Cherry Mama's Paleo Chocolate Cherry Bombs

I am just enjoying my afternoon snack while my kiddos nap. I love mommy time. This time of day is very easy to undo how hard I worked all morning. 

But today had *nom nom* not Bon Bon! 

My newest treat is chocolate! *gasp* Using nothing but the most basic ingredients you can become a chocolatier. ( I so feel like one now.)  Sometimes  I think I eat Paleo because I want to be difficult challenged.

The basics of Paleo Chocolate is just coconut oil, cocoa, and honey. Yup. That's it. But I decided to dress it up a bit. Why not. I have always loved dark chocolate and fruit.I don't know what it is about that pairing! *Drool*

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They got sort of messy when they didn't need to be. I couldn't find my silicone tray. Which would of been adorable because they are cute little stars.  I just had foil cupcake liners and I had to manipulate them a bit.  I think they look like Hans Solo frozen in carbonite. 

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♥Cherry Mama's Cherry Bombs♥

1/4 cup raw unrefined coconut oil

1/4 cocoa powder (as pure and natural as you can find it)

2 tsp. Raw unfiltered organic honey

1 tsp of Maple extract

Cherries 

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Melt oil,with honey and optional extract over stove, low heat, you don't want it to boil. Add in  cocoa powder use a whisk or fork.( I recommend using extract, because decadence is the point here). Plus pure cocoa can be a bit bitter for some. I used maple because it reminded me of the filling in those assorted chocolate trays :-)  It went amazing with the cherries. Place your cherries in your silicone tray or foil cups and pour chocolate over them. Move quick because if you dilly dally it starts to set in the pan and it can get a chunky look. Which happened to me, because I was dicking about with the foil cups! Let them set in the fridge or freezer for about 30 minutes. Then *nom nom*. Keep in fridge.

The base recipe

1/4 cup raw unrefined coconut oil

1/4 cocoa powder (as pure and natural as you can find it)

2 tsp. Raw unfiltered organic honey

1 tsp. of Pure Organic Vanilla Extract (optional)

The base recipe

1/4 cup raw unrefined coconut oil

1/4 cocoa powder (as pure and natural as you can find it)

2 tsp. Raw unfiltered organic honey

1 tsp. of Pure Organic Vanilla Extract (optional)

Want more?

Repeat process, this time add orange extract!
The possibilities... endless. I love playing with extracts, I went to the store the other day and I was just in awe of all the flavors available. Too many ideas, I could spend a fortune.
But some basic favorites:
Shredded coconut with Almond Extract
Almonds, with Almond...
Dried fruits with what ev!

I bet you have Almond Butter? Are you ready for big time Paleo Food Porn!!!??? Check out these naughty *nom noms*

Oh I just died... best photo project today. I have had no breakfast or lunch because of all my hard work here;-)

For almond butter cup, I used my base chocolate recipe, with vanilla extract. I didn't do almond I was afraid there wouldn't be any separation of tastes from the almond butter and chocolate. But by all means 'go nuts'. I am sure I will go down that path eventually. 

So don't laugh had to line my muffin pan with tin foil! But it worked perfect. Mkle up a batch pour in your cups, let set. Once hardened use 1/2 tsp of almond butter. Put a dollop in the middle and spread it out a little, but not to the edge. 

I know foil... it so worked!

After adding your almond butter put back in the fridge  while you make up another batch of chocolate. (I only say this because its 90 degrees outside things were getting a bit oily.) Whip those puppies back out and pour your chocolate. Optional add almonds to the top. Toss back in the fridge. Should set in about 30 minutes. I so a little prod test if I am getting a bit 'ancy in the pancies'. 

Did I tell you I LOVED this photo project! 

Maybe a little too much.

Almond Butter Cookies

Like the original article stated: "As a HUMAN, you are obligated to love, cherish and covet the beloved cookie." So true my friend, so true. I eat a Paleo Diet, but even within the Paleo Lifestyle there are debates about how non-Paleo, or Paleo some foods are. I use the tools and ingredients that are available to me in the Paleo spectrum and make stuff (very caveman-ish). I also just love the challenge of creating, or recreating recipes. Thats why when I found Enjoy Life Chocolate Mini Chips at a regular grocery store (and not overpriced) I had to find a recipe to celebrate with.

 Paleohacks.com shared  some great Paleo Cheat Day Recipies. I thought I would give one a try. I don't do cheat days BTW, I do a lot of IF (intermittent fasting).  I have very limited time to get in my calories. So I like to enjoy those few hours without blowing my calorie and sugar intake. I am writing this as the bake, and now are cooling so it could turn out very badly.
 I already had an almond yogurt today, you think I will turn into an almond if I have an almond cookie with almond milk? Here goes....Oh---my-- STARS! These are too good to be  for real. Toddler approved too!

I modified the original recipe and used some of the optional alternatives that were given. I will note those for you so you know what I am raving about. For this I will be in red.

What You Need:

• 2 cups almond flour (or 1 cup almond flour, 1 cup vanilla protein powder) *I used 1 cup of protein powder
• ½ cup raw almond butter
• 2 organic cage free eggs
• ¼ cup honey (or truvia for calorie free) *I used Stevia, would use just a scant  1/4 cup
• tsp baking soda
• tsp vanilla
• tsp salt *I used 100% natural sea salt
• 2 cups dark chocolate chips (Enjoy Life is dairy free and is my favorite brand.) * I so agree great brand BUT, I used 1 cup of the minis, and it was PACKED full of chocolate. I could not imagine using 2 cups!!!

What You Gotta Do:

• Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl.
• Roll dough into small balls and smoosh lightly onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes in a 375 degree oven.

What I will do next time:

• Mix dry ingredients
• whisk eggs separately in a bowl, and then add the almond butter and vanilla
• add dry  ingredients into wet, and then mix in your chocolate chips.

The only reason I would do it like this next time was because the consistency of the mix. I thought I had mixed it really well, but I still had clumps of protein powder at the bottom. If you use a hand mixer for your almond butter and eggs first you will have a softer texture and dry ingredients will mix in more thoroughly.

Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies a Paleo Recipe

Yikes, you know what the hardest thing going Paleo (after you flush your system from cravings that is)? Is the baking part. I wanted some thing to snack on, something like I dunno, a cookie! I also have 6 tubs of almond butter in my pantry (oops, double ordered). I  have been experimenting like there's no tomorrow. I have tried batch after batch of 'things' containing coconut flour too. They were just gross! They were so dry, and felt like there was a cotton ball lodged in my chest. Lovely huh? Before the personal ban on peanut butter (it's a legume) I never really liked it. Unless it was in a chocolate cup. I also did not like peanut butter cookies either. I know so how did I end up with almond butter cookies? Well they sounded easy enough, and they were mixed with coconut sugar, that got my attention. This was also after countless hours of searching and trying to bake with coconut flour. 

So I found this little ditty, thank you Pot Kettle, Kettle Pot!

This was the easiest recipe too. There are a lot of basic almond butter cookie recipes out there. They all really have just a few ingredients, but this one used my newest favorite: coconut sugar. It's a really great alternative sweetener.
Mentioned  in the blog is that they 'get better with age', it didn't really dawn on me that happens with Paleo style baking. It's so true too, they became even more tasty each and every day!

I will be making these again and again, my new go to Paleo cookie.

Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Chewies (ABC’s)

Makes approximately 20 cookies. They may be small, but they pack a pretty big caramelly punch of flavor.

Here’s what you need…

• 1 c. unsalted almond butter (Barney Butter is the Nom Nom!)
• 1 c. coconut sugar 
• 1 egg
• ½ – ¾ tsp. ground cinnamon
• pinch of salt
• ¼ – ⅓ c. chocolate chips 

Let’s get busy…

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. (You can prep 2 baking sheets or do like i do and just reuse the first one in between batches.)
3. In a bowl, beat your egg on high for about 30 seconds with an electric mixer.
4. Add in all of the rest of the ingredients including the chocolate chips and blend together. (If you wait to add in your chips after this step you will have a very hard time trying to get them mixed in!) This mixture will be very thick like sticky grainy taffy. (That’s the best way I can describe it.)
5. Use a small (1½ T) cookie scoop, to measure out your cookies. Flatten out your dough balls in a criss-cross pattern like a typical peanut butter cookie or just flatten them out to ½” with your finger tips. They do not spread a lot so they can be placed about 1½” apart on your cookie sheet.
6. Bake for 10-13 minutes. (Don’t be alarmed when you see oil around the outside of each cookie from the almond butter. That’s normal and will not be there by the time they are done.) I don’t like an under done cookie so I tend to bake them more in the 11-12 minute range. I baked a batch for a strict 10 minutes and they were fine but a bit under for me in the center.
7. Allow these to cool off the hot pan or on a baking rack for 20-30 minutes. They can be stored in the freezer if you allow them to thaw slightly first. I’d store them in a ziploc bag in the fridge if they don’t disappear first.
8. Enjoy with a glass of milk or a cup of your favorite coffee.

Notes:

I’d advise against refrigerating your dough in between batches. Your mixture will become too stiff and you may mangle your cookie scoop. That would be bad.

I will keep searching for a recipe in the snack realm using coconut flour, I promise!