Raw Chocolate Bars

Few kitchen activities are as rewarding as turning out chocolate bars that taste better than virtually anything you’ll find in stores, and you’ll never buy another one after you’ve made mine. It’s now common knowledge that cacao is a healthy superfood, filled with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, fiber, and other benefits that make me feel extra-good about whipping up these treats from scratch. Starting with the very best ingredients is essential; seek out a block of raw cacao paste (essentially ground-up cacao beans; also known as cacao liquor or chocolate liquor) and raw cocoa butter (solidified pure oil from the cacao bean), products that have been processed at low temperatures to protect their nutritional value. You’ll probably have to order one or the other online.

Makes 8 to 10 (3-inch) bars

I’m not always the most focused cook—chances are I’m doing three other things while cooking for my family. But when I make chocolate, I go into Zen mode and try to tune out the outside world. More than any other recipe in the book, this one requires your full attention. Chocolate making isn’t complicated, but like many pastry and candy projects, it’s meticulous work. In this case, an important first step is making sure your grater, mixing bowl, spatula, and whisk are as dry as the Sahara Desert. Even a single drop of water can cause the warm chocolate to “seize,” meaning the water grabs onto the dry particles in the mixture, making a grainy mess out of the beautiful raw ingredients.

• 4 ounces pure cacao paste (see above), available on Amazon
• 4 ounces pure cocoa butter, available on Amazon
• ½ cup coconut nectar
• 1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean, split in half and seeds scraped out
• ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
• Coconut oil cooking spray
• Toppings of your choice (optional)
• Dried fruits, such as white mulberries, goji berries, and cherries
• Seeds, such as hemp seeds, or sesame seeds, or soaked and dehydrated pepitas
• Nuts, such as almonds, walnuts, or hazelnuts, soaked and dehydrated

Using the smaller (but not smallest) holes on a box grater or the larger side of a Microplane grater or a high-speed blender, grate or process the cacao paste (you should have about 2½ cups), then the cocoa butter (you should have 2 cups). Transfer them to a medium bowl (they will look like a black and white snowdrift).

Remove the stacking trays from the dehydrator and set to 115°F. Place the bowl of cacao mixture in the dehydrator and heat until the mixture melts, 30 to 45 minutes (check after 30 minutes and give the chocolate a stir with a silicone spatula).

Remove the bowl from the dehydrator, add the coconut nectar, vanilla extract or seeds, and salt, whisk to combine, then return to the dehydrator for 5 minutes.

Remove the mixture from the dehydrator and transfer to a flexible silicone measuring cup or a candy-making funnel. Spray the desired molds (see Tips) with coconut oil spray, place on a baking sheet, and carefully fill the molds with the chocolate. Sprinkle with the toppings of your choice, if desired. Refrigerate until solid, 10 to 15 minutes.

Pop the chocolates out of the molds and marvel at how incredibly amazing they look and taste! The chocolates can be refrigerated, wrapped individually in parchment paper, for up to 1 month.

Tips Cacao paste and cocoa butter can be purchased from Navitasnaturals.com.

Use any molds you want, from 3-ounce chocolate-bar ones to minis that produce tiny individual candies. You’ll find a good selection of molds on Amazon, Wilton.com, and Etsy.