Monday, April 9, 2012

Raw Frozen Coconut Truffle "Dove Bars"

When I was around eight years old, my oldest sister was in high school and had a regular job babysitting for a family that lived across the street from my elementary school. She would pick me up from school some days and take me over to play with the little boy and girl she was watching.  I loved going over to their house because they had so many convenience foods that we never had in our home. Why was I so twisted that I thought that TV dinners were a delicacy?  I guess they were just novel to me because I was fortunate to have a mother who cooked dinner every night--which I certainly did not appreciate at the time.  Other than frozen entrees, I loved to raid the miniature Dove ice cream bars this family always had on hand.  When I took a bite of these raw frozen treats that I concocted last week, I was immediately taken back to my memories of those Dove bars.  Of course, these raw frozen truffles have a personality of their own--but they are as rich and delicious as the ice cream treats of my youth.


For the creamy filling:
1 1/2 cups raw, shredded coconut
3 Tbsp. cocoa butter
1/4 cup xylitol or coconut sugar (I used xylitol to get the white color of the filling, but if you have objections to that, I'm sure coconut sugar would work!)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 Tbsp. coconut milk

For the chocolate coating:
3/4 cup raw, shredded coconut
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 c. raw, shelled pumpkin seeds
2 Tbsp. cocoa butter
2 Tbsp. agave nectar, coconut sugar, or xylitol
2-3 Tbsp. coconut milk, or more, if needed to reach a smooth, pliable consistency 


1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  In a food processor, puree the all of the creamy filling ingredients until a smooth dough forms that can hold together well. Shape the filling into about a dozen evenly-sized rectangle or egg shapes. Place them on the prepared baking tray and freeze for 10-15 minutes while you make the coating.
2. To make the chocolate coating, clean out your food processor work bowl and add the chocolate coating ingredients, starting with 2 Tbsp coconut milk.  Puree until the coconut and seeds are all ground up; add more coconut milk, as necessary, until you have a smooth, spreadable consistency that you can mold around the filling. 
3. Remove the tray from the freezer and roll each piece of frozen coconut cream in the chocolate coating. This is a bit messy; you will need to use your fingers a bit to mold the chocolate all the way around the filling. Place the finished truffle bars back on the tray and freeze for a half an hour to firm up the coating before you eat them.

Hooray for Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays , Allergy-Free Wednesdays, Wellness Weekend and Made from Scratch Mondays!

I almost passed out from shock when I walked in and saw this loving embrace. I made them hug again so that I could record it for posterity, but this outburst of affection was Sawyer's idea, not mine.  Abiline was so thrilled; she just loves her Ya-ya. 




15 comments:

  1. Yum! I adore chocolate and coconut together! Thank you for sharing with us again on AFW!

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  2. Hi There,

    Found your recipe today on Wellness Weekend. These look incredible. I love your story too. Amazing how food can bring us right back, no. I'm going to have a go at these here soon. I'll check back in with you. I've also pinned these!

    Be Well,
    -Amber

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  3. Thanks so much, Amber! I hope you can make them and enjoy them. This weekend when I wanted to make some deadly brownies, I mixed the same ingredients together in a the food processor and it also made a great frosting :)

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    1. Oh Allison, that sound so amazing!! Well, I have all these ingredients on hand (even the cocoa butter that I use in homemade lotion). So I'll be making these this weekend. These just look too good not to try! Can't wait. :-)

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  4. Super adorable photos of your kids and these delectable treats! YUM on the latter. The pumpkin seeds were a surprise. ;-)

    Shirley

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  5. Hi Allison,

    I made these this afternoon! Just waiting for them to set in the freezer. I have a question for you. My filling is not beautiful and white like yours? Can you offer me some direction on how to make it white? The coconut sugar turned it brown for me.

    Thanks so much!!

    --Amber

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  6. Oh my, good point! I checked my recipe notes, and I wrote down "xylitol or coconut sugar." I must have used the former but thought the latter? I am so sorry! I sure hope they still taste great--please let me know. I am going to update my post pronto--I really appreciate your help.

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  7. Hi Allison,

    No worries at all! I leave things out of recipes too! :-)

    So just some notes here, I do think the coconut sugar changes the texture of the filling a bit. Have you tried it with the coconut sugar? Just curious. I think another liquid sweetener would have been a good choice for me (in addition to xylitol, like honey or agave). And also, a note on the coating, I used agave, but also had to add 13 tablespoons of coconut milk to get a smooth texture, and it still doesn't look as creamy and smooth as yours. My only guess is we might be using a different cocoa butter? Mine is a bar and I shave off what I need. I saw your link there, is your cocoa butter soft? Just curious. Thanks for the recipe guidance Allison!

    --Amber

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  8. Interesting... My coconut butter is not soft, but I suppose there could be variations in texture between the different brands. I used just a few tablespoons of coconut milk for the chocolate, so I was surprised to read that you needed so much. The outside coating was pretty thick for me, which is why I wrote to "roll" the filling in the coating rather than dip it. I really appreciate your feedback! I do hope you enjoyed them.

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  9. I appreciate your feedback Allison!

    The 13 tablespoons of coconut milk made it just right to roll. I was able to pick up a chunk of coating and pat it all around the filling (no dipping). Despite the variations, they are delicious! :-)

    Thanks for a fun recipe. I don't know if you received an email or note yet, but this recipe was the #1 reader favorite last week on AFW (out of over 100 recipes)! Pretty great. Thanks for sharing it with us. I look forward to another recipe from you this week. :-)

    Warmly,
    --Amber

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  10. Hey! I came across your site through Allergy Free Wed. recipe link. These sound absolutely divine! I can't wait to give them a try. I would like to invite you to share this recipe on my 'Made From Scratch' Monday recipe link if you are interested. It is a weekly event, and is open until midnight each Wed. I have several readers that are coconut fanatics like myself, that would truly appreciate this recipe ☺

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  11. I would love to--thanks, Mary! I would sure like to know how you like them when you get a chance to make them!

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  12. I am so glad you shared your recipe in my 'Made From Scratch' Monday hop. Your recipe is being featured this week as our Reader's 2nd choice! Congratulations! Hope to see you back again soon ☺

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    1. Wonderful! Thank you so much for inviting me to post :o)

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  13. These look great! I love the way the inside looks and can't wait to try them.

    They kind of remind me of a frozen vegan bar I recently made below.

    http://bedstuyfoodie.blogspot.com/2013/01/ooey-gooey-vegan-chocolate-peanut.html

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