How to Make Chocolate

4.69 from 16 votes

Pouring Homemade Chocolate


Chocolate. What is it with girls and chocolate? You donโ€™t find many of us who are neutral on the subject. I was, though. I didnโ€™t see the point, really. Give me a chunk of goat cheese on nice cracker and call it a day. My eyes, as they say, have been opened. I am interested in chocolate, of course, out of a strictly scientific inquiry into its anti-oxidant benefits. Of courseโ€ฆ

Homemade Chocolate, Cocoa Powder and Hazelnuts

Chocolate has long been prized as a fortifying elixir. Montezuma, the Aztec emperor famous for his revenge, said that chocolate was a โ€œdivine drink, which builds up resistance and fights fatigue.โ€ Thatโ€™s rightโ€ฆwe used to drink the stuff. And cocoa beans were ground with stones. The technology for a Snickers bar was a good 600 years off at that point.

Homemade Chocolate Ingredients

If โ€˜chocolateโ€™ is synonymous with โ€˜candy barโ€™ around your house, you might be surprised to learn that the cocoa bean is crunchy and bitter. You get two fractions from cocoa beans โ€“ the cocoa powder and the cocoa butter. Early on, chocolate was simply cocoa powder, cocoa butter and sugar. Technology made chocolate smoother, creamier and shinier; food conglomerates have made chocolate cheaper by substituting yucky vegetable oils, cheap fillers and very little of the precious cocoa bean. Good quality dark chocolate has very rich, complex flavours and cocoa buffs can debate single origin chocolate the way oenophiles can sniff out tobacco notes in a malbec.

Homemade Chocolate, Melting Coconut Oil

Cocoa beans contain a whole lot of biologically interesting substances, namely caffeine and theobromine โ€“ they fight fatigue! โ€“ and compounds known to evoke the same chemical response in the brain as falling in love. Thatโ€™s why girls like chocolate! Cocoa is also incredibly rich in compounds called flavonols, which are potent anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant chemicals. It is for these flavonols that you want to make your own, unprocessed, chocolate. Processing can degrade a lot of these healthful compounds.

Homemade Chocolate Stirring

Making your own chocolate can be inexpensive or a bit pricey, depending on the ingredients you use. If you typically buy good chocolate, you will definitely save money per bar.

Finished Homemade Chocolates

Finished Homemade Chocolates
4.69 from 16 votes

Homemade Chocolate

By: Desiree Nielsen
Making your own chocolate can be inexpensive or a bit pricey, depending on the ingredients you use. If you typically buy good chocolate, you will definitely save money per bar.
Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Total: 2 hours 30 minutes
Servings: 10 servings

Ingredients 

  • ยฝ cup either pure cocoa butter or virgin coconut oil
  • ยฝ - ยพ cup cocoa powder, raw, ethically sourced
  • 2-3 tbsp honey or maple syrup
  • ยผ tsp vanilla bean seeds
  • optional โ€“ unsweetened dried fruit or raw nuts of choice, plus up to 1/8 tsp of cinnamon and/or cardamom

Instructions 

  • Line a small loaf pan with a piece of parchment large enough that it wraps up two sides. This will make the chocolate easy to remove later on. Alternately, you could use silicone muffin cups for medallions. Sprinkle dried fruit or nuts across bottom of pan, if using.
  • In a small saucepan, melt your fat over low heat.
  • When melted, add cocoa powder and honey and stir to incorporate for 2-3 minutes. ยพ cup cocoa and 3 tbsp honey will give you a seriously dark chocolate. ยฝ cup cocoa and 2-3 tbsp honey is milder and sweeter.
  • Turn off heat and stir in vanilla bean and spices, if using.
  • Pour into loaf pan or cups and refrigerate until hard, at least 2 hours.
  • Remove from fridge, cut into bars or just devour the whole darn thing. Note that this chocolate will be a bit more melt-y than the store-bought kind.

Notes

Because honey is a heavier substance, it may settle to the bottom of the chocolate. This creates a nice, fudgy layer but if you prefer a standard texture, stick to maple syrup.

Nutrition

Calories: 107kcal, Carbohydrates: 3g, Fat: 10g, Saturated Fat: 9g, Sugar: 3g
Like this recipe? Rate and comment below!

Wondering whether chocolate passes The Kitchen Test? Here’s Andrew’s #Unprocessed FAQ on Chocolate.

About the Author

Desiree Nielsen is a registered dietitian in Vancouver, Canada who feeds her young child plenty of kale and quinoa and will pretty much talk your ear off about why you should eat more organic food if you let her. She shares her nutrition musings (and occasional rants) on her website, desireerd.com.

You can also find her on Pinterest, Instagram,ย and Twitter.

A photo of Andrew Wilder leaning into the frame and smiling, hovering over mixing bowls in the kitchen.

Welcome to Eating Rules!

Hi! My name is Andrew Wilder, and I think healthy eating doesnโ€™t have to suck. With just three simple eating rules, we'll kickstart your journey into the delicious and vibrant world of unprocessed food.

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29 Comments
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October 22, 2012 11:11 am

I’ve been making a lot of white chocolate lately but I have a feeling that this tastes WAY better. So fun and simple. I’ll have to try this soon!

Colleen
October 17, 2012 1:49 pm

5 stars
Desiree, Have you tried this recipe with Dutch Chocolate? I know it is on the “exceptions” list for Unprocessed, but I love Dutch Chocolate! By the way, Dutch chocolate uses potassium to alkalize it.

October 14, 2012 5:27 am

Thanks for posting this recipe! I’ll definitely be trying it out. Maybe with some chili sprinkled through for spice? Yum!

Gloria
October 14, 2012 3:16 am

Thanks for the suggestions of using silicon cupcake molds. I used a similar recipe for making vegan chocolate chips and I was wondering about making them into chocolate candies. One word of caution for those who have not tried this. Coconut oil has a very low melting point. These chocolates will definitely melt in your hands from my experience. I store my homemade chocolate in the freezer to keep it from being messy.

October 13, 2012 7:06 pm

I’ve never tried making chocolate but I have everything I need in the pantry. It will be an interesting Sunday afternoon. ๐Ÿ™‚

October 13, 2012 6:42 pm

I so badly need to try this! NOW!

Wait… darn, it’s way too late. It’ll have to wait a bit. But I have a jar of extra virgin coconut coming in the mail and just bought the darkest, most beautiful cocoa powder ever. I just know what I will be using them for!

I’ll be making my very own Fleur de Sel Fine Chocolate. Oh my, I can’t wait! Thank you so much for this amazing recipe.

October 13, 2012 2:50 pm

Hi Andrew! I just found your blog and am loving it! The rules on your ‘about’ page are ones I adhere to as well. This chocolate looks amazing! I can’t wait to explore more of your recipes.

October 13, 2012 9:07 am

Will real Vanilla/Vanilla Extract work in place of the beans? And will these work for chocolate chips?

Reply to  Desiree Nielsen
October 13, 2012 10:48 am

Thank you! I have been wanting to make chocolate chip cookies (I’m trying to show my family that unprocessed doesn’t mean that their favorite foods are “off the list”)

Reply to  Jacqui Gonzales
October 13, 2012 8:03 pm

Jacqui, did you mean to MAKE chocolate chips?

Instead of pouring the chocolate into molds, pour it into a baking sheet lined with parchment, spread it out into an even layer, and let the chocolate cool. Then you can break it up into “chips.” =)

Hannah
October 13, 2012 8:22 am

Is it crucial that the coconut oil is virgin? It seems like all I can find is pressed…

Cheryl
October 13, 2012 8:01 am

Desiree, this looks heavenly! I can’t wait to try it. Where do you find your cocoa butter and cocoa powder?