Another fun way to add the king green kale into our diets!
Chocolate Cocoa Kale Chips. Raw, gluten-free, non-dairy, low calorie, rich in fiber, protein, and packs a punch of chocolate flavor everyone can enjoy. This is a perfect way to sneak in a healthy Halloween treat for the kids- present these kale chips without the word kale and call them something fun and creative like “bat wings”, “Frankenstein’s hair”, or “Mummy food”, whatever is going to be fun and relatable to their imaginations this Halloween. Also, I just realized without planning, this week’s recipes were all raw!
These Chocolate Cocoa Kale Chips are another way to add the king green kale into our diets, first with the Stripped Green Smoothie and now covered in delicious chocolate. These kale chips are not only perfect for a themed Halloween treat for yourself or the family, but also perfect for a year round snack, treat, or dessert. Yes, kale for dessert- I went there, could you really expect anything less from me? My mission is sneaking greens into your day, everyday; even if it takes the power of chocolate-y goodness.
Revisit and read more on why I love kale and it’s health and nutrition benefits from my favorite salad the Massaged Kale Salad recipe. The raw cocoa powder I like to use in any of my cooking, baking, and dessert recipes is the real deal: raw cocoa powder. It’s high in antioxidants, minerals, and contains the health benefits you often hear about in the media. Here’s the fine line between cocoa and chocolate.
The chocolate that is mostly consumed and familiar to those of us who eat the Standard American Diet (SAD) is in the form of candy bars, milk chocolate, or highly processed forms of the chocolate. All of which are typically made with extra fat, refined sugars, dairy, and other flavorings and additives (especially if you’re consuming lower quality chocolate); pretty far from the all natural and real form of chocolate, cocoa. Stay tuned for a future post where I share some of my favorite brands of chocolate! Now, I want to move onto this delicious Chocolate Cocoa Kale Chip recipe we have here.
What makes this dish amazing is the chocolate sauce you pour over the kale and massage in with your hands (yes, it get’s messy!). I love using the addition of hazelnuts with the cashews to create a rich, nutty, and sweet flavor in the chocolate cream sauce. When I first made this chocolate coating, I was really tempted to call the recipe quits and just eat this chocolate coating out of the blender, but I controlled myself and poured this creamy chocolate-y sauce it over delicious kale. My patience paid off, these Chocolate Cocoa Kale Chips are great. A note about the flavor profile here, these kale chips aren’t meant to be extremely sweet, instead we’re using the flavor notes of chocolate in a more savory way with a hint of sweetness. Of course if you’d like to add more sweetness to this recipe, amp up the maple syrup or add stevia to the mix. This recipe is also semi-inspired by the folks at Alive & Radiant who have a delicious chocolate kale chip.
TIPS |
- On-the-go // If packing these on-the-go, store them in a glass mason jar or air tight tupperware. This will not only help keep them fresh but also avoid crunching them. They’re delicate!
- Crispy // If you notice the kale chips are still moist after taking out of the dehydrator or oven, put them back in immediately for further dehydrating. These sound be crisp!
- Personalize // If you want to add a dash of cayenne or cinnamon to these, please do- it’s delicious!
- Nut allergy // If you are allergic to hazelnuts or cashews, other alternatives that you may use are macadamia nuts, almonds, brazil nuts, walnuts, or sunflower seeds. Note, when changing the nut ingredient, the flavor will change- I haven’t tried using alternative nuts/seeds for this recipe.
- 1 large bunch of organic kale, de-stemmed and washed (about 5 cups)
- 1 cup of filtered water
- 3/4 cup cashews
- 1/4 cup hazelnuts
- 1/2 cup raw cocoa powder
- 4 dates
- 1 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
- dash of ground cinnamon (optional)
- dash of cayenne pepper (optional)
- SAUCE //
- Blend all ingredients except the kale into a Vitamix or high speed blender.
- This mixture will be the “sauce” that you will mix onto the kale.
- The desired result is a thick sauce, if you need more water to thin out the mixture add in 2 tablespoons at a time until it’s a nice thick consistency.
- KALE //
- De-stem and tear apart into larger than bite-sized pieces.
- In a large mixing bowl, pour the chocolate sauce mixture onto the kale.
- Mix thoroughly using your hands to run in the chocolate sauce into the kale leaves.
- Evenly spread the covered kale onto your dehydrator trays.
- Dehydrate at 115 degrees F for about 5 hours.
- Flip the kale chips around and continue dehydrating for another 4-5 hours or until crispy.
- Traditional oven users // Bake in your oven at 300 degrees F for 20 minutes, flip, and continue to bake for about 20 minutes or until crispy.
What you’ll need // Ideally if you have a dehydrator, this is the best kitchen appliance to use when making kale chips. Dehydrators use very low heat settings which gradually take out the moisture in raw fruits and vegetables, leaving many of the nutrients intact because you’re avoiding high temperatures. You can still make this recipe perfectly find with your traditional oven. This is the dehydrator model I’ve used for years, a worthy investment!
Comment below on how you enjoyed this recipe! I hope you all enjoy these chocolatey kale chips as much as I do!
xo McKel
