Paleo Peppermint Patties

Emily has learned to be very content with her dairy and gluten free diet, but sometimes she misses the popular milk chocolate candies, like peanut butter cups and peppermint patties!  I miss them, too, since I have to limit my sugars!  Well, this last weekend I developed recipes for both candies, and I’m very excited to share them with you!  You may have to wait until January for the peanut butter (actually, mine are sunbutter) ones, but these Paleo Peppermint Patties will bring a smile to your face in the meantime!

I’ve used very dark chocolate chips for the outside of these little beauties!  The dark chocolate on the outside is dairy free, and 63% cocoa content, which means it is lower in sugar than most chocolate chips.  If you’ve read my other posts on dark chocolate you may remember that it is high in trace minerals and antioxidants.  It also contains chemicals that help balance your brain chemistry.

The coconut oil on the inside of the Paleo Peppermint Patties will help your body process the sugars from the honey and chocolate chips.  Another benefit to the coconut oil is that the medium chain saturated fatty acids in there are easy for your body to break down and use as energy.  I think these healthy candies would be a great pre-workout snack!

One more quick health note is that Paleo peppermint patties are the perfect context to use potato starch in, because you eat them cold or at room temperature.  I’ve told you before that potato starch is high on the Glycemic Index (meaning high in sugar), but when you eat it cold some of the starch in there is actually in the form of resistant starch.  Resistant starch feeds the healthy flora in your gut, then passes through without being absorbed.  It’s a great weight loss and health food!

Before we get to the recipe for the Paleo Peppermint Patties I want to invite you to join with others who are making healthy changes, if you haven’t done so already.  I’d love to walk alongside you in your journey towards wholeness and health! Jesus said, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full!”  Freedom from food addictions is part of having a truly full life.  

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Makes 30-36 mini cups

For the Filling:

• 1 Cup Coconut Oil
• 1/4 Cup Raw Honey
• 1/3 Cup Coconut Cream
• 2 Tsp Peppermint Extract
• 2 Tbsp Potato Starch

Combine all of the ingredients in a small ceramic non-stick pot.  Cook over low heat, whisking until everything is well combined and creamy. Place mixture in the fridge, until you’re ready to use it. Ideally it will be at room temperature when you scoop it into the chocolate, so don’t overheat it when you mix everything. Just a touch of heat will melt things sufficiently for combining.

For the Chocolate:

• 3 Cups Very Dark Chocolate Chips

Make sure the filling is ready for you, and prepare your pans.  I used a mini muffin tin, with festive liners, a snowflake mold, and a Christmas tree mold.  Spray any mold you’re using with coconut oil if you are not using liners.  We LOVED how cute the trees and snowflakes turned out!

Melt the chocolate chips in a home made double boiler.  Set a large glass bowl over a smaller pot.  The smaller pot should have an inch or two of water in the bottom of it, and the heat should be on low or medium.  You don’t want to scorch the chocolate.  Stir it periodically, and turn the heat off when it is totally melted.  The residual heat should keep it melted while you prepare the Paleo Peppermint Patties, but feel free to turn the heat back on if you need to later.

Use a spoon to scoop some melted chocolate into each mold.  Place enough in there to coat the bottom and part way up the sides.  I used a mini dessert spoon to spread the chocolate around the mini cupcake tin.  Place your pans in the refrigerator until the chocolate sets up.

Once the chocolate sets up scoop some of the filling into each mold.  Place it back in the refrigerator, until the filling sets up.  Cover with chocolate, and refrigerate again.  Remove the candies from their molds when they’ve set up completely.  Serve cold or at room temperature.  Enjoy!