This post is very special as I’m posting this on the 2 year anniversary of my blog. If someone told me 2 years ago I would start a food blog and fall in love with food photography, I would NOT have believed them! Working on this blog and learning food photography sparked a creative side of me I never knew existed. I was going through a really tough time in my life and my blog was almost a form of healing and led me back to myself.
Okay, enough sappiness! One of my co-workers purchases little bags of raw coconut chips from the grocery store for a hefty price. They’re her favorite but she doesn’t like spending the money, so when I told her they were SUPER easy to make and I could make them WAY cheaper (and better – wink wink) she was ecstatic!
Of course it’s no secret that I love anything chocolate, so I was also super excited to make these Dark Chocolate Coconut Chips. I make flavored coconut chips often but had yet to make a chocolate flavor. This recipe turned out perfect: super chocolatey, crunchy, super-food infused, refined sugar free and full of antioxidant rich cacao!
You can put these on ice cream, in porridge, cereal, chia pudding and smoothie bowls!
To keep these raw, I used a dehydrator but you can also bake them at 300 Degrees for 8 to 9 minutes. I used large desiccated shredded coconut (dried coconut meat) which you can purchase in bulk or at any organic store.
Coconut and chocolate are two nutrition powerhouses, but I talk about chocolate all the time so lets talk coconut! So many people are scared of the fat content in coconut products; I seem to have this conversation quite often! Here is a really good explanation on why the saturated fat in coconut is ACTUALLY good for you!
Yes, coconut meat contains a large amount of saturated fat. However, unlike other saturated fats, which are long chain fatty acids, most of the fat in coconut is a medium chain fatty acid. Medium chain fatty acids are broken down much faster than long chain fatty acids, so they do not contribute to high cholesterol, as long chain fatty acids do. In fact, according to “The Philippine Journal of Cardiology”, the fat in coconut may possibly help to lower bad cholesterol levels and increase good cholesterol levels.
source: Livestrong.com
Reasons why you should be adding Coconut Meat to your diet:
- High in fiber – 1 cup of coconut meat contains 7.2 grams of fiber.
- High in maganese – 1 cup provides 67% of the recommended daily intake.
- High in Iron – 1 ounce boosts your iron intake by 0.94 milligrams, providing 12 percent of the recommended daily iron intake for men and 5 percent for women.
And did I mention it tastes amazing!!
If you have never tried coconut chips then you have to try out this super easy Dark Chocolate Coconut Chips Recipe!
Dark Chocolate Coconut Chips
Ingredients
- 2 cups Large Coconut Ribbons
- 2 tbsps Raw Cacao Powder
- 2 tbsps Lucuma Powder
- 1/4 cup Raw Coconut Nectar, or any other liquid sweetener
- 1/4 tsp Chaga Mushroom Powder, optional
- 1/4 tsp Vanilla Bean Powder or liquid vanilla
- 1/2 tsp Himalayan Salt or sea salt
Instructions
- Soak desiccated coconut for 4 hours or overnight.
- Strain coconut in a fine mesh strainer, cheesecloth or nut milk bag and place in a large bowl.
- In a medium bowl, mix cacao powder, lucuma, vanilla, chaga, and salt and mix until combined.
- Add liquid sweetener to dry mixture and mix until well combined.
- Add mixture to the large bowl with coconut and mix well. (I use my hands)
- Place evenly on a dehydrator tray and dehydrate for 18 - 24 hours. Also option to bake at 300 degrees for 8 to 9 minutes.
