Raw Fruit and Nut Chocolate

This was the first chocolate I ever made and people seem to like it. I use date syrup to sweeten it, which I have not seen in other recipes. The result is a rich fruity chocolate which is a great complement to nuts and dried fruit. You can use any combination of nuts and fruit that you fancy. At Christmas I often use goji berries because they bring a festive red to the chocolate, I also sometimes include dried shredded coconut, don’t be afraid to experiment. Toasting the nuts and coconuts adds crispness and flavour but you don’t need to do this if you would prefer not too. Just pack the chocolate with lots of fruit and nuts so there is some in every bite.

Ingredients

• 75g Raw cacao paste
• 75g Raw cacao butter
• 75ml Date syrup
• 1 teaspoon of rose or vanilla essence (I like rose but vanilla is good too)
• 100g of nuts
• 100g of dried fruit eg cranberries, golden berries, goji berries and (my favourite) white mulberries

Method

1. Put a glass bowl in a saucepan full of boiled water to create a Bain Marie (the bowl should be big enough, and the pan small enough, that water cannot get into the bowl.
2. Melt the cacao paste and cacao butter together in the bowl, stirring constantly to help it melt.
3. When all the cacao is melted add in the essence and the date syrup, keep stirring.
4. You should find that the mixture begins to thicken a little when the date syrup is added. Taste test it with a small teaspoon, if you feel it needs to be sweeter add a little more syrup, but this ratio of a third each for the main ingredients usually works.
5. Line a saucer or other flattish receptacle with greaseproof paper.
6. Toast the nuts if you would like them toasted.
7. You can either pour the chocolate into the receptacle and then add the nuts and fruit or put the fruit and nuts into the receptacle and pour the chocolate over (or a combination of both).
8. To cool the chocolate either place in the freezer for 20 minutes or so or cool in the fridge until the chocolate is completely set.
9. The chocolate melts easily so is best kept in the fridge until you are ready to eat it, you will find a little goes a long way!