Paleo Lemon Fudge (vegan, gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free)
This healthy paleo lemon fudge is incredibly easy to make and is also vegan.
This is another one of those recipes where I have to pick a title and it doesn’t exactly fit, but whatever… it’s the closest I could get. ;) This vegan paleo lemon fudge isn’t as fudgy as regular fudge, but it’s fudge-like and should definitely satisfy any cravings you may have.
This is probably the healthiest fudge recipe I’ll ever post. It consists of cashew butter, coconut butter, coconut oil, lemon juice + zest, and a whopping 1 tablespoon of maple syrup for about 10 pieces.
I love the lemon flavor in here. I thought that the cashew butter would overpower the lemon, but it doesn’t at all. At least with my cashew butter! (I used homemade). You can taste some coconut, but it’s not all that strong, and I’ve tried with refined and unrefined coconut oil. If you want as little coconut flavor as possible, use refined.
Paleo Lemon Fudge (vegan, gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free)
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons (30 grams) coconut butter
- 1/3 cup (85 grams) salted natural cashew butter the kind with just nuts and salt
- 1 1/2 tablespoons (21 grams) coconut oil softened (it should be soft enough to stir into the other ingredients)
- 5 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup I recommend Grade A and not the darker, more intensly flavored Grade B syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest or more, to taste
- pinch salt if cashew butter is unsalted
Instructions
- Weigh out and warm the coconut butter over low heat or at half power in the microwave. It should be runny.
- Stir all the ingredients together and pour into mini muffin liners (waxed, paper, or silicone liners all work) or a silicone candy mold. It yields just over 2/3 cup of fudge so if you use 1 tablespoon of fudge per liner, that'd yield 10 pieces. Freeze for 30 minutes or refrigerate until hardened.
- Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 2 weeks. They’re too hard to eat straight from the freezer so you need to let them defrost for about 20 minutes. I think freezing and then defrosting them right before eating yields a fudgier outcome. The fudginess also depends on your cashew and coconut butter. I’ve made this about 6 times, using homemade cashew butter and coconut butter each time (all from different batches). Each batch of homemade butter yielded a slightly different texture in the final product.
Notes
- I had my fudge sitting out for half the day and while it didn’t melt, I wouldn’t want to transport them at room temperature. Transport them after having frozen them! It’s still quite cold here but they may melt in warmer environments.
- If you want to make a bigger batch, I think this would work well using the small jar of a high-powered blender.
- The nutrition information provided is calculated as a courtesy and is only an estimate. I am not a licensed nutritionist or dietitian. For the most accurate nutritional data, consult a professional or use your preferred calculator. This recipe yields 8-12 servings or 2/3 cup of fudge. The nutritional info was calculated based on 12 servings.
Nutrition
Categories:
Candy, Dairy-free, Gluten-free, Grain-free, No-bake Desserts, Paleo, Spring Recipes, Summer Recipes, Vegan, Winter Recipes,
HI Erin!
This looks SO good, but alas, I can’t do cashews at all or sunflower seeds. Anything with strong lectins really does a number on my digestive track. So I begin another leg of food journey. eek! Anyway, what, if anything would you suggest as a substitute for cashew butter? I’ve tried all coconut butter fat bombs, but they just don’t taste that great to me, there’s a heaviness and backtaste. And I’ve tried different brands, some not quite so heavy, Would love a CREAMY alternative. Thanks for any suggestions.
Hi Maria! Unfortunately, in this recipe, cashew butter is definitely the only nut butter that will work. Almond or peanut butter might work in some recipes, but not this one, because lemon doesn’t go well with them. Perhaps blanched almond butter might? I’m sorry about that (and also for just now seeing your question!).
Hi, I have read about your healty problems. Eating clean is absolutely wonderful. Thank you for these beautiful recipes.❤
Please don’t take it wrong but have you ever tried to clean from parasites? They can cause a lot of healthy problems and they can hide everywhere in our body for long long time! I recommend to do that to everybody on the world once a year! x
Hi there! That’s one of the few things that I haven’t tried. I’ll definitely look into that. Thanks for the tip! :)