An allergy-free fudge perfect for kids with food allergies, this simple Creamy Paleo Fudge recipe is ready to go in just a matter of minutes! It’s a gluten-free, dairy-free, and soy-free chocolate recipe ideal for parties, birthdays, special occasions, and just because moments. Paleo and vegan variations included!
One word.
Chocolate.
Creamy, delicious chocolatey goodness. It’s all here. It’s also healthy. You’re welcome. Humble wife and mother that I am, I may have told K-Hubs upon concocting this Creamy Paleo Fudge recipe that if I achieved nothing else for our family for the rest of my life that would be okay. This could stand as the pinnacle of effort. Please note my humbleness as wife and mother. Amen.
Countless fudge recipes I came across always contained something someone in our family couldn’t have. Refined sugar, grains, nuts and seeds. Or it tasted just plain awful, and such and so forth. That would not do. Life is too short to not enjoy chocolate.
I went on a mission to find a recipe that would be tasty, filling, and healthy.
Creamy Paleo Fudge is that recipe. It has become a favorite, a staple of our existence, if you will. And because it contains avocado, I like to think I am eating a vegetable. I know avocados are a fruit, a berry, to tell the truth. But, secretly, I imagine they are a vegetable, and with every creamy bite, I am toasting green vegetables everywhere.
I make this recipe using a high-speed blender, and I do highly suggest you add the ingredients to the blender in the order they are listed. Am I “recommending” this? Technically, no. Auntie always said, “Morgan, there are two things in your life you must never do. One is never buy or sell a car within the family. Someone will end up on the side of the lemon. The other is to never recommend. Only ‘highly suggest’ something. Reputations are at stake.” Auntie was no dummy, so I’ll stick with “highly suggesting.” Also, you should have seen the cars roaming around our family as I was growing up. Auntie had a legitimate point.
Okay, back to the awesomeness that is this recipe. I like to blend my dates, preferably Medjool dates, and melted coconut oil before adding other ingredients. This makes the fudge creamy.
Then I add an avocado. Here is the truth about the avocado. Aim for ripe but not too ripe. If it isn’t ripe enough, your fudge won’t blend and the taste will be, for lack of a better word, bitter. If it is too ripe, then it won’t capture the sweetness of the cinnamon and whatever naturally sweet syrup you are using. The thought of these scenarios makes me a little sad. Highly suggestible point: don’t skimp on or rush the avocado. Respect the avocado.
I like to add my avocado a little at a time so as to keep the mixture evenly blended and to prevent the blender from working overtime. I use the tamper that came with my blender if the ingredients get stuck around the blades. Then I add the cacao powder, cinnamon, and sweetener, again using the tamper.
As for taste testing while making this recipe? I absolutely recommend, er, highly suggest, you taste along the way. As this will be going directly into the fridge without ever being baked, the way it tastes as a batter will be the way it tastes as a finished product. Therefore, it is pragmatically necessary to eat it while you make it. Better just double the batch, you know, to ensure the highest of quality control. If it isn’t quite on par with your palate, especially if the avocado isn’t quite right, add a little more cinnamon or sweetener. You can add another date or two, however you may also have to add a little extra melted coconut oil because the batter becomes quite thick.
Every now and then I’ll make this and the coconut oil will separate from the batter. If that happens, I give it a good stir before pouring it into the glass dish. Then I put it in the fridge immediately.
Another highly suggested tidbit is this – spread it evenly in the pan. One time I just plopped it in the dish and figured it would settle evenly while in the fridge. Nope, not even close. How it looks in the pan as you place it in the fridge is how it will come out, courtesy of the quickly-firming coconut oil.
Shh, don’t tell anyone. But if you don’t like the taste of pure coconut oil, you can use refined coconut oil, which doesn’t have the same strong flavor. I can’t speak to its health benefits, but if coconut oil is a deal breaker for you, going with another version might be worth it.
This chocolatey, creamy goodness is so worth every minute you spend making it. And actually, this recipe doesn’t require that many minutes.
These early images of Creamy Paleo Fudge mark some of my earliest photography! I kind of have an affinity for them. 🙂 (P.S. – Creamy Paleo Fudge was the first official recipe on the blog).
Spirits, K-Hubs and I eat Creamy Paleo Fudge like it’s our job. Frequently whispered in our house, “Let’s make fudge and not tell the kids.” Done. Because we are good parents like that.
We eat it for breakfast, as a snack, and take it with us to parties. Creamy Paleo Fudge is Toodle’s special treat to eat while everyone else is chowing down on birthday cake and ice cream. We eat it at meal times because avocados rule, and it’s our source of green food without the children knowing they are eating green food. That’s a parenting win in our book.
If I could walk around with this in my purse, I probably would. This rich, chocolatey creation absolutely, completely, and totally awaits you.
Creamy Paleo Fudge
Ingredients
- 1 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1 cup Medjool dates, pitted and sliced
- 1 avocado
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cacao powder
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1–2 tbsp 100% pure honey, optional
Instructions
- Combine melted coconut oil and dates in blender on low to medium speed.
- Add avocado and blend until smooth.
- Gradually add cacao powder, using tamper if necessary.
- Add cinnamon and sweetener of choice.
- Pour into 8×8 glass dish.
- Place in refrigerator for approximately 1 hour, or until firm.
Notes
For this recipe, you can use whatever natural sweetener you prefer. To maintain the correct consistency, I suggest sticking with a natural sweetener that comes in a syrupy form such as agave nectar (for vegans) and honey or maple syrup (for paleo).
(This recipe first appeared on Spirited and Then Some on 3/2/2016 – the photos got a makeover, and options were added for vegan and paleo variations!)
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