You know what I eat before every meal?
THIS frozen coconut candy.
According to the book Eat Fat, Lose Fat, unrefined, virgin coconut oil provides “vital nourishment to every cell in your body…” and also helps one to feel satisfied — decreasing cravings and persistent hunger.
That’s why this candy is full of coconut oil — and full of yumminess!
Peppermint Pattie Coconut Bark + Almond Joy Version
Line a 9″ by 13″ baking pan with unbleached parchment paper. Set aside.
Using a food processor, mix the coconut oil, extracts, cocoa powder and honey until smooth and warm, and it exhibits some fluidity. Add the coconut, and pulse to incorporate. Don’t overmix or you risk chopping up the coconut.
Using spatula, spread the mixture out thinly (1/4-inch to 1/8-inch thick) on the parchment paper. Transfer to a level spot in the freezer. Let freeze for 10 to 15 minutes. Eat frozen; break off pieces the size you desire. Will melt at room temperature — keep frozen.
Almond Joy version
Omit 1/2 of the coconut, substituting chopped crispy almonds. Omit the peppermint extract and double the vanilla extract.
Peppermint Pattie Coconut Bark
Full of coconut oil and full of yumminess! See the recipe notes for Almond Joy version.
Adapted from this recipe*.
Ingredients
- 1 cup coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons peppermint extract
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup raw honey or stevia, to taste
- 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
Instructions
-
Line a 9" by 13" baking pan with unbleached parchment paper.
-
Set aside.
-
Using a food processor, mix the coconut oil, extracts, cocoa powder and honey until smooth and warm, and it exhibits some fluidity.
-
Add the coconut, and pulse to incorporate.
-
Don't over-mix or you risk chopping up the coconut.
-
Using spatula, spread the mixture out thinly (1/4-inch to 1/8-inch thicon the parchment paper.
-
Transfer to a level spot in the freezer.
-
Let freeze for 10 to 15 minutes.
-
Eat frozen; break off pieces the size you desire.
-
Will melt at room temperature -- keep frozen.
Recipe Notes
Almond Joy version
Omit 1/2 of the coconut, substituting chopped crispy almonds. Omit the peppermint extract and double the vanilla extract.
*The original recipe called for melting the coconut oil and whisking it together with all the ingredients. However, I can't get that to work! The oil separates out. So I use a food processor to emulsify everything. This does result in a thicker mixture -- so if you don't have a food processor but you DO have a strong whisking arm, you might want to try it the other way! This makes a double batch of the original recipe.
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Hi, Wardee,
I love your new website! It is easy to use and much more clear than the other blog you had.
Just a quick question: where do you find the best deal for purchasing coconut oil?
Thanks!
Hi, Julieanne! Thanks for letting me know that you are enjoying my new site. I was hoping for easier navigation and it really helps to be able to customize it myself, which I couldn’t do before.
The coconut oil I get is from that natural food warehouse where you took me to pick up an order once. They have the best deal. They’re out until the end of the month, though. I need some more myself! So I’d say Azure is the next best choice.
Wardee,
As always, thanks for sharing your wonderful recipes! I was excited because I actually had all the ingredients on hand to make these delicious treats. I did have to make a few adaptions however because I only had coconut butter and sweetened shredded coconut. I melted the coco butter as much as I could before mixing. I don’t have a food processer (I need to get one!) so I tried my blender but the mix was too dry. I ended up mixing by hand and adding the coconut flakes at the end and it wasn’t too hard at all. I think the texture and taste might be a bit different because of the butter instead of oil, but it is still delicious. I’ll plan to pick up coconut oil to use next time. Keep the recipes coming! 🙂
Rachel
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Rachel! When you do get the coconut oil, you can melt it and whisk in the other ingredients. Whisk well to fully incorporate them, otherwise they tend to separate in the freezer. That’s actually the way the original recipe is done, but I prefer to use the food processor. It might be the lazy way, but I have yet to figure out how to whisk well enough to avoid separation.
Hi Wardee,
thanks for digging this one up – I’m trying it as soon as I get thing 2 in bed! I bought 5# of cocoa from Wilderness Family Naturals and a ton of coconut meat and oil so this is perfect!
.-= Sustainable Eats´s last blog post… I (wo)Man, You Chicken =-.
Wardee, I love you and hate you in the same breath. They were stupendous. My brain would not tell my hand to stop. I feel like an 8 year old who just ate the entire Halloween bag! Needless to say I’ll be making them again but maybe only when my dh is around to watch me…
.-= Sustainable Eats´s last blog post… I (wo)Man, You Chicken =-.
Annette – 😀 I know! It really is hard to stop. I’m glad you liked them and hope you don’t hate me for long.
This recipe looks great! My MIL is crazy for coconut, so I will suggest this one when we are baking for the holidays. Thanks 🙂
.-= Greta @ Mom Living Healthy´s last blog post… Healthy Fat Recipe: Fresh Herb Spaetzle =-.
looking forward to trying this – when my freezer has space to keep a 9×13 pan level. (LOL!)
All week, I’ve been really pushing the coconut oil. The first week I really make such a concentrated effort – hoping for some help in the weight loss department. We’ll see when I get on the scale. I’ve wanted to do this for a while, but haven’t because I’m so brainwashed to think “lots of oil – you’ll gain weight.” I am fighting against the brainwashing!!
One thing I’ve noticed is that my feet which are ALWAYS COLD – haven’t been. Improved thyroid function? Just maybe. (it’s been a bit warmer this week, but I think it’s cold enough I would’ve been affected).
Thanks for your website & all your great encouragement.
Jessie – I can’t wait to hear more about what has improved for you with doing this. You can split up the recipe into smaller square or circle cake pans. Also, after it is frozen, you can break up the pieces and store them in a smaller container (in the freezer of course). I do know what you mean about space for a 9 x 13 – that’s why I usually use my 8″ square cake pans. 🙂
I’m feeling a healthy holiday dessert tradition coming on. I hope my family loves these! Thanks for linking into the October Fest carnival,
Katie
This looks so good! I was thinking of making it as gifts for people, but I’m guessing that might be a problem as it needs to be kept in the freezer… what happens if left at room temp? Does it melt? Thanks!
Amy – unfortunately, it does need to be kept in the freezer, else it will melt at room temperature. 🙁
hmm…I’ve been wondering why I haven’t gained much weight this pregnancy… maybe the coconut oil for cooking pretty much everything is what’s doing it…
rosebud – That’s great! Hopefully you’re not underweight though. 🙂 I only had that problem once, and wish I had it again. 😉
I love it! I need this. We were out of town last weekend with a non-traditional-eating family and ALL the treats had high fructose corn syrup and dairy in them! I don’t do either! (Dairy due to allergies). I NEED some candy I can eat too, and whole food candy is even better! 🙂
Oh yeah — and I do have a fudge recipe on my blog that uses whole foods. Coconut milk, turbinado sugar, coconut oil, raw cacao. It’s yummy too! Gotta have real food candy!
.-= Kate´s last blog post… God Working in My Life =-.
Kate – Enjoy! I’d love to see your fudge recipe. What’s the URL?
Wardee, I just finally got around to making this recipe yesterday. I wanted to tell you how much I enjoy it! And it is *so* much handier than boiling water, steeping tea, etc. when I want that extra bit of CO. Thanks so much for sharing it!
Hey, Wardee!
Just wanted to let you know I made this and am waiting, not-so-patiently, for the 15 minute timer to beep so I can go try some. 🙂
I think my husband will be pleasantly surprised to come home to some good-for-him treats! Plus, I made the Almond Joy version, and he LOVES those.
Have a blessed weekend!
Okay, the timer beeped just as my 5yo son was coming downstairs. The bark passed not only my taste-test, but his, with flying colors!
Oh, I also sprinkled a little bit of sea salt on top before freezing, as I really like salty & sweet, and it balanced out and enhanced the flavors very well.
Thanks for another nutritious culinary success!!
I love these! I decided to make the Almond Joy version. I put a large handful of untoasted almonds in my Vitamix and chopped them up finely. Then I added all the rest of the ingredients and then a few more almonds because I wanted the bigger chunks afterall. I poured, scraped the mixture into mini muffin pans and stuck them in the freezer. YUM! I can’t wait to see if the kids like them or not. I am the biggest coconut fan in the house so we’ll see. 🙂
Oh wow-mini muffin pans, that might be just what I’m in need of! I’ve been making this recipe for a while now, but have been trying to get it evenly spread in the pan so that I can cut them into reasonably equal portions and now how much coconut oil I’m getting per serving. The problem I forsee is the oil separating while pouring. Still working on the best approach there.
I love that people are still commenting on these 2 years after your original post. I love the idea of healthy chocolate bark. I add pistacios and sunflower seeds and I can’t keep them in the house; have to hide them.
Say yes to coconut oil and raw choicolate! Thanks.
Deb, I love that too. 🙂 I am so blessed by people who stop by day to day. Great idea to add the nuts and seeds!
This is the first time I’ve been here – someone on my facebook linked to this recipe. It looks wonderful, and I’m going to try it asap. I wish coconut oil weren’t so expensive, but that’s the *only* reservation I have about this one. It looks sooooo yummy!
I just made these (although I didn’t have any peppermint extract so I just made the basic version with only vanilla) and attempted to do it without the food processor (as I only have a “mini” processor). I melted the coconut oil and added a small amount to the cocoa, whisking so that it was ultra smooth. However, I then added the honey, wanting to whisk it in before slowly adding the remaining coconut oil, and it got really weird, sort of “seizing up” and getting really clumpy, and no matter how much I whisked or how slowly I added more coconut oil, it wouldn’t mix in.
So, I started over with a new batch, this time NOT melting the coconut oil. Instead, I used it right from the container (room temp, solid but soft) and added to the bowl. I then whisked in the cocoa and honey, then the vanilla and shredded coconut. This worked perfectly! I spread it on the pan, stuck in the freezer, and it froze up in no time. No problems with separation, before or after freezing. So the key seems to be using SOLID coconut oil. You may not get quite as smooth a mixture, but you really can’t even tell once you’ve mixed in the shredded coconut. Actually, my first batch was kind of a mess-pooling oil with a big clump of honey/cocoa in the middle, and I stuck that bowl in the fridge a few minutes, long enough for the oil to solidify, then took it back out and started mixing again, and it worked like a charm-everything mixed right in and I was able to spread that out and freeze as well!
Robin — I’m glad you got it to work! Yay! Your method is great in the summer, but not so great in the winter, though. It is hard to even scoop coconut oil with lower temperatures, it gets so solid. 🙂
Just what I was looking for! I was guessing that using the oil straight from the container (like soft butter) would work better but hadn’t tried yet. I experimented with 2 batches today-using my KA stand mixer instead of food processor-and had the same problem with batch 2-there was NO way to get the clumps of cocoa and honey to blend with the oil. I set the bowl in cold water and that just made it worse. I made 2 batches because I like peppermint and my husband doesn’t so I make it both ways. Maybe the mixer would still work using firmer oil and adding the honey after the rest has set up.
Oh wow, this looks awesome! I am definitely bookmarking this and maybe have something new to try making while I have a week and a half off from work.
Soli — Awesome! It is so good. I hope you love it. 🙂 Enjoy your vacation!
Almost 4 years after your original post and I just now stumbled upon this! Made some this afternoon and it turned out SOOOO good! I had to try a chunk of it right away when it was frozen, of course, and now I don’t feel like eating any lunch. Will probably make myself a green smoothie or something small to get in some additional nutrients… but wow, I can’t believe coconut has such an awesome effect on appetite control! Excited to see the results after incorporating this before meals for a couple weeks.