– How about a little guilt-free raw vegan fudge? –
My doctor is always telling me to cut down on the amount of sugar in my diet. I eat healthy in almost every way, but sugar is that insidious little gremlin that always seems to get the better of me. It’s not easy when you’re surrounded by things like tart and tender vegan lemon bars, you know? And I’m tired of snacking on celery sticks slathered in peanut butter. Sure, they’re good… but you can only eat so much celery. I mean, seriously.
Today, Carmella over at The Sunny Raw Kitchen posted a recipe for fudge that she found on the Raw Freedom Community. I’ve always been skeptical of raw chocolate desserts, which usually leave me underwhelmed with their chalky texture or bitter aftertaste, but I had all of the ingredients in the kitchen so I decided to give this one a go.
Wow! I was literally shocked with the finished product. The taste and texture are amazing, very similar to my grandmother’s traditional chocolate fudge. It can be chilled to create a true fudge-like texture, or it makes a great chocolate sauce if poured right from the blender. This recipe is definitely going into my mega-yum file.
Now, I must mention that while this vegan fudge does not have any refined sugar in it, it is not a sugar-free dessert fit for diabetics or a low glycemic diet. But if you are just looking for a healthier, unprocessed alternative to a chocolate fudge, this recipe will make your heart – and taste buds – sing.
Here is Carmella’s post on her raw vegan fudge recipe. And John over at FoodWishes recently made a video of this fudge recipe. Check it out for a full tutorial!
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 1/2 cup cacao powder
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or almonds
- 1/2 cup chopped dried fruit, (optional)
- Blend coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla, and chocolate in a blender until super smooth. You can adjust the amount of sweetener and chocolate to suit your tastes.
- Transfer mixture to a bowl and stir in chopped nuts. Feel free to add other goodies, such as coconut, berries, seeds, etc. I added dried blueberries to one batch I made with wonderful results.
- Spread fudge on a plate lined with parchment paper.Place the plate in the freezer to cool. Once the fudge is solid to the touch, cut into squares and chow down.
This content was originally posted on FearlessFresh.com.
this looks so yummy! this will be a must try recipe for me soon
oh this looks sooo sooo good. i need to try this !
YUM!!!
Thank you!
awesome and ya it is soooo soooooo good i made it today twice yum yum for the tum tum the best so far.
THANK YOU
Looks tasty…you said it easy to make right? Maybe i’ll give it a shot over the weekend
…but maple syrup isn’t raw. It has been boiled for hours. Maybe this would work with raw agave syrup or honey
Honey isn’t vegan though
I am very excited to try this! Since becoming a vegetarian I can no longer use my old fudge recipes, as they all contain marshmallows. Fudge is a favorite in my household (especially during the holidays) so this recipe is a life-saver. I am going to try it with dried cranberries and nuts.
Cheers!
Cinde ~ Gluten Free Taste of Home
Please report back and let me know what you think. If you like more “healthy” chocolate recipes like this, check out Heathy’s blog:
Just the recipe that I was looking for. Thank you thank you for sharing.
This is a great alternative for people with dairy allergies, also! I love maple syrup and its everywhere here because I live in Eastern Canada. Thanks for sharing!
I made this and they tasted great!
I put some peppermint oil in one batch – delicious :)
Oh! That’s a great idea! :)
I made these, followed the recipe religiously, and they were horrific- didn’t resemble fudge in the slightest. Waste of ingredients.
Hi Yasmin, My readers have had a lot of luck with this recipe. What was the problem so we can troubleshoot?
Yasmin, taste is subjective. They taste like fudge to me, and a lot of other people who made this recipe. Remember that you’re using non-standard ingredients when you make raw fudge. Expecting an exact replica is perhaps a little unreasonable, given you’re using an entirely different class of ingredients.
Made this tonight and its wonderful! turned out perfect!
Awesome! So glad you liked it!
Can you substitute agave for the maple syrup?
Hi SM, I think that would work just fine. :)
I added in dates and apricots, used broken pecans and next time might also put in some coconut. Delicious.
Maybe I’ve done something wrong, these looked nothing like the photo and didn’t taste like fudge :( sorry
Hi Rebecca, Check this out – John over at FoodWishes recently did a video of this fudge recipe. Maybe the video will help you figure out what went wrong? :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jChV-5vQAM
I loved it, very good
I have made this three times now, twice today because it was completely gone before I could get some. I did notice when I used a wisk the consistency was off and then I switched to a rubber spaatula and put the bowl over the hot water I used to melt the coconut oil it came back. Also noticed when I made it the second time I used pure vanilla and pure maple syrup it was even better. I also used brown rice crisps the third time because I didn’t have nuts and it was good too. Thanks for the recipe my daughter has been vegan since january and I found this recipe for her but its so good I make it more for me
Thanks so much for reporting back, Bunny! I will have to try that with the brown rice. Good call. :)
Amazing recipe! I haven’t frozen them yet, but the batter tastes better than a hershey’s chocolate bar. Seriously, delicious!
Hi! I tried this recipe today and it tasted amazing, but I couldn’t get it to set. I did melt the coconut oil before mixing it in but left it in the freezer for well over two hours so I doubt that was the problem. I’m going to try again tomorrow with less maple syrup but I measured it pretty carefully. Any tips on how I could make this fudge more solid?
Hi Aisha, so, if you put it in the freezer for two hours and it still didn’t solidify, then it sounds like you either have some wonky coconut oil, or you didn’t use enough. It’s not physically possible for coconut oil to sit in the freezer and not solidify, so this is a total mystery! Did you alter the recipe at all, in any way? What kind of cocoa powder did you use?
This looks excellent! I’d definitely like to give it a try. I make a raw vegan fudge (more like a crunch bar actually) that is a bit different than this, but also delicious. Here’s the link if you’d like to give it a try: http://thethrivinglife.weebly.com/1/post/2014/04/healthy-fudge-recipe-raw-vegan-gluten-free-delicious.html
Thanks for the link! I’ll most definitely check it out. :)
This recipe is divine! It’s so quick and easy to make and it’s very rich in taste. Mine turned out quite dark but I guess it depends on the brand of the cocoa powder. Will definitely make it again, and the peppermint suggestion sounds great too.
Just had to switch to a dairy free diet as my baby is allergic to milk protein and I found this recipe. Tried to make it straight away but had no maple syrup or honey. So had to improvise and I thought I would share my results. :-)
So I did the half cup of coconut oil and half a cup of cocoa powder. To sweeten I added half a cup of dates and as it didn’t blend super smooth I decided to add walnuts and a few sultanas to give it a real kick. The results were delicious and after two small patty pan servings my sugar and chocolate cravings are completely gone and in a super healthy way :-) I know have 5 patty pans left yay
Awesome, Jade!! I will have to try all this. :)
My six year old daughter is on a vegan diet due to food allergies…as you can imagine, it has not been an easy change for her. This recipe made her say, “mmmmm” and smile…thank you! It was delicious.
Awesome!! That makes me so happy to hear. Thanks so much for sharing. :)
This looks so scrumptious! Do you know how long it would stay fresh when stored at room temperature?
Thanks! I’d say about three days max, if they’re covered with plastic wrap. But they don’t usually make it that long before being eaten. ;)
Haha! Thanks!
Can’t wait to try this fudge recipe. Fudge is my most famous, favorite dessert in the whole world! Thanks for sharing :-)
I hope you enjoy it, Darlene. :)
How long should these be in the freezer? I have a dinner party tonight and they will be in the freezer for about 8 hours.
You can leave them in the freezer as long as you like. They can be eaten frozen, if you prefer, or you can let them thaw a little before serving.
I left them in the freezer for 3 hours and then the fridge. Everyone loved them! Awesome recipe!
So glad you enjoyed it! :)
Hi there! I would like to make this but I am allergic to coconut. Any suggestions on alternatives?
Hrmm. You could try food-grade cocoa butter, but make sure it’s food grade, since the cosmetic stuff is awful for you! Let me know how it goes. I might try a 50/50 coconut-cocoa butter recipe myself. :)
Could I use honey? My cousin is allergic to maple syrup. :(
Sure! Though honey is sweeter than maple, so you might start with half the amount and add more if needed. You could also use agave nectar or brown rice syrup. (Again, start with half the amount!)
Hey can I put any coca powder
You can if you like, but keep in mind you’re not cooking the fudge, so there *may* be a chalky/gritty texture because of it! If you try it, report back and let me know how it goes.
I want to make it but I have a question. 154 calories, is it for the whole fudge or just a little square ?
Sorry, this comment didn’t email me for some reason! The nutrition is per serving, and this is a 12-serving batch. So if you were to make this recipe and divide it into 12 equal portions, each portion would have 154 calories. Hope this helps!
This looks delicious, and I will be trying it this weekend! Just a small correction if you care (it sounds great either way). You have walnuts listed in your ingredient list, but instruct to add almonds later in the recipe.
Thanks for the heads up! :)
Someone noted that maple syrup isn’t raw. That is true, but I wanted to mention that the process of simmering maple tree sap to remove the water and concentrate the flavor doesn’t remove all the nutrients. There are 24 different kinds of antioxidants including some clinically shown to reduce inflammation. A couple tablespoons provide 2/3rds of your daily need for a mineral called manganese, something critical for healthy pituitary gland function, the pituitary is considered the master gland, the main frame in a system including all your systems. It if isn’t working well, nothing works well. Maple syrup is good stuff. The darker the better. I also love these raw cacao recipes because when you are getting all the nutrients of raw cacoa the tendency to overeat is removed. I imagine chocolate binging is the effect the body’s need for all the nutrients that chocolate has lost in the dutching process. It is really liberating to discover GOOD raw cacao recipes. . . . . the enemy (chocolate) has become an ally! How happy is that?