or more as needed).
- I like to keep these in the freezer and remove them 10-15 minutes before enjoying. I prefer them with the center soft and gooey, but they're also delicious on the slightly harder side as well. Enjoy!
Notes *To make your own hazelnut butter, roast 2 cups of raw hazelnuts in the oven at 300F for about 20-22 minutes, until the center is slightly golden. Let cool. Rub hazelnuts between your hands to remove most of the skins. Transfer to a food processor, add a pinch of sea salt and blend until completely smooth and creamy (this may take a few minutes depending on the power of your machine). Store in an air-tight jar or container.
Nutrition Information Calories: 1627 Fat: 152g Saturated fat: 97g Unsaturated fat: 46g Carbohydrates: 74g Sugar: 59g Sodium: 302mg Fiber: 6g Protein: 10g
3.5.3208
“It’s perfectly okay not to be perfect.”
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