Death Row Chocolates

No, there isn't anything in this recipe that will get you the death sentence, but I did have an epiphany while savoring a few of these badboys that if I had to choose my last meal before execution, it would probably include these. Maybe a glass of champagne to go with? Oooh, I'm going to the chair, not the club... Anyways, these are so decadent and delicious that you will find yourself wanting them for your last meal and pre-meal too! I chose to make mine mostly raw because I'm kinda on that train right now, but you  can sub regular chocolate chips in for the cacao butter/ powder. 


I've been a little intimidated by the idea of making my own raw chocolates for a while. I mean, there are so many amazing brands that I've tried over the years, how could I compete? But when I was perusing one of my favorite West Village health food stores and found a funky little company that stone grinds whole Balinese cacao beans into a powder and then paste (assuming from the oils that are released) and then leaves it to harden into little bricks so they can easily be melted down over low-heat, I knew my time to delve into the world of raw chocolate making had arrived. (wow was that a run-on or what?!)


Sooo...I did exactly what the package told me to. I melted the little bricks of chocolate in a double-boiler and added a sweetener of my choice (maple syrup). I also added equal parts of coconut oil to make the chocolate extra silky smooth. I believe the ratio went something like this:

1 cup chocolate : 3tsp maple syrup : 3tsp coconut oil

As soon as all the ingredients were well combined, I turned off the heat and quickly (very key here) began dipping my strawberries into the mix. I poured the remaining chocolate concoction into heart shaped rubber ice cube trays (I think from Ikea?) which I had prepared by sprinkling half with Himalayan sea salt and the rest with coconut flakes so that they would rest on top of the chocolates after they hardened.  

It was so rewarding to have a healthy (chocolate is really good for you, okay!) treat on hand, and even more so because I knew exactly what went into making them; ingredient and labor wise. I learned a. to stop being intimidated by seemingly daunting tasks b. everything tastes better when you make it from scratch, no matter how imperfect looking it may turn out and finally,  c.  chocolate + sea salt= best combination. ever.