This is a gluten-free and vegan version of a popular chocolate spread. It only takes three ingredients to make and the best part is that you can replace anything with anything. Replace almonds with hazelnuts or macadamia nuts, milk or white chocolate with dark chocolate, and heavy cream, soy milk, or cow’s milk with almond milk. Of course, if you add cream or cow’s milk, the spread will no longer be vegan. You could also add a splash of your favorite booze and flavor the spread with vanilla, orange zest, or cinnamon. Smear it on croissants or bread, use it as a filling for cookies, crepes, or doughnuts, or eat it straight from the jar. Da mi je nešto slatko inspired the recipe.
Ingredients:
- 200g almonds, roasted
- 150g dark chocolate (60% cacao solids), melted
- 60-100ml almond milk
Directions:
In a food processor, combine almonds. Blend until the nuts are finely ground. The ground almonds will begin to accumulate around the edges of the bowl, so scrape down the sides every few minutes to keep everything blending evenly. As the oils from the almonds are released, they will begin to stick together and form a large mass that will move around the bowl. Continue to process until you have a relatively smooth almond butter. This should take 5-10 minutes, depending on the amount of almonds you use and the power of your food processor.
Please be patient. Melted chocolate should be poured over almond butter and pulsed until combined. The spread will be quite thick at this point, so add almond milk one spoon at a time until it is creamy and spreadable. Keep in mind that the spread will thicken in the refrigerator, so make it a little thinner than you’d like. You’ll be able to eat it right out of the fridge this way. Fill a clean sterilized jar halfway with chocolate spread, screw on the lid, and place in the refrigerator. Use within three to four days.
Commentary.
I saw the recipe for this incredible Chocolate spread on one of my favorite Croatian food blogs a while back. It was love at first sight, and I knew I had to make a decision quickly. I modified the recipe slightly by substituting almond milk for heavy cream.
This makes the spread vegan and reduces fat and calories. You only need three ingredients to make this chocolatey goodness, and you can experiment with different substitutions to make it your own. Experiment with different nuts or white chocolate. You can also add orange zest, spices, and a splash of booze to your spread. Take the jar and a spoon and prepare to be amazed once you’ve created your own variation.