I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but ‘regular’ chocolate crackles are bad news!
The sugar, the hydrogenated copha, the rice bubbles.
One of our natural new age mums, Kat was telling me how she made chocolate crackles with coconut oil (genius!)
I thought I would give it a crack (oh yes, that pun was intended!) over the weekend. I roughly followed a chocolate crackle recipe, just adding in better quality, healthy ingredients.
The result is deeeeeeelicious and very similar tasting to ‘regular’ chocolate crackles. I reckon the kiddlywinks wouldn’t even notice the difference, but mums can be happy that they are eating something that is much better for their health!
This recipe is gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free, nut-free and egg-free and it’s really, really easy!
It’s been kid tested and approved!
Really Healthy Chocolate Crackles
Okay, so this is what you need:
2 cups organic brown rice puffs
1/2 cup organic desiccated coconut
1/2 cup organic coconut sugar
3 tablespoons of organic raw cacao
125g virgin, organic coconut oil
HOT TIP: These chocolate crackles would also be fabulous with a spoonful of Berry Choc Chunk!
Okay, so this is how you do it:
Chuck the coconut sugar in the thermomix and powder it on speed 9 for a few seconds (or use your food processor).
Fling in your coconut oil, cocoa and coconut and heat gently on 50 degrees, speed 2 for 2 minutes in the thermomix. For those without a thermy, melt on the stove top in a saucepan with the sugar.
Throw in your brown rice puffs and combine gently, reverse, speed soft for 1 minute. For those without a thermy, pour your melted chocolatey goo over the rice puffs in a bowl and combine thoroughly with a large spoon.
Put 12 paper patty cases into a muffin tin – don’t do this with the fan going!
Gently spoon the mixture into each one, making sure you mix it as you go, so the chocolatey goo is even throughout each crackle.
Fling it into the fridge and wait, wait, wait until they go hard (it’s not long!).
This would be perfect to serve at kids’ parties, as a special treat. It’s also a great recipe for kids to ‘cook’ themselves.
So, what do you think? Pop back and let me know if the kids liked their really healthy chocolate crackles!
they look great!
thanks Wendy! 🙂
These are delicious. I did not have coconut sugar on hand so I used muscovado sugar.
These are Fodmaps friendly too.
Hi Kasey, good to know – thank you! 🙂
OMG…copha? What were we thinking?
we didn’t know what we were thinking!!! nobody knew back then the hydrogenated stuff was so bad!! we live and learn huh?!
I’ve never heard of this treat in New England, but wow does this look tasty and addictive! 🙂 I finally bought some coconut oil so I can’t wait to try this one out 🙂
I didn’t know that it wasn’t universal! I just googled and found this at Wicki….
“Chocolate crackles (also known as chocolate bubble cakes[1]) are a popular children’s confection in Australia and New Zealand, especially for birthday parties and at school fêtes. They are similar to the US Rice Krispies Treats. The earliest recipe found so far is from Australian Women’s Weekly in December 1937”
Let me know what you think – you could start a whole new craze over there!! 😉
Forget the kid, I think I’ll like them!! .. runs off to the kitchen to get out a saucepan, bowl and spoon.. (gotta love a recipe where I already have every ingredient in the cupboard!)
yay Natalie…. enjoy! 🙂
I think I might give this a go tomorrow, I’ve got coconut chocolate butter that I don’t like on it’s own so it may go well with this, and I spose I could sacrifice some of my cacao nibs to TMX
yum! I have been dreaming all the yummy things you could add – cacao nibs, dried fruit, nuts, superfood powders…. the list is endless ! 🙂
Ahahahaaa I love this! U cook exactly like me 😉
awesome Kazzi !! 🙂
I think I will have make to this for my sons little play in the park for his birthday Friday do they stick together ? I don’t have a thermomix but would shredded coconut work ?
Hi Lara
You could use shredded coconut, or whizz up your shredded in the food processor? There are the methods for making them without the thermomix too on the post.
They do stick together in the fridge and if it’s cold ! I would take them in an esky with plenty of ice packs just to make sure! Coconut oil turns into a liquid at a certain temperature – 18 degrees??
Coconut oil is often known in the US as 76 coconut oil. It melts at 76 Fahrenheit or 25 Celsius.
And that’s exactly my problem. I live in Queensland.
Considering we eat chocolate crackles about once or twice a year I think I’ll stick to copha – although I might substitute some of it for coconut oil and try to find a balance where it stays set out of the fridge.
Where do you get coconut oil , coconut sugar and cacao ?
Sounds delicious
the health food store Trish or online – try Organics on a Budget online store if you can’t find it locally
Made these yesterday and the littlies and biggies alike all loved them! Thankyou for a great recipe. ( :
I have just made these today. Instead of adding dessicated coconut ( i had none left after making coconut butter in the thermy yesterday!!) I added 70gm of macadamia nuts…whizzed them up with the rapadura and went from there. They are delicious and the kids LOVE them!!
wow – yummo! I will give that a go Erin !
would love to make chocolate crackles and any thing else if we had the chance.
I can’t stand copha. I have made them with chocolate before, but obviously this is much healthier!
I can’t stand the taste of copha! I have made my chocolate crackles with chocolate before, but obviously these are much healthier!
They are and they taste really yummy – not too sweet ! Thanks for stopping by Nicole ! 🙂
Oh these look so yummy! I am in two minds about writing this though, as I have been accused of being a bit of a party pooper when it comes to kids health and let me state clearly that this recipe WILL appear at my nexts kids party but puffed grains might not be the best option. As a big fan of chocolate crackles and not knowing how to do it without all the rest of the nasties I will err to the side of fun and not worry too much but for daily consuption we avoid puffed grain in all forms. Just thought I would write it after all…
love your work 🙂
http://www.westonaprice.org/food-features/be-kind-to-your-grains
I agree with you about the puffed grains…although I do use them for their unbeatable convenience when the following method is out of my time budget… To replace puffed grains, simply sprout the grains(just until the tail pops and no more),then put them in the dehydrator. It makes them crunchy yet still raw. Once they are dehydrated you can use them in any recipes calling for puffed grains. Even healthier healthy chocolate crackles!
that’s a good idea… don’t always have time to go super duper healthy!
Thank you Karen Hope! Puffed rice and other puffed grains and extruded cereals are toxic… Work by Paul A. Stitt is a good source for into on this, and found this out through the work of Dr Cate Shanahan 🙂
Thanks Karen. My theory is working on getting people healthier and without additives – baby steps and then we can hit them with this stuff later ! 🙂
Hi
Im allergic to coconut and anything thathas coconut in it, what could I use instead please
That’s a hard one !!! You could try leaving out the dessicated coconut or replacing it with some dried fruit or nuts. As for the coconut oil, you could try just plain melted chocolate, but you would probably have to reduce the amount of cocoa. Let me know how you go. 🙂
I have started reacting to coconut, so I used cocoa butter instead. Worked well =) (but a more expensive option).
Oh, and make sure the cocoa butter is food grade!
wow Bob that is good to know!
What about using clarified butter instead of the coconut oil? Not sure if it would affect the overall taste though…
yeah, try it, but sometimes it leaves a funny look 🙂
Yum! Thanks so much for sharing!
I made a batch this morning 🙂
My pleasure Anita…. glad you enjoyed them 🙂
Just wanted to say thank you for this recipe.
I Just whipped this up and the Kids Can’t wait to eat them.
thanks Tracey – that’s awesome!!!
i made these this afternoon as i had all of the ingredients on hand. my 4yo son has some serious food aversion but i thought i could tempt him with chocolate crackles, i was wrong! they are absolutely delicious so my husband, myself and my daughter will enjoy.
i wasn’t sure if the recipe called for cacao powder or cacao nibs, so i used both!
lovely recipe, tastes exactly like chocolate crackles that i grew up eating.
thanks for the feedback Jen 🙂
Just made a batch this morning and they are so super yummy!!! Much better than the original recipe!! My 3yr old is taking them to daycare tomorrow instead of birthday cupcakes 🙂
How to do this without the thermomix? Is it just melting the choc and mixing it together
Scrap that just seen info above! :p
got it? I try to put non-thermy instructions on every post as well 🙂
I love the changes in this recipe compared to the original…and I’m all over new uses for coconut oil! I’m going to bookmark this to try this week, and will try using my Vitamix blender instead of the Thermomix and report back.
Perhaps you could write two instruction lists (Thermomix/regular) so that it’s more clear? This recipe isn’t too difficult in preparation, but sometimes I find it harder to separate out the information I’m looking for in a recipe when I keep checking back while making something (most recipes are not written super clear, it’s not just you ;).
YUMMM!!! Just a shame i have a child allergic to tree nuts AND coconuts otherwise we could have made these alternatives to the sugar rush ones!!!!!!
I really think chocolate crackles are horrible. Even as a kid I didn’t like them. So I thought I would make these for my kids as a treat that I wouldn’t want to share so it would be kind to my waistline. But these are so delicious!! Thank you for the recipe!
thanks Rachel – they taste much different !
Do you have it as a normal recipe and not via a theromix as I don’t have one?
Hi Tracy – the non thermomix instructions are on the post 🙂
I don’t have kids of my own, but I have a sweet tooth like a little kid, so decided to give this recipe a try. I substituted the coconut sugar for raw honey ( or you could use a good quality agave ) meaning I could bypass the heating stage keeping them nearly raw. Delish!
Awesome! good idea 🙂 thanks for stopping by Miranda
Hi I have most of the ingredients for this but NO coconut oil – would honey work to stick them all together?
HI Rebecca – I don’t think so because the coconut oil goes solid in the fridge which sticks them together – but honey I think needs to be baked to stick things together? what about some melted chocolate instead?
Hi finally found coconut oil but was wondering what I could substitute the coconut sugar or the rapadura?
what about honey or maple syrup? not sure if the texture would be the same though
OMG you have just made my day! I’m definitely making these for my daughter (AND I love you even more for putting the thermomix instructions!) 🙂 x
I can’t wait to hear what you think!! Love my thermy xx
WOW finally got a chance to make these and YUMMO and super easy!! Kids love them and have no idea they are Really Health chocolate crackles 😉
awesome!! so glad you enjoyed and thanks for sharing 🙂
The kids LOVE these (and so does hubby and I!!) Love to see healthy versions of kids’ favourites. I would be very interested to see a healthy version of honey joys (the cornflakes treat) 🙂
I think I have seen a recipe for that somewhere! will take a look for it Courtney x
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=519099878147122&set=a.484714574918986.1073741825.327314473992331&type=1&theater
Thank you!! 🙂
Wow, they are soooo yummy 🙂 made some today for my daughter’s birthday party on weekend and I already know that I will need to make another batch. My husband, 3 year old and myself all had to have a test one, which lead to another….. So quick and easy to make too. Thanks for sharing x
Thanks for the recipe! Great timing, we have a birthday party this weekend. Thanks also for including instructions for those of us that don’t have a thermomix 🙂
YUmm! I’ve been making something like these, too. However, I like to include some nuts and seeds, too. Just to up the nutritional value even more.
great idea Alex – they are so versatile – you can add just about anything!
Yum, yum, yum! Made these just now. Simply delish. Made them for my son, just cause I love him. He will be so excited when I tell him tomorrow after lunch. Thanks.
I just made these!! Waiting for them to harden up in the fridge but I ate quite a bit from the bowl!! Soooo good!! Thanks!
yay! they are pretty yummy!
You know, you could pop some corn kernels (GM free, of course) and use those to make Chocolate Crackles, for those who are frightened of puffed rice.
Great tip Megan!! 🙂
N O M ! ! !
I just made these w a mixture of puffed quinoa ,chia,brown rice and peiptas and touch cinnamon and used rice malt syrup. Very good..
Yum – great tewaks Nicole! 🙂
What a great alternative to the normal chocolate crackles! These are a bit similar to the healthy ‘Coco=Pop’ bars I make! Love your recipe and will be sending it through to one of my friends whose son absolutely loves chocolate crackles! Thanks for linking up with our Fabulous Foodie Fridays party! xx
Thanks Lucy, I hope they love it 🙂
Hi, just wondering how long these will keep? I’m wanting to make them for a party and it’d be great if I can make them in advance. I’m guessing I should keep them in the fridge.
Thanks so much, they sound delish
HI Sarah, they will last a few days in the fridge 🙂
My brown rice puffs are not crunchy…do they need to be for this recipe??? Or do they become crunchy?
What brand do you have Natalie 🙂
Ahhh. just threw the packet away after trying 2 batches of your puffs, so I don’t know. The coconut sugar separated from the oil and once in with the puffs didn’t really coat them well. All a bit of a dud unfort!!!
thank’s karen ,,,
I made these and they are delicious but they haven’t stuck together. What can I do next time? I want to make them for my sons birthday
Hi Melissa – they need to be cold. The coconut oil will melt a little if it’s hot and thats what holds them together. 🙂
I followed your instructions. Melted ingredients in saucepan, added to rice puffs and refrigerated. Even after a day they crumble. Should I add more coconut oil?
Okay, that’s odd as mine don’t do that – maybe a difference in oil brands? Yeah, add a little more 🙂
Could you freeze these?
Hi Tam, yes you can! 😀
I’ve just made these. I didn’t have coconut sugar so used some stevia instead. My two year old is tucking in! She thinks they’re great, will be saving this recipe that’s for sure!!
OH that’s fabulous Hayley. Glad to know stevia works fine too 🙂
Hi there,
these look great! but i don’t have any rapidura or coconut sugar on hand. can i substitute with stevia instead?
Hi Kath, I don’t see why not! 🙂
Thank you so much for this, exactly what I was looking for!
I hope you enjoy them Glenda!!