Poco Mountain Girl

These velvety hearts were crafted in my kitchen this morning, to replenish my dwindling supply. I’ll let you in on a little secret: I have one every single morning, and most afternoons. They are a treat fit for a queen. Each contains about a tablespoon of pure coconut oil along with a good serving of carob. Those are the main nutritional superheroes, but I also throw in a handful of finely shredded coconut, along with a few drops of natural flavorings.

Here’s the nuts and bolts recipe, which I came up with after a few experimentations:

1/2 cup virgin coconut oil

3/4 cup carob powder (you could also use cocoa, but you’d need to add sweetener)

6 T shredded unsweetened coconut

several drops of vanilla, or other flavoring

additional sweetener optional

Melt oil over very low heat. Add all ingredients, stir well. Pour into candy molds and refrigerate.

They can be stored at room temperature, if your room is fairly cool. I keep them in the fridge just to be sure they don’t melt, and often in the freezer, because I like the extra cold crunchiness. I have to warn you, they are not very sweet (which I personally LOVE.) It’s only the natural sweetness of the carob that sweetens them. David thought they were kind of bitter when he tried them, but then, he likes things extra sweet.

If you don’t have candy molds, you can line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and pour the mixture on. When it cools, break it into chunks. It will be kind of like chocolate bark.

I usually make these with a bit of coconut butter subbed in for about 1/4 of the coconut oil, and that really makes for a delectable taste, and seems to sweeten them more, for some reason. But I ran out of that, and didn’t use it this time. I have to say, though, the texture is a bit more delicate with just pure coconut oil. More melt-in-your-mouth, you know?

I normally multiply this recipe several times, since it only makes 9 hearts. The good fats and nutrient-loaded carob make a perfect start to my day (coupled with a raw almond-milk smoothie with green powder and chia seeds). Same thing for an afternoon pick-me-up. I never get those fatigued afternoons anymore that I got all through my teen years and through college and into my 20’s. Actually my whole life, shall we say.

According to my calculations, each of my hearts are about 150 calories, which is almost half of what I seem to need for breakfast or a snack. And don’t be afraid of the fat. Coconut oil is a fat that burns as energy, as are other healthy fats. You really do need them. (It’s overdoing on the low-fat stuff that gets us in trouble!) Coconut oil is a saturated fat, but it’s not unhealthy. It’s actually full of anti-viral compounds and a ton of other goodness that I won’t go into. It offers a great balance to your system.

So I hope you try these. They are very easy and so delicious. If you prefer some sweetness, just add a bit of whatever you like (I’d recommend agave nectar) and be sure to have fun with the flavors. Peppermint is wonderfully cooling and adds a bit of zing, and I’ve also tried almond extract for a really delicate cherry flavor. The above batch is orange-vanilla, and I’m also sold on that.

Don’t forget to wear your crown when you eat them.

This entry was posted on Friday, March 12th, 2010 at 3:04 pm and is filed under General, Happy Healthy Hippie Food, Recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.