Meal Type: Desserts, Treats
Diet Type: Dairy free, Egg free, Gluten free, Grain free, Phase 2 Reintroduce, Vegan, Vegetarian
Cooking Time: Under 30 minutes
Diet Type: Dairy free, Egg free, Gluten free, Grain free, Phase 2 Reintroduce, Vegan, Vegetarian
Cooking Time: Under 30 minutes
Prep: 2 mins
Cook: 30 mins
Yields: 2-4 chocolate moulds
Make your own delicious dairy and sugar free dark chocolate at home. It's easy to make and only contains 4 ingredients. Better yet, you know exactly what is in it, unlike commercially manufactured chocolate and can tailor it according to your personal preferences.
Imperial
Metric
Ingredients
- 1 cup cocoa butter (wafers or chopped from a block)
- 1/2 cup raw cocoa powder, sifted
- 1/8 - 1/4 tsp 100% natural powdered stevia
- 1/2 tsp ground vanilla beans
Method
- Place the cocoa butter in a microwave-safe silicone bowl. Microwave at 30-second intervals, stirring with a silicone spatula intermittently, until the mixture reaches between 105F to 113F and is completely liquified.
- Stir in the sifted cocoa powder, stevia and ground vanilla powder. Mix until well combined. Taste for sweetness, adding more stevia if required.
- Cover a cool bench top with parchment paper. Alternatively, use a sterilised marble bench top. You need to use a surface that won't get warm from the chocolate and will stay nice and cool.
- Pour the mixture onto the parchment paper or directly onto the sterilised surface, and then spread the chocolate around constantly with a spatula until it reaches a toothpaste-like consistency. Watch my video to see how I do it.
- Scrape the thickened chocolate up and place back in your bowl. Re-heat in the microwave in 5-second bursts, stirring between each zap, until it reaches between 82F to 93F and it is completely liquified. Stir until all lumps have been removed.
- If you accidentally heat it to over 93F, all is not lost. Keep heating the chocolate until it reaches between 105F and 113F and then pour back onto your surface and move it around again until it reaches a toothpaste consistency again. Then return to the microwave and heat until it reaches between 82F to 93F.
- Pour the chocolate into your favorite chocolate moulds. We like these break apart chocolate bar moulds and these individual candy moulds. Allow to set at room temperature. If the weather is warm, you can place it in the fridge for a few minutes to help it set.
Note
- Tempering chocolate gives it that lovely 'snap' when you break it into pieces. You don't need to temper your chocolate to eat it, but we think it makes it so much nicer. Tempered chocolate will also allow it to remain solid at room temperature and in warmer weather. If you choose not to temper your chocolate, simply melt the cocoa butter, stir in all other ingredients and pour into your chocolate mould. Non-tempered chocolate will need to be kept in the fridge as it melts a lot more easily than tempered chocolate.
- The tempering process requires movement and precision with your temperature. Use a digital thermometer to ensure you have an accurate reading of the chocolate's temperature at the two key phases.
- It is best to store your chocolate in a cool area, rather than the fridge, to prevent condensation appearing on it. The exception to this is very warm weather which will melt the chocolate.
- Water seizes chocolate. For this reason, do not use vanilla or sweeteners that contain water. Use powder or oil-based liquids instead.
- Once you have mastered this basic dark chocolate recipe, get creative with flavours. I love to add things like freeze-dried fruit, nuts, seeds, spices (like chilli), or a pinch of salt for a sea salt dark chocolate. Let your imagination run wild. Share your new flavours below as I love hearing what my community come up with.
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Hey, is Stevia fine for SIBO? Are there any good alternatives?
Greetings from Germany
Yes, it is included on the SIBO Bi Phasic Diet so is an allowed sugar replacement. Take a look at the SIBO Bi Phasic Diet handout or the Low FODMAP app for the best sugars to use while treating SIBO.
Hi! Why is dark chocolate not in the SIBO diet by dr Siebecker? You added it in phase 2, what are the amounts I can eat I’m definitely in phase 2.
Thanks!
Hi Connie
You can download the SIBO Bi Phasic Diet by Dr Jacobi (which this recipe is based on) to see all the allowed quantities per phase here: https://www.thesibodoctor.com/sibo-bi-phasic-diet-free-downloads/
Stevia and I are not friends. Can honey be used in place of the Stevia? If so how much would I use?
Me too! Would love to know the answer to this question 🙂
Hi Marnie
Check out my reply to Christine. 🙂
Rebecca
It can be, but it will prevent the chocolate from fully setting. When I have experimented with honey as the sweetener, it leaves the chocolate quite ‘sticky’ and definitely needs to be kept in the fridge to help it set. Some SIBO folk can tolerate simple sugar (like table sugar) because it is absorbed so quickly in the small intestine. Feel free to experiment with that as well.
A great recipe, thanks for sharing! Do you have a Thermomix version by any chance?
Hi Natasha
I don’t own a thermomix sadly (it’s on my wishlist for Santa to bring me one day!). The key to successfully tempering chocolate is: temperature control and movement while it changes temperature. If you can set the temperatures per the recipe, then you should be able to make it in your thermie. Let me know how you go if you do make it this way!
Rebecca