Paleo Vegan Hot Chocolate
This paleo vegan hot chocolate is ultra rich, creamy and date-sweetened. Honestly tastes just as delicious as a more traditional recipe! Can also be made GAPS and AIP-friendly.
Has anyone made the paleo chocolate marshmallows I posted on Monday?! If not, you’ll want to get on that because they’re just so perfect for this hot chocolate.
The hot chocolate recipe I posted last year, this ultimate hot chocolate, is a bit different. It’s just chocolate + evaporated milk or coconut milk for the vegan / paleo version. Definitely not healthy. But it’s sooo good that I usually don’t care.
Things are different right now, though. I’m on a super strict diet and can only eat fruit, vegetables (except for starchy ones like potatoes) and meat. No grains, dairy, nuts, legumes, starches, sugar and so on. If you’re familiar with different diets, I’m doing GAPS + AIP combined.
Before I started the diet, I prepared blog recipes for the upcoming several months, so don’t fear – the dessert recipes aren’t going anywhere. :)
So this hot chocolate is a little different than your standard vegan hot chocolate recipe! It seems like they usually use almond milk + some kind of starch to thicken the hot chocolate. Or cashews. Or several other things – all of which I can’t have at the moment!
So mine uses dates + coconut milk (or another type of milk, if you’d like). This isn’t a low-calorie drink but with just dates, coconut milk, cocoa powder and vanilla, I think this version is totally guilt-free. As long as you don’t drink too much. ;) And I love that it doesn’t taste coconutty at all.
I can’t guarantee it’ll be the same with every brand of coconut milk, but with the store-brand coconut milk I use, this tastes totally like a regular, dairy-filled hot chocolate. But richer. If you find it a bit too much for you, just add a little water until it’s thin enough for your liking!
January 2017 update: I tried this with regular (non-Dutch process) cocoa powder, and it wasn’t nearly as chocolaty, and you could taste the coconut milk. I actually had to add 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder, and that threw everything off. Definitely go with Dutch-process cocoa powder!
If you use a high-powered blender and blend it for about a minute, the dates are totally obliterated. I don’t think that’d happen in a food processor. You could try soaking the dates in boiling water, draining them, and then using a food processor to make this recipe, but it’s just an untested idea. I’m thinking it wouldn’t work in a regular blender, either.
I used regular pitted dates, but if you prefer to use Medjool dates, you can use those instead. Use the same amount in grams.
Next time, I’m going to add some mint leaves to the blender for a mint chocolate variation. I’m thinking a little almond extract would also be awesome! Or cinnamon. Or Kahlua! Or basically, anything that goes well with chocolate. :)
Paleo Vegan Hot Chocolate
Ingredients
- 14 ounces (400 ml) canned full-fat coconut milk
- 100 grams pitted dates that's about 16 – 18 dates regular-sized dates or 4 Medjool
- 1 to 2 tablespoons Dutch-process cocoa powder or carob powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla powder / bean scrapings
- 1/8 teaspoon salt I like things salty and use 1/4 teaspoon
- paleo chocolate marshmallows for serving, not vegan
Instructions
- Place the dates, 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder or carob powder, vanilla, salt and coconut milk in a high-powered blender (I haven’t tried this in a food processor). Blend for about 1 minute and add additional cocoa / carob, to taste. I like using 1 tablespoon cocoa powder for a lighter chocolaty taste but 2 tablespoons would be more suitable for dark chocolate lovers. With carob powder, I actually like 2 tablespoons.
- Once totally blended and no chunks of dates remain, heat until hot and steamy. Taste and if it’s too rich for you, add some water (or almond milk or whatever you’d like). Serve! Reheats very well.
Notes
- For the coconut milk, I used full-fat – if you don’t want to use coconut milk, you can use whatever type of milk you’d like but note that the hot chocolate will be less thick.
- I tried this with regular (non-Dutch process) cocoa powder and it wasn’t nearly as chocolaty and you could taste the coconut milk. I actually had to add 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder and that threw everything off. Definitely go with Dutch-process cocoa powder!
- For AIP: Use carob powder. Vanilla powder / bean scrapings are elimination-phase legal (read more here).
- For GAPS: Cocoa powder is GAPS-legal once you’re on the full diet and don’t have any digestive symptoms. Read here for more info. I also use vanilla bean scrapings but it looks like pure vanilla extract (with just vanilla beans + vodka) is legal.
- 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.
Nutrition
Categories:
Dairy-free, Drinks, Fall Recipes, Gluten-free, Grain-free, Paleo, Vegan, Winter Recipes,
O.M.Gosh. Best hot cocoa ever. Holy cow this is so good. I have tried so many different recipes and so many different things to get my Coco nice and thick and rich. Leave it to you Erin. You are my go to for so many delicious things these days. So glad I found you. Your baby is too cute btw. I was scanning through your recipes for something and ran into a post where his picture was. Love it!
Haha, yay! I’m thrilled to hear this. Sometimes people say this recipe is too thick and rich and I’m just like, “WHAT?! This is what all hot chocolate should taste like!” :D Thanks for the feedback and nice comment about my kid. :)
I used about 3/4 almond milk to 1/4 coconut milk and added a dash of vanilla and salt. It was amazing!
Awesome! I’m happy to hear that you enjoyed it and that almond milk works well, too. :) Thanks for your comment!
Hi, I ran across your blog and I will try this for the Christmas season coming up. what brand of coconut milk do you use? thank you!
Hi there! I’m sorry for just now seeing your question. I live in Germany and use a store-brand here so I’m afraid I’m no help. Just make sure to use a brand without added junk in it. It should just be coconut or coconut + water! Hope you’ll enjoy the hot chocolate. :)
Just now seeing this recipe. It sounds delicious! Wondering if you think raw cacao powder would work in place of the cocoa? (I want to try those chocolate marshmallows too!)
Thanks!
Thanks! I think it would work fine. I just prefer the taste of Dutch-process cocoa powder in this hot chocolate. :) Hope you’ll enjoy it and the marshmallows! And sorry for my slow reply.
Good Gracious! How am I supposed to make good choices when you post recipes like this!?
I don’t have a high powered blender so i sent it through my “Ninja”. As expected I had a lot of date chunks in the bottom, so I just poured it through a sieve.
Holy COW! This is so ridiculously delicious! Thank you!!
(I used 6 medjool dates and it was perfect!!)
Haha. Well it’s not the worst choice to make! ;) I’m so happy you enjoyed it. It’s good to know that a Ninja works – thanks for the tip! I’m sure that’ll help some others out. Thanks for your comment and sorry for my slow reply!
Have you found any recipes that you CAN have on AIP + GAPS that satisfy your sweet tooth craving, besides the hot cocoa marshmallows? ???? I’m starting something similar (it’s a SIBO Bi-Phasic Diet that will led into a mix of AIP and GAPS) and am trying to come up with a vault of recipes that will help me get through!
I’ve been inhaling dried mangos and dried sour cherries to satisfy my sweet tooth. :/ And I’ve made this hot chocolate a ridiculous number of times. All because the GAPS + AIP desserts I’ve tried are just not good. Most definitely not worth posting! There are loads of great GAPS desserts and AIP desserts, but the problem is the combination of both. I’m working on turning this hot chocolate into chocolate mousse, so at least there’s that. ;) I’m also working on a cookie recipe based on coconut butter. Good luck with your diet!