Healthy Peanut Butter Cups

Can the classic peanut butter cup be made sugar-free and still be just as good, if not a bit better knowing it’s sweetened naturally? YOU better believe it! Or don’t believe me, but TRY this recipe and find out how seriously true this is!  

These dark chocolate nut butter cups are ready in no time and you can customize the filling to your preferences. Choosing almond, cashew or peanut butter, or for nut allergies, simply swap in sunflower seed butter. I prefer super dark chocolate. Usually 85-90% but you could also do 75% or milk chocolate too. A sprinkle of sea salt on top is also a yummy addition and even better, I like smoke sea salt if I have some. 

Perfect little gift idea to give during the holidays, add to cookie trays & perfect for Mondays. These cups make any Monday better, I promise!

A special treat for the family with a recipe this easy can really be made anytime! 
Plus, if you make them in the mini cups, then you can feel even better about the portion size! 

Ingredients:
gluten-free, paleo, dairy-free, vegan, nut-free option, egg-free

• 8 ounces high-quality dark chocolate (I prefer 75-85% dark) 

• 1 tablespoon melted coconut oil

• 1/2 cup chilled unsweetened, unsalted almond butter*

• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup or raw honey

• 1 tablespoon ground chia seeds (you can just grind whole chia seeds in a coffee grinder, Magic Bullet, or the "dry" container of your Vita-mix or Blendtech) 

• pinch fine grain sea salt

• flaked salt for on top (optional) 

Directions: 

1. Line a mini muffin tin with mini muffin cups. 
2. In a small bowl add almond butter, ground chia seeds, the maple syrup and a pinch of sea salt. 
3. Stir until well combined and place to the side. 
4. Chop or break the chocolate into pieces and melt it in a double boiler (or place it in a bowl and microwave at 10 second intervals stirring in between each interval until melted.) Remove from the heat and stir the melted coconut oil into the melted chocolate. Mix well. 
5. Drizzle about a teaspoon or so of melted chocolate into mini muffin cups and then carefully use a spoon to point the chocolate up the sides, you can also carefully and slowly rotate the cups to line the sides with the melted chocolate. 
6. Once all the mini muffin cups are filled and lined, place the tray into the fridge to let the chocolate set, about 5-10 minutes. 
7. Roll the almond butter mixture into 12 equal sized balls. Place each int the center of the molds and press down slightly. 
8. Drizzle the remaining melted dark chocolate over almond butter filled molds, with just enough chocolate to cover completely.
9. Place in the fridge until hard. (at least 20 minutes). Once set, sprinkle the flaked sea salt over each finished chocolate, if you'd like.  

Notes

You can also use cashew, peanut or sunflower seed butter.