Valentines Goji Heart Chocolates

Instead of the typical box of chocolates from the shops for Valentines day, why not treat your loved one (or yourself in my case) to some pretty homemade chocolates that you've made yourself? In my opinion the best gifts are always those that have had extra effort and time taken over them. Not only are these delicious and easy but they are also super good for you. One or more of these and you'll be high in the clouds with happiness, not to mention love!

The recipe below is just an estimate of what I used. Adjust the recipe to be as runny, thick, bitter, or sweet as you like. To make make more runny, add coconut oil, to make more thick add some more cacao powder, and to make more sweet if the cacao powder is too bitter add some more maple syrup or vanilla. Keep tasting as you go along so the chocolates will taste just the way you like. Also make sure to do it all quite quickly as the chocolate will begin to set if you make them too slowly. How do I know? My first batch didn't turn out so pretty. Haha :) The thing with this sort of recipe is trial and error-once you've done it a few times you'll get the hang of it.

I get my cacao butter and cacao powder from The Raw Chocolate Co and the coconut oil I use is Lucy Bee that I get from Sainsbury's for £6. To make these you'll need any kind of silicone mould. I used one that I found from M&S but there are some from amazon that are great for this sort of thing that you can get for really cheap and Lakeland do one thats really good too. If you don't have a silicone mould you can also use an ice cube tray or some bun cases. If you use bun cases make sure that they are firm enough so that the mixture won't spill out as soon as you move them. To take extra precautions place them on a mat or something solid to transfer them to the fridge.

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Makes 6 large or 20 small chocolates

Ingredients:

100g Cacao butter
4tbsp Coconut oil
2tsp Vanilla extract
100g Cacao powder
6-8 tbsp Good quality maple syrup (add more or less to your personal preference)
2-3 phandfuls Goji berries or other nuts/dried fruits (raisins would work really well)

You'll also need: Heart or other shaped silicone moulds and a sieve

To Make:

1. Fill up a medium sized saucepan with water and bring to the boil. If you can, try not to let the pan get hotter than 45 degrees Celsius so all the ingredients contain their original nutritional value.
2. Chop the cacao butter very finely (this way it will melt easily) and set in a glass bowl with the coconut oil.
3. Take the boiling water off the heat and place the bowl on top of it. 
4. Let the cacao butter slowly dissolve and melt down to a liquid. When it has all melted, stir in the vanilla.
5. Sieve in the cacao powder and mix until smooth with a wooden spoon. Add the maple syrup and goji berries. 
6. Slowly pour into moulds and leave in the fridge for thirty minutes to an hour or until firm. When they are ready push out of the moulds and put in a plastic container/box. The chocolates will stay fresh for up to three months in the fridge, though I doubt they'll last that long!

Happy chocolate making!

Lots of love,

Emily X