Healthy chocolate is like a dream come true, right? This raw spirulina chocolate recipe delivers exactly that: a healthy, dairy-free and vegan treat for chocolate lovers, with hidden superfood ingredients!
High in B vitamins, protein, iron and numerous other vitamins and minerals, spirulina is a vibrant blue-green algae (the alone color is seriously impressive) and it thoroughly deserves it name as a superfood; it’s also perfect to incorporate into a healthy vegan diet since it supplies some of the most important nutrients we need. The flavor on its own, however, could be described as an acquired taste.
The first time I tried it, I added around a quarter of a teaspoon into a smoothie and wondered what the fuss was about – I couldn’t taste anything other than the fruit. On my next spirulina experiment I must have added closer to half a teaspoon into my smoothie and the difference in taste was a bit of a shock; a subtle-but-unavoidable seaweed flavor permeated through the smoothie and lingered in my mouth for the best part of the morning. The lesson here then is to be sparing if you’re new to spirulina!
There couldn’t be a more pleasurable way to take advantage of spirulina’s health benefits than in this raw spirulina chocolate. The raw chocolate can be made from either cocoa powder or cacao powder, or even a 50/50 split; I’ve tried them all out and the main difference really is that a cocoa option will be cheaper to make whilst a cacao version will have more health benefits.
Once the ingredients are combined, they form a smooth soft paste. If you try eating it at this stage, it will taste good but feels surprisingly drying in your mouth as the powders suck away the moisture in there. Once set in the fridge this quality will disappear and the texture becomes more like a medium-firm chocolate.
For spirulina to offer up its full nutritional potential, it’s best to go for an organic variety so you know it will have been produced cleanly. For this raw spirulina chocolate I used some from Indigo Herbs, who I’ve raved about before, and who kindly sent me some samples in their beautifully redesigned packaging – and of course they are kindly offering a bundle for one reader of The Tofu Diaries (full details below the recipe!).
- 50g cocoa powder OR 50g cacao powder
- 2tbsp maca powder (can be swapped for additional cocoa or cacao powder)
- ¼ to ½tsp spirulina powder
- 6 dates, chopped
- 30g coconut oil, plus a little extra for greasing
- 1tbsp maple syrup
- Add all of the powders and chopped dates into a Vitamix or high powered food processor and blend until the dates are completely ground.
- Gently melt the coconut oil in a small bowl, if needed (it may be soft enough if you're in a warm place) - you can do this in the microwave or over a pan of water.
- Stir in the powder mix and maple syrup. Mix well until everything is fully combined.
- Grease a 4in x 6in (or thereabouts) container with the extra coconut oil and spoon in the chocolate mix. Press firmly and evenly into the pot.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least fifteen minutes then cut into squares to serve. Store in the fridge until needed - it'll keep for at least a week if covered.
You may remember I mentioned at the start of the month I’d be running some great giveaways to say thank you for everyone who has supported my in these first two years of The Tofu Diaries, here’s the second of those giveaways!
Win an Indigo Herbs Superfood Bundle
The superfood bundle includes:
Organic SuperGreens Powder Blend 100g
Organic Wheatgrass Powder 100g
Organic Spirulina Powder 200g
Organic SuperProtein Powder 100g
Organic Moringa Powder 100g
Never entered a Rafflecopter giveaway before? Find out how to enter here. Open internationally – for full T&Cs, see the Rafflecopter. Closes midnight 23/02/2016.
Have you tried spirulina before? What recipe would you recommend?
