For those embracing a ketogenic lifestyle, the allure of chocolate doesn't have to be a forbidden pleasure. Making homemade keto chocolate is surprisingly easy, quick, and significantly more affordable than purchasing pre-made sugar-free alternatives.
Why Make Your Own Keto Chocolate?
The primary reason to embark on this culinary adventure is control. You have complete command over the ingredients, ensuring a truly sugar-free product. Most store-bought milk chocolate contains over 50% sugar, making it an unhealthy choice. Even some "keto-friendly" chocolates can be expensive or contain questionable sweeteners like maltitol, which can spike blood sugar levels.
The Basic Recipe: Only 3 Ingredients Needed
You only need 3 ingredients to make your own delicious keto chocolate from scratch:
- Cacao butter
- Cocoa powder
- Powdered sweetener
Ingredient Breakdown
- Cacao Butter: This provides the rich, smooth texture characteristic of chocolate. While coconut oil can be used as a substitute, it will impart a distinct coconut flavor and require the chocolate to be stored in the freezer to maintain firmness. Using melted food-grade cacao butter instead of coconut oil and omitting the vanilla extract (the water it contains can cause the chocolate to seize when cacao butter is used) is the best option.
- Cocoa Powder: Opt for unsweetened cocoa powder. Dutch-processed cocoa powder, being less acidic, is often preferred for its darker color and smoother flavor.
- Powdered Sweetener: Powdered erythritol is a common choice, but powdered allulose is ideal for an ultra-smooth texture as it melts and doesn't recrystallize like erythritol. To powder granulated sweetener, simply blend it in a high-speed blender.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Melt the Cacao Butter: Warm the cacao butter in a pan over low heat until just melted, stirring continuously. Alternatively, use a double boiler to prevent the cacao butter from overheating and becoming grainy. Be careful of water.
- Combine Ingredients: Remove from the heat. Add the cocoa powder and powdered sweetener and stir until combined. For an even smoother result, blend the cocoa powder and sweetener in a high-speed blender to a very fine powder before adding it to the melted cacao butter.
- Add Optional Extras: Incorporate any desired additions, such as a teaspoon of orange zest, a pinch of cinnamon, a pinch of sea salt, a pinch of chili, ⅓ cup (50g) low carb granola, or a handful of nuts and seeds.
- Mold or Spread: Fill the mixture into a silicone chocolate mold to create chocolate bars. Alternatively, spread the mix on a firm surface lined with parchment paper.
- Chill: Refrigerate or freeze until firm.
Variations and Customizations
The beauty of homemade keto chocolate lies in its versatility. Here are a few ideas to spark your creativity:
- Nuts and Seeds: Add chopped nuts and seeds.
- Flavor Extracts: Experiment with different extracts like vanilla, peppermint, or almond.
- Spices: Incorporate spices like cinnamon, chili powder, or nutmeg for a unique flavor profile.
- Sugar-Free Chocolate Chips: Make sugar free chocolate chips!
- Chocolate Clusters: use melted chocolate for chocolate clusters, chocolate covered blueberries, almonds or any other nuts.
- Chocolate Sauce: mix with a bit of coconut oil for Magic Shell and dip your Ice Pops or Ice Cream Cones in.
- Truffles: combine with few additional ingredients for special Homemade Keto Truffles.
Keto-Friendly Chocolate Brands
While homemade is often best, several brands offer keto-friendly chocolate options:
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- Lily's: A popular brand known for its stevia-sweetened chocolate bars, baking chips, chocolate-covered almonds, and peanut butter cups.
- ChocZero: Sugar alcohol-free and sweetened with monk fruit, ChocZero offers individually wrapped squares for easy portion control.
- Nicks: A good choice in the UK.
- Kexbar: A personal favourite.
- SlimFast Keto Fat Bomb Peanut Butter cups: Low-carb, available at Wal-mart, and satisfy that craving for Reese’s.
Understanding Sweeteners
Choosing the right sweetener is crucial for keto chocolate. Here's a rundown of keto-friendly options:
- Stevia: A zero-calorie sweetener available in powdered or liquid form. Liquid stevia is often preferred as it isn't bound to a carb base.
- Erythritol: A common sweetener that closely resembles sugar in taste, has minimal impact on blood glucose, and is readily available.
- Allulose: A newer sweetener that doesn't recrystallize, resulting in a smoother chocolate texture.
- Monk Fruit: A natural sweetener that is a great option for people who are sensitive to sugar alcohol sweeteners.
Sweeteners to Avoid:
- Maltitol: A sugar alcohol that can significantly spike blood sugar levels. Avoid sugar-free chocolates from brands like Russell Stover and Atkins that use maltitol.
Storing Your Homemade Keto Chocolate
This keto chocolate is stable at room temperature in a sealable container. It will keep well for up to four weeks. Personally, I like to store my chocolate in the freezer. You can certainly freeze those Sugar-Free Keto Chocolate Bars and that is exactly what I suggest in making with our White Chocolate Bars.
Health Benefits of (Keto) Chocolate
Science has proven that chocolate has a whole host of health benefits. It is a powerful source of antioxidants, can lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart disease, to name a few. Raw cacao has powerful antioxidant properties. The butter is a great source of satiating, anti-inflammatory fats.
Keto Chocolate Recipes
- Easy Sweet Keto Chocolate Chaffle Recipe with Cream Cheese
- Chocolate Ripple No Bake Keto Cheesecake Recipe without crust
- Decadent and Creamy Rich Homemade Sugar-Free Hot Chocolate Mix with spiced Cinnamon
- Sugar-Free & Keto Smores Chaffle Recipe
- Best Fudgy Keto Brownies made with Almond Flour and a dash of Tabasco
- Keto Marble Bundt Cake Recipe with only 5 ingredients
- Low Carb Chocolate Mascarpone Cake
- Keto Chocolate Cupcakes with Frosting
- Keto Fudgy Brownies
Keto Chocolate Candy Bar Recipe
- 4 Ingredients
- Ready in 5 minutes
- No baking required
- Easy to customize
- Affordable
Ingredients
- Unsweetened chocolate
- Almond butter
- Coconut oil
- Sticky sweetener
Instructions
- Line an 8 x 8-inch baking dish with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a microwave-safe bowl or stovetop, combine your chocolate, almond butter, sticky sweetener and optional coconut oil and melt until combined.
- Add your nuts/seeds of choice and mix until fully combined.
- Pour the chocolate mix into the lined baking dish and spread out using a spatula.
- Refrigerate or freeze until firm.
- Slice into chocolate bars.
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