Homemade Coconut Butter Cups..Easy, Delicious and Satisfying!

I live in a funny part of the Universe. I am surrounded by breathtaking beauty, majestic mountains and beautiful canyons. I'm able to find a trail head in any number of places within 30 minutes. I never take it for granted. Sadly, these imposing mountains rise from a valley that is plagued with terrible pollution every winter. Rising up through the fetid air and into the higher elevations the air clears and the skies are blue. Looking back, you can see a smokey brown blanket of poison laying over the clean, well planned city. :(
What does this have to do with homemade coconut butter cups??? Well, this January when we were choking from the smog and smut, we decided it was a good time to do a detox. The program we chose was just 10 days long and targeted environmental poisons as well as the usual culprits of sugar, alcohol, caffeine and wheat.
Luckily, my daughter and son-in-law joined me for this undertaking. We actually shopped for groceries together, shared recipes and commiserated together. It was pretty great!
Although I've really cleaned up my diet in the last several years I still enjoy baking and adding sugar to my coffee. Yeah, I only use organic, non-GMO ingredients. Still, organic cane sugar is still sugar. I was worried about giving up this sugar for 10 days.
This "cleanse" was well thought out and included supportive supplements and a nutritional "shake" mix. I was surprised by a couple of things. I was never hungry and I didn't crave sugar! I did crave blessed coffee and hot oatmeal cereal! Go figure...
I really thought I would lay awake at night twitching for homemade brownies or peach tarts. It didn't happen. I did dream longingly about hot, steamy, sexy coffee...and a HUGE bowl of steel cut oats!
I did go through some physical withdrawal symptoms. Mild headache and flu like symptoms on days 3 and 4 and possibly (I'm not sure) I might have been a bit snippy.
Well, day 11 rolled around and I had absolutely no desire to eat sugar! It was so strange. Of course I figured that wouldn't last but decided to ride the wave as long as possible! I thought if I stocked the house with a few "go to" snacks it would help drag out the sugar famine.
I purchased some very pricey coconut butter cups to have on hand. The ingredient list was small. Organic coconut butter, organic unrefined coconut sugar and organic dark chocolate. Although not craving sugar, I did crave a snack and those really hit the spot. I could happily linger over just one cup and have no desire to eat anymore. They were totally satisfying. Unlike the old days where I could easily knock back a half package of Reese's miniature peanut butter cups and still crave more! Side note...so glad I gave up high fructose corn sweetener! Never looking back!
Well, after about 2 weeks I had finally made my way through all of those stashed coconut butter cups. I thought about ordering more and then realized I could just make my own!
Several blog posts back I have recipes for making more traditional peanut butter and almond butter cups. They are very yummy and I highly recommend making those instead of indulging in their HFCS cousins...
So, I just figured I would use the same method and make coconut butter cups instead! I thought I might have to use a little trial and error to get the right ratio. Nope...I hit the target on the first attempt!

I have to admit I could not find "organic" coconut butter where I live. As soon as I go to the big city I am going to stock up! Note...this is "coconut butter" not to be confused with coconut oil. (which I also love)...

Gently warming the coconut butter and organic, unrefined coconut sugar. Yeah, it sort of looks like oatmeal...I just barely warmed it until it all melted together and was a spreadable consistency.

Sorry about the glarey picture! These are the chips I used. So many choices...I went with these and they worked just fine and taste good.

I melted the chocolate in a glass bowl over a pan of simmering water. You know the rules...NEVER get any water in your melting chocolate and DON'T use a microwave. Yes, I know you can melt it in the microwave...but, it's a microwave!!!

So here is the recipe I came up with...

1 cup of coconut butter
2 Tablespoons of organic, unrefined coconut sugar
tiny dash of good salt
1/2 teaspoon of organic or homemade vanilla ( I'm proud to say mine is homemade ;))

1 pound of good quality, dark chocolate

Warm the butter and sugar together until you have a nice smooth consistency, add the pinch of salt and vanilla and stir until blended...it will stay melty and smooth while you melt the chocolate.

I used mini muffin pans with mini cupcake papers. It yielded 24 mini cups.
Start by taking a teaspoonful of the melted chocolate and covering the bottom of the cupcake paper. Then dip your spoon again and add a bit more chocolate and drag it up the sides of the paper. I let it set up in the freezer for about 5 minutes.  Then, add a dollop of your coconut butter mixture right in the middle of the cup and pop that into the freezer for another 5 minutes. I was using 2 mini muffin pans and it worked great alternating them. Finally, scoop up another teaspoon of melted chocolate and top them off. I smoothed the chocolate with the spoon trying to make them look "perty"!
Then I put them in the freezer until they set up. After they were solid, I just kept them in the refrigerator in a container.
Confession...after I did the first 12 cups I added a 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract to the rest of the coconut butter mixture. So, I did 12 regular and 12 almond flavored. I also added a tiny sprinkle of Himalayan pink salt to the tops of the almond ones.
I think I may try making them with a bit of orange extract or a bit of mint extract next time. And oh, there WILL be a next time!

These are super fun and fast. Even better...I had 24 coconut butter cups stashed in my fridge!

I really am satisfied eating just one!!! Also, since the detox, I'm adding either a bit of this unrefined, organic coconut sugar to my morning coffee or a teeny tiny drizzle of maple syrup! So not missing the morning sugar!

One more thing! They taste exactly like the pricey store-bought coconut butter cups...! Yay...

If interested in the detox cleanse we used...find it here.

metagenics.com

German Pancakes...Winter Comfort Food...

We are knee deep in winter over here. It's been downright bone chilling for several weeks now. I feel like hibernating and think that is what Mother Nature actually intended! I want to wear fuzzy socks and long johns.
Oh, I've drug myself out into the elements several times. Living in this hemisphere in the winter you just have to. Once I get out into the beautiful snowy mountains I feel great...and then, I go home and put on my fuzzy socks and hide under a blanket.
My daughter suggested we try a 10 day metabolic detox this winter. I'm not much of one for the cleanse of the month or juice diet of the week...but, we live in an area that the cold air traps a lot of pollution during the winter and it is terribly unhealthy at times...think China...
Getting up above the smog and into the mountains is a must. For your mental health as much as your physical health. This year hasn't been as bad as usual. We have had storm after storm come through and cleanse the air. It makes a huge difference!
Still, a little metabolic detoxing can't hurt! Right?!
So, I'm right in the thick of this cleanse. Day 4 to be exact. I'm planning on going the distance and I don't feel hungry at all...but, I can't lie...I'm dreaming of two things...Coffee and German pancakes!
Winter comfort food at its best. The day after the cleanse I plan to make myself a creamy cafe au lait and a big ole plate of German pancake. Of course I will use whole organic milk and coffee and a bit of organic brown sugar for my steamy java and I seriously can't wait!
I love this pancake recipe for several reasons. For one thing, it's super easy! Then, I always have the ingredients on hand and it is relatively low in sugar and flour. For us chicken farmers we always have eggs in the fridge or in the coop ready to be collected. And, last but certainly not least, the Sprouts love nothing more than to crack eggs open! This is the perfect recipe to entertain those little busy hands.

Super Quick and Easy German Pancakes

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit

Throw the following ingredients into your blender:

6 eggs
1 cup whole organic milk
1 cup organic unbleached flour
1/2 tsp. salt

Blend it all up until just frothy.

Pour into a 9 X 13 pan that has 2 tablespoons melted butter and bake for 20 minutes.

Always blessed with such beautiful eggs!

It's fun for the Sprouts to peek through the oven window and see it puff up.

I sprinkled a bit of organic powdered sugar on this one. It was a special occasion! So pretty when you spring it from the oven.

Feel free to slather some grass-fed butter on top!

We doused it with organic maple syrup AND homemade peach butter! Yep...it's true!

Just a side note...we didn't have a great peach crop this year. A brutal hail storm took it's toll on the beautiful fuzzy peaches. I was gifted a box of local organic peaches. Kind of like getting a shipment of gold! I wanted to make the best use of them and honestly we ate most of them fresh. But...on a whim I decided to make some peach butter. Holy Cow...it far exceeded my expectation! It is outrageous! This really is comfort food at its finest...

If you are looking for me next Tuesday...I will be sitting at my kitchen table with a large cup of creamy Joe and a big ole plate of German Pancake!

Homemade Popcorn...A Simple Pleasure

I've been craving popcorn! Long cold winter nights and movies at home seem to be the cause. That crunchy, salty, buttery kind of popcorn that we used to make as kids...It has been haunting me!
I've been off popcorn for several years. That wonderful treat has become a demon. Corn in general is a BIG issue. It is almost impossible to find non-GMO corn in any shape, form or variety! We have way too much crappy corn in our diets! It is hidden everywhere and it has been turned into every possible additive. Corn sweeteners, corn fillers, corn starches and all made with GMO corn and corn products.
I have unsuccessfully planted non-GMO organic corn in my garden the last couple of years. The results were dismal and unrewarding. Well, this year we actually harvested 5 little ears of lovely golden corn. 5 little ears from several rows of corn! Still...they were the most delicious little ears of corn you can imagine! We ohhhhed and ahhhhed over each little bite and it brought back memories of corn back in the day. Back when corn tasted like corn and you couldn't get enough. When corn was sweet and delicate and flavorful. I'm willing to try again next year, even if we only yield another 5 tiny cobs...
Microwave popcorn became all the rage about the time all food became packaged and processed. I was as enamored with it as the next guy! Buttery, salty popcorn without any effort at all! No mess, no time. I also lived through all the other popcorn fads. Jiffy Pop, air poppers, free standing poppers, etc. I'm pretty sure they all ended up at Good Will with thousands of others. Mine did...
Then...microwave popcorn accommodated every possible fad! Movie style popcorn, low-fat popcorn, extra-butter, sweet and salty, cheesy, kettle corn. What a dream come true! I wouldn't be surprised if there is a "gluten-free" popcorn available! Just because that sounds cool and trendy! Toss a bag of this processed product into your microwave and in 2 minutes or less you have a large bag of warm popcorn. Never mind the ingredients. Don't worry about the fact that it is GMO and now one of the worst crops available. It tastes okay!
Then reports of "popcorn lung" cropped up! What??? A new disease occurred just from microwave popcorn?!? A new disease just because we want to eat some super fast and convenient highly processed popcorn? It just doesn't seem fair...
I had lost all will-power and occasionally had popcorn at a movie theatre. Somehow it is hard to enjoy, though. Thoughts of harmful GMO's run through my head and I'm pretty sure the butter they use is actually some form of motor oil. I never felt good after eating it. It might have been all in my head. Regardless, I stopped ordering it up at the movies.
Last summer we were invited to a lovely "cabin" in the mountains with my brother and his family. I use the term "cabin" loosely as there was a huge kitchen with Wolf appliances. One evening as we were playing card games and watching movies my niece got up to make popcorn. Hmmm...I was pretty bummed as I've sworn off popcorn and didn't want to be conspicuous...awkward!
I wandered over to the kitchen to see just what she was up to. To my surprise and delight she pulled out coconut oil and organic popcorn!!! Now, I've been impressed with this kid before. I should have known! She has two little girls that she feeds really well! She has a nice, tidy little garden in her backyard. Her kids are great eaters. She is always coming up with innovative and healthy recipes. I shouldn't have been surprised! She ended up making the most amazing homemade popcorn! She popped the corn in coconut oil which makes it outrageously good. Then, she melted grass-fed butter and tossed it all together when it was finished popping. After it was salted we ALL dug in. Oh my...it was THAT popcorn! That crunchy, salty, buttery popcorn of my dreams! It is literally the perfect taste combo and crunch. It satisfied that popcorn itch!
One of our Sprouts spent the night here last week. A long, cold dark night. I asked her if she'd like to make popcorn. Of course she said yes...I haven't had an official popcorn popper in years. No worries...I have a Le Creuset dutch oven that works for everything! ( Have we had this chat before? How everyone needs at least one Le Creuset in their kitchen? How it will change your life?)

So, I pulled out the dutch oven and sat the Sprout on the kitchen counter.

My helper measured out 3 tablespoons of organic unrefined coconut oil and dropped it into the pan. I turned on the flame and melted the oil. After it heated up we added the popcorn.

We added 1/3 of a cup to the hot oil and put the lid on the dutch oven. When I went in search of my organic and non-gmo popcorn I was a bit surprised it was produced by "Jolly Time". Go figure...

I had the heat on medium and I did move the pot back and forth a few times to evenly pop it. The Sprout and I both enjoyed the popping sounds and got pretty excited! In the meantime I melted 2 tablespoons of grass-fed butter on the small stove burner in a Pyrex measuring cup. I much prefer this method. I rarely use the microwave oven anymore. I'm pretty sure it just kills any nutritional value in anything you toss in there.

The butter melted in about the same time it took to pop the corn. You'll know when it's done. The popping slows down. Just like microwave popping!

Pretty cool, right?

Then we tossed it all together and sprinkled pink Himalayan salt on it. (Fairy dust salt according to the Sprout)

You really must try this! Two luscious healthy fats combined to make a decadent treat! Himalayan salt not only adds a delicate flavor but many naturally occurring trace elements and minerals. 

It's just sooooo good!

Thanks to Lisa for this fab idea and also for feeding her kids a healthy diet! You make me proud...

I'm thrilled to have homemade popcorn again.