Manic Mondays -- When Fudge Goes Primal

I had to take last week off blogging; grad school is already devouring large chunks of my schedule.  Not that I’m complaining – I adore school, and if I had unlimited resources, I would be a perpetual student.  But it does mean that most nights I have to choose between finally sleeping and doing non-school things (like cleaning and blogging).    

However, I took the past two weekends to carve out a little time to revamp our family’s eating habits.  Well, at least make an attempt to start revamping anyway.  Since my most destructive eating habits rear their ugly heads when I’m stressed (read: studying), and because I’m tired of fighting perpetual fatigue, I’ve gone primal.  Or paleo, or ancestral – depends on who you’re reading. 

But with Valentine’s Day coming up, I couldn’t stand the thought of doing without chocolate.  So, after talking to my epically primal Brother- and Sister-in-law (these two are insane health nuts – I aspire to their awesomeness) I found this great recipe for primal fudge at Practical Paleo.  I tweaked it a teensy bit, and am in love with this treat.  So much so that I had to hide it in the back of the fridge – lest I eat them all before Thursday. 

The Firefly helped, and is now totally into Paleo.  At least the treats.  We’re still working the veggie side.  After a taste test, the kids were complimentary [I said it tastes like dark chocolate and reese peanut butter cups had a delicious baby]; but did admit that these little gems are “NOT Nana fudge.” 

No, dear ones, they certainly aren’t.  But they’ll do in a Paleo-pinch.    

 

Paleo Fudge:

1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup creamy almond butter
1/4 cup raw honey
2 tablespoons vanilla

1. Begin with melted coconut oil [yes, I attempted the boiling water bath most purist suggest; but eventually I got tired of waiting and exposed my pure oil to the radiation of the microwave.  Baby steps, people.]

2. Blend all ingredients together in a blender [if you have food processor, I’m sure this would be easier.   My poor blender almost burned out the motor because it’s so thick.  In the end I had to use the good ole fashioned wooden spoon, and then plastic spatula].

3. Pour into paper-lined muffin tin cups, filling half-inch full. This made 10, though they are very big!  I would even say fill to quarter-inch full and double the recipe.

4.  Chill for 30 minutes [I let mine sit overnight]. When firm taste the Paleo goodness! Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator.  Don’t worry, they won’t last long.