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This no bake healthy paleo fudge is rich, chocolatey, and so satisfying you'll never eat too much of it. Just a few ingredients, and no added sugars!
Table of Contents
Why I love this recipe for Paleo fudge
This Paleo fudge is not low-calorie, but it's got tons of flavor and healthy, satisfying fats and fiber, so it doesn't kick up carbohydrate cravings. So I'm satisfied after just a taste.
I only have so much will power (so do you! it's science), so I like to keep it in reserve as much as possible.
The only “cooking” this fudge requires is melting the chocolate and virgin coconut oil on the stovetop, perched over some simmering water, but that can also be done in the microwave. I
n fact, if we didn't have to melt the chocolate we could probably call this “raw” fudge. But I'm sure there are all sorts of rules for what can be called raw and what can't, right?
If you've been around this blog for much time at all, you may already know that I always hesitate before using my food processor. It's not that I don't think it's an incredibly useful kitchen workhorse. I do! But drying it can be such a chore.
It just has so many nooks and crannies for holding water. But this Paleo fudge is rich enough, but not too rich, creamy but still firm, not too sweet and incredibly satisfying. So it's 100% worth it.
Here's how it's done: super nutritious and naturally sweet dates + good-quality unsweetened chocolate (I used Scharffen Berger brand) + virgin coconut oil + Dutch-processed cocoa powder (I used Rodelle brand) + some coconut cream (or heavy cream).
Blend, chill, roll out and press into shape, chill again, then slice. That's it. Store it in the freezer, deep in the back where no one but you ever goes. Just a suggestion.
Healthy Paleo Fudge
Equipment
- food processor
Ingredients
- 6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
- 6 tablespoons (84 g) virgin coconut oil
- 1 pound medjool or deglet noor dates, pitted
- ½ cup (4 fluid ounces) heavy whipping cream, or full fat coconut milk
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup (40 g) Dutch-processed cocoa powder
Instructions
- Place the chopped chocolate and coconut oil in a medium-sized bowl, and place the bowl over a small saucepan with about 1 cup of water that is simmering over medium-high heat. Allow the chocolate and coconut oil to sit above the simmering water, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate and oil are melted and smooth. Remove the bowl from the heat and set it aside to cool briefly.
- In a large bowl, place the dates and cover with hot tap water. Allow to sit for 10 minutes, then drain the water and squeeze the dates to rid them of excess water. Place the dates in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the cream and the slightly cooled melted chocolate and coconut oil, and process until the dates are smooth (about 4 minutes). You may have to stop the food processor occasionally to scrape the mixture off the lid of the food processor and back into the bowl. Add the vanilla, and the cocoa powder, and pulse until the cocoa powder is absorbed and the mixture is thick and shiny (1 to 2 minutes).
- Scrape the fudge into a medium-sized bowl, and place it in the refrigerator to chill for about 5 minutes to make it easier to shape. Place the chilled fudge between two sheets of unbleached parchment paper and roll out into an 8-inch by 8-inch square, press the edges to square them. Place the fudge, still between the sheets of parchment paper, into the refrigerator to chill until firm (about 30 minutes). Slice the chilled fudge into 16 squares. Store any leftover fudge in an airtight container in the refrigerator or freezer.
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Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi Nicole,
I have your cookbooks on my iPad and iPhone do they go with me all the time. This helps in the grocery dtoe s bunch. I working my way through them, bouncing between them as I can’t make myself be methydoical, when it look or sound good I just have to give in. This fudge is going to be a high board effort as fudge is the source of life as far as I’m concerned. I’ll let you guys know when I surface from my fudge stupper.
Hi Nicole,
I hate to ask for substitutions (I’m sorry!!), but I’m limited to Stevia/Swerve right now as sweeteners. I’m wondering what the dates lend to this recipe other than sweetener, if anything? If it’s texture, or substance, perhaps there’s something else I can add in since my sweetener wouldn’t contribute to either of those?
Hi, Nima, the dates provide structure, bulk, sweetness. They’re as important to the recipe as the chocolate. So sorry!
Thank you for the reply, Nicole. I figured it was more complicated than just switching in a different sweetener. I understand their importance! :)
I wonder if avocado would provide the substance you need?
I’m afraid not, Joan. That really is a different recipe entirely. This recipe is just too simple to replace either the chocolate or the dates with anything else.
Thanks for the suggestion, Joan! :)
This is a far stretch and I haven’t tried it with this recipe, but I once substituted dates with almond butter and Xylitol. I was tasting as I went along so I don’t know the measurements – which is why I can never really replicate any of my culinary experiments. The result (taste and structure) will obviously be very different but in my case (a chocolate cake) it still worked. Maybe it’s worth a try – with a smaller portion to begin with so if the result is not edible, you can just discard it.
Tes, thank you for your suggestion. I’ve been known to experiment like you! I tried using almond butter and Swerve to replace honey in chocolate chip cookies, and OMG….they were amazing. You never know! :)
Good luck! ?
I made this today, and it came out really well. It is very dark chocolate-y and rich. I am a date fanatic, but my husband doesn’t usually like them. He said he could not tell there were dates in it at all- he said it tasted just like regular dark chocolate fudge. Thanks!
Amazing how it doesn’t taste like dates, right, Michelle? I find that dates get a bit of a bad rep because they are conflated with prunes, which really do taste much more distinctive to me. Glad they went over well!
xoxo Nicole
I am very much in favor of other date recipes! Prunes have an unfairly bad rap, I think. Plums are delicious, so why not prunes? I’ve noticed they are called “dried plums” now as an image enhancer.
I made this today, and it came out really well. It is very dark chocolate-y and rich. I am a date fanatic, but my husband doesn’t usually like them. He said he could not tell there were dates in it at all- he said it tasted just like regular dark chocolate fudge. Thanks!
Amazing how it doesn’t taste like dates, right, Michelle? I find that dates get a bit of a bad rep because they are conflated with prunes, which really do taste much more distinctive to me. Glad they went over well!
xoxo Nicole
I am very much in favor of other date recipes! Prunes have an unfairly bad rap, I think. Plums are delicious, so why not prunes? I’ve noticed they are called “dried plums” now as an image enhancer.
can’t wait to try it
Paleo? Primal? With all due respect, who cares? It’s FUDGE baby!
Paleo? Primal? With all due respect, who cares? It’s FUDGE baby!
AMEN, JoAnn!
xoxo Nicole
That’s what I was thinking – dairy is not Paleo (another reason why I’ll never go Paleo!) but these little guys look awesome!!!!!! So easy and no oven. You keep ’em coming girlfriend!!
As I understand it, Jennifer, there is some debate in the Paleo community about whether or not cream (not milk, but just the fat) is acceptable on a Paleo diet.
xoxo Nicole
That’s what I was thinking – dairy is not Paleo (another reason why I’ll never go Paleo!) but these little guys look awesome!!!!!! So easy and no oven. You keep ’em coming girlfriend!!
As I understand it, Jennifer, there is some debate in the Paleo community about whether or not cream (not milk, but just the fat) is acceptable on a Paleo diet.
xoxo Nicole
“Technically” cream is not Paleo, but it is Primal. I wonder if full fat coconut milk could be used, or maybe coconut cream? I might try making it with coconut instead of cow’s cream and report back. Even if it doesn’t harden all the way, it will still be delicious!
Paleo versus Primal is too heady and confusing for me, April! I would try coconut cream. I think it would work just fine.
xoxo Nicole
I can’t have dairy so I’m going to try the coconut cream too. I think it will work great! I can’t wait to try this!
I can’t have dairy so I’m going to try the coconut cream too. I think it will work great! I can’t wait to try this!