When I first tried out the Paleo Diet, I was desperate to find ways to satisfy my sweet tooth. I could give up bread and starches, but I wasn’t about to give up chocolate. Another difficult thing for me was to give up peanut butter. How was I going to survive without peanut butter??

Cue Averie’s blog. Her blog is full of wonderful recipes that helped me stick to the Paleo Diet while allowing me to indulge.

The first thing on her blog that I tried out was her chocolate coconut cashew butter. Something chocolate-y and sweet that I could eat in place of peanut butter–perfect! This paired well with fresh fruit and made it feel more like dessert, which I loved. The extra dose of healthy fats wasn’t too shabby either!

Ingredients:

-1/2 cup cashews, soaked for about 2-6 hours beforehand
-1/3 cup agave/honey/maple syrup
-1/3 cup cocoa powder
-1 heaping teaspoon vanilla extract
-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (though I was slightly heavy-handed with it)
-1/4 cup coconut flakes*
-2 tablespoons coconut oil*

*If you do not like coconut and would prefer to make chocolate cashew butter, just omit the coconut flakes and coconut oil.

You throw everything into a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. It’s that simple!

I would recommend using a high-speed blender or food processor if you want the amazingly smooth results that Averie was able to achieve. My butter wasn’t nearly as smooth, but the flavors were all there!

I served this at a dinner party that I hosted for some friends and paired it with fresh blueberries and apple slices. It was divine. I think another dreamy combination would be to try it with strawberries…or, you know, just straight out of the container with a spoon.

Question for you:
What would you pair with chocolate coconut cashew butter?