Chocolate Sunflower Seed Butter
Lusciously rich, decadently creamy and packed with chocolaty flavour, this divine spread will have your tastebuds tantalized in an instant! Ideal for those that can’t have nuts or dairy but find themselves hankering after Nutella – plus it’s made with just a few simple ingredients - once you’ve tried this, you’ll be hooked on this delicious Chocotella!
Equipment
- food processor
- baking tray lined with parchment paper
- mixing spoons
- bowl
- kilner storage glass jar
Ingredients
- 300 g sunflower seeds
- 30 g coconu, honey or regular sugar or a sweetener of your preference
- 15 g cacao or cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp honey or maple syrup
- 1 tsp. sea or pink Himalayan salt
serving suggestion
- spoon over porridge, yogurt or ice cream, spread over toast, pancakes or waffles, use as a dip for fresh strawberries – or just eat it straight off the spoon!
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 425°F, gas mark 7, 220°C (200°C fan-assisted).
- Line a large baking tray with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Spread the sunflower seeds out evenly across the lined baking tray, and place into the oven to toast for 10-12 minutes, removing the tray and giving them agood stir halfway through to ensure they toast evenly and don’t burn - the seeds are ready when they’re lightly browned and have started to release a wonderful nutty aroma. Alternatively, you can toast the seeds in a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat, tossing frequently, but keep a close eye on them as they will burn quickly, and taste bitter. Remove from the oven/pan and set aside to cool slightly.
- If you’re using coconut sugar, then place it into a food processor and grind it until it has a soft, sandy consistency – this will take approximately 5 minutes – then remove it and set aside. Skip this process if you would like to use honey.
- Tip the cooled sunflower seeds into the food processor and blend for 6 minutes, until the seeds go from being a coarse consistency, to a powder and finally, to forming a ball – make sure to stop every so often and and scrape down the sides of the bowl so that nothing escapes!
- Add sea salt, cacao (or cocoa) powder and your choice of sweetener, then continue to blend for an additional 4 minutes, until you achieve a smooth, runny consistency that easily slides off a spoon. Pour the mix into a bowl, then stir in the additional honey (or maple syrup).
- Taste the mixture and, if necessary, add a little more sugar or salt until you achieve your desired flavour profile; I find that sunflower seeds can have a slight bitterness to them, so the ratio of salt to sugar I’ve mentioned above is perfect for me, but feel free to experiment until you find your definition of deliciousness.
- Enjoy!
- When making this recipe, I’d LOVE to see how you get on so either send me a photo to lisa@myrelationshipwithfood.com or post a picture to Instagram using the #myrelationshipwithfood and tag @myrelationshipwithfood
Notes
LISA’S TIP – I love making my own chocolate spread, as I know exactly what it contains, and I can make it just the way I like it. I warn you in advance though, it’s addictively delicious so you may well find yourself needing to make more pretty quickly! When I make this recipe, I often grind more coconut sugar than I need and then store it in an airtight jar so that I have powdered coconut sugar on hand whenever I need or want it. I prefer my chocolate sunflower seed butter (chocotella) to have a slightly runnier consistency as it’s easier to spread and drizzle however, if you prefer this consistency then keep the machine running till you achieve the texture you desire. You can keep this spread, in a sealed jar in the fridge, for up to 3-4 weeks – but I doubt it will last that long!
