Raw Hazelnut and Mint Chocolate Truffles
I have been asked by many people how to make raw chocolate truffles. It is no secret that people love chocolate. Just the word arouses passionate responses from young and old alike. What better gift to give yourself and your friends than a treat that not only delights, but is also made from healthy ingredients! I once heard it said that desserts are the gateway to raw food. Why not open the door and give some of your non-raw friends a taste how good healthy raw desserts can be! Don’t tell the until after they have eaten them. They will be truly surprised!
The basis of this raw chocolate is Cacao Powder. Cacao is super-rich in antioxidant flavonols. The antioxidants in cacao are highly stable and easily available to human metabolism. Cacao powder has more than twice the antioxidants of red wine and up to three times what is found in green tea. (Cornell University). These are just a few of the healthful properties attributed to Cacao.
Raw Hazelnut and Mint Truffles
Filling
- 1 cup cashews, soaked at least 3 hours
- 1/3 cup agave (or liquid sweetener of your choice)
- 1 cup dried coconut (non-sweetened)
- Place drained cashews and agave in food processor. Process until smooth.
- Add dried coconut and mix until well combined. A ball should form.
- Remove half the mixture and set aside. You will be making two different fillings.
Hazelnut Filling
- 1/2 cup hazelnuts, soaked for at least 3 hours
- Add hazelnuts to the mixture that is still in the food processor. Process until nuts are chopped fine and mixture is well combined.
- Refrigerate for 1/2 hour.
Mint Filling
- 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
- Add peppermint extract to remaining mixture and mix well. Refrigerate for 1/2 hour.
Assembly
- Roll filling into 1″ balls. Place in freezer for 1 hour. While filling is setting up, make the raw chocolate.
Raw Chocolate
- 1 cup raw cacao butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1/3 cup powdered sucanat (finely ground in coffee grinder)
- 2 tablespoons agave (or liquid sweetener of your choice)
- 7 ounces cacao powder
- Melt cacao butter and coconut oil in dehydrator or over hot water.
- In food processor, combine melted cacao butter, coconut oil, agave and vanilla. Remove 1/2 mixture and set aside.
- Add 1/2 cacao powder and combine. Add sucanant and combine. Add cacao butter that was set aside and combine.
- Add remaining cacao powder, mix well. It should be quite liquid at this point. It will harden as it cools.
Assembly
- Take a filling ball and place a toothpick in it.
- Dip it in the melted raw chocolate.
- Holding the chocolate dipped ball over the chocolate, let the extra chocolate run off. Be patient and wait until it has all dripped off. You can slowly turn the ball while it is dripping to get better coverage.
- Holding the chocolate covered ball upright, slide just the tip of a fork off under the ball, very carefully slide the ball onto a non-stick sheet. Repeat until all filling balls are covered. Place back in refrigerator to set chocolate.
Notes: Sucanat is not considered to be raw. It is made from the juice of the sugar cane. It is not a “processed sugar” and retains the highest nutrient value of the sugar cane (which is not exceptional, by the way).
Alisa wrote on September 18, 2011
What a beautiful recipe…truly gourmet. I would use raw coconut sugar ground up, or date sugar for that fine dry powder that gives it a good consistency. I can already taste them! Yum 🙂
Isabella Grace wrote on June 20, 2011
Why don’t you sell these (truffles) for those of us who are salivating but too lazy to make them 😀 ? I would definately order mail order. Let me know if you ever decide to and thank you and bless you!!
Isabella
Debra Fleck wrote on March 21, 2011
I like your recipes and I am just beginning to get started on the raw foods experience. I would comment on your raw chocolate recipe listed above. Cocoa powder is derived from roasted cocoa beans. It’s not raw so a person is just as well served using a high quality chocolate couverture. I am quite surprised by vegans and the raw foods crowd who don’t understand how chocolate is made. With every food there is always much to learn and chocolate seems to be very confusing for most people. Good chocolate is derived from a series of steps with 2 major steps being 1) fermentation, and 2) roasting!
Susan wrote on March 21, 2011
Debra: If you look closley, we are not using Cocoa powder, we are using raw Cacao powder. Big difference. Raw cacao powder means the cacao has not been exposed to temperatures exceeding 116 degrees.
Low temperature processing retains the vital nutrients in the cacao powder. Heat-sensitive antioxidants, minerals and vitamins are optimally preserved when low temperature processing is used. The organic cacao beans are cold pressed into a paste and then pressed at a maximum temperature of 116 degrees to remove fats and oils. The remainder is cold-ground to produce the Organic Raw Cacao Powder. There is no roasting or fermenting.
Sheen wrote on January 16, 2011
Hi! Does anyone happen to know if I can substitute the vanilla and Sucanat with liquid vanilla stevia? I’m new to raw and would love to know more.
Thank you!
Namaste,
Sheen
Tracey Lytle wrote on January 12, 2011
I wanted to know if your chocolate Raw Hazelnut and Mint Chocolate Truffles
are in your Rawmazing Dessert Book?
Thank You!
Tracey
Randahl wrote on November 28, 2010
In response to the powdered agave vs. powdered sucanat, you could probably make it work, but keep in mind that you would have to most likely use less agave powder since it is almost entirely made of fructose. Sucanat, on the other hand, is closer to half fructose and half glucose, and fructose is, I believe, about 60% sweeter than glucose.
These look fabulous, by the way. I’m definitely going to be trying these puppies out this holiday season 🙂
Yulia wrote on September 8, 2010
all recipes are wonderful!!! and all these pictures make me feel hungry 🙂
luciana wrote on July 7, 2010
Hi Susan, thanks for sharing the love 😉
I’m wanting to try it out but am wondering at what point should I add the agave when making the raw chocolate?
Love and light
Luci