The next time you have a hankering for chocolate (probably right now), you can make an easy homemade treat without ever turning on the oven. Because, really, who has the patience to preheat when it's a chocolate emergency? This week's featured foodie, Megan Gilmore of Detoxinista, has tons of ideas for no-bake cookies, brownies, crumble bars, and puddings that we're drooling over. If the recipes in her newest cookbook, No Excuses Detox, are anything like these, then we'll be ordering ASAP. After one look at these seven chocolate recipes, you'll have no excuse not to dive in tonight.
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1. Vegan almond butter buckeyes
A healthier twist on the popular chocolate-covered peanut butter balls, these naturally sweetened almond butter truffles are cloaked in a quick 3-ingredient homemade chocolate shell. Feel free to use sunflower butter as a nut-free alternative too.
2. Vegan mini peanut butter cups
These bite-size candies call for just five ingredients and are lower in sugar than the store-bought variety. If you have more time, Meghan suggests stuffing them into these Peanut Butter Temptation Cookies for an ultra-decadent treat—we're definitely doing that.
3. No-bake brownie bites
Calling for just four main ingredients, these chocolate bites taste like the rich brownies from the bakery next door. They're ready in half the time it would take to bake a batch and are sweetened with fruit... and that's it.
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4. Vegan cookie dough “ice cream”
You only need about 15 minutes and a mini-food chopper to make this quick and easy dairy-free ice cream. It's almost entirely sweetened with fruit, depending on whether you choose to add some mini dark chocolate chips or not (and we highly recommend that you do).
5. No-bake chocolate pecan crumble bars
Buttery pecans and sweet dates? Dream. And in these bars it's a double dream because they make up the crust and the crumbly top, with a layer of homemade chocolate in-between. These bars only take about 15 minutes of prep work, but you will need to let them set in your freezer for an hour or two before serving for best texture.
6. Creamy chocolate chia pudding
Most chia puddings have a tapioca-like texture, but when you blend it, the outcome is super-thick, smooth, and creamy. We'll take two for breakfast, thanks.
7. Easy dark chocolate avocado truffles
If you needed one more reason to worship the avocado, here it is: These truffles get their creaminess from a ripe avocado, not heavy cream. And all you’ll taste is the chocolate.
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