White chocolate is not really chocolate.
- Just like tomatoes aren’t really vegetables.
- Lentils aren’t really beans.
- Koalas aren’t really bears…
Life’s confusing, isn’t it?
Sometimes people are surprised to find not a single white chocolate recipe on this entire chocolate-covered blog. White chocolate has just never been my favorite thing… because I want it to taste like chocolate and am mad when it doesn’t!
Plus, most white chocolate chips aren’t vegan, and they are full of unhealthy trans fats (partially-hydrogenated oils) and artificial ingredients.
Many of you have asked if I could come up with recipes that include chocolate’s paler cousin. But to do that, I first had to figure out how to make my own healthy white chocolate.
Thankfully, it turned out to be really, really easy!
I read up about white chocolate on Wikipedia and checked out the candy bars at the grocery store. Research! (To make research fun, all you have to do is get out of the library and head to the chocolate aisle. Who knew?)
They all consist of the same basic ingredients: cacao butter, milk solids (dry milk), sugar, and salt… Pretty much, as long as you have the one magic ingredient, the white chocolate is so easy to make it can hardly even be called a recipe.
White Chocolate Chips
(can be sugar-free)
- 2-inch cube cacao butter (30 grams, or 2 tbsp after melting)
- scant 1/8 tsp pure vanilla extract
- stevia or powdered sugar to taste (2 tbsp if powdered sugar)
- 1 tbsp raw cashew or macadamia butter (can omit; it’ll just be less creamy) (15g)
- very tiny pinch salt
- optional: If you can find it, I highly recommend adding 1/2 tsp dry milk powder—such as soy or ricemilk powder—to the ingredients for optimum creamy texture, as this is one of the basic ingredients in every white chocolate bar I looked at during my aforementioned research. However, knowing that a lot of people would have trouble finding the powder, I also tried omitting it. And then I tried adding protein powder instead (increasing to 1 tsp). Omitting or adding the protein powder instead will yield a texture that’s a little different than store-bought white chocolate, but both ways still work! (Just please don’t add liquid milk. I tried that too, and it doesn’t work.)
Melt the cacao butter (either in the microwave or on the stove). Turn off heat, then stir in all other ingredients. Pour into candy molds or a plastic container, and freeze until it hardens. Healthier and vegan white chocolate chips. Yay!
Question of the Day:
Are you going to vote tonight?
I never got around to early voting, so I will be going tonight. Unfortunately, my roommate’s and my opposite votes are going to cancel each other out… we jokingly thought about just staying home!
Link of the Day:
Can you let us know how much sweetener you used? “To taste” makes me nervous 🙂 I always add too much, and then you can’t take it out!
Thanks so much for this recipe, I lovvved white chocolate but can’t bring myself to pay for the vegan kind!
It really is a matter of taste on this. I had a few different people try each experiment, and some would say one batch was too sweet, while others liked it that way. So you really just have to try it to know how much you prefer. I’d recommend using just a little to begin with, as you can add more easily than you can take away.
I’m with Rachel on the “to taste” thing! lol What is just a little? 1tbs, cup, tsp? I burn Easy Mac, so I hope you can understand my apprehension to “just winging it” per say. :p hahahahaha
I wish we had a whole foods. I have no idea where to get hold of Cocoa butter 🙁
I like white chocolate every once in a while, just to change things up a bit on the taste buds. Thanks for making it vegan!
Oh, my! People take what bloggers say much too seriously. lol I’m sorry you were attacked for your voting comments. (I thought they were funny!) I guess if we’re going to be in a public forum we have to grow thicker skin and/or feathers like a duck to let things roll off of our backs like water.
The first time I ever tasted white chocolate was one Easter when my mother put a white lamb in my basket. At first I thought it was heresy!! But she just said to taste it. While I’m sure the white chocolate in a cheapy little Easter lamb wasn’t high quality or anything, it didn’t matter. I fell in love with it! I’ve missed it very much. I will have to try making some of this if I can find cocoa butter locally. I’m hoping like crazy that it tastes like I remember!
Thanks for your hard work on this website. And remember that there are those of us who understand what you are trying to say. 🙂
I worked my tail off for the past four days for my candidate. 18 HOUR DAYS!!! and I’m a teen, i need sleep 🙂 It saddens me to read how some people take the right to vote for granted. Do you have any idea how many people have fought and died for this freedom? We are SO blessed to live here and it just INFURIATES me. Don’t wanna vote? try go living somewhere where they can’t and would kill to have that freedom. So please watch what you say.
p.s.- not directed at the joke 🙂 just at other commenters I disagree with.
Enough.
I’m sorry, it’s an opinion in what what (until last night) used to be a free country. I would appreciate your acknowledgment of that. and it is NOT enough when your country has fallen into the hands of liberal morons and buffoons who have no concept of freedom or liberty. I hate to be political, but the truth hurts. and that’s that.
I’m done 🙂
It was a free country until last night? That doesn’t even make sense. Barack Obama has been in office for the past four years!
how is it freedom if voting is a duty…there are some who find no major difference between obama or romney and consider that neither parties have their needs in mind. Yes we fought for freedom, and we won our freedom, meaning Katie has the FREEDOM to write what she wishes in her blog whether it is a joke or not just as you had the FREEDOM to express your unnecessary opinion on a food blog, and just as Americans have the FREEDOM to take advantage of their oppurtunity and right to vote for the party that they feel best represents this countries wants and needs. I understand if you are not happy about obama winning (I sure as hell am) but I hope you do not spend the next four years bashing every single person who says things like not choosing to vote. Please watch what YOU say
Excuse me, I was not directing this @Katie at all, and I thought I made that clear. I have many times supported Katie for her freedom to say what she wishes. like duh, it’s her blog. and it’s the FREEDOM of speech- something this president (or his followers) doesn’t get. When you have freedom of speech, it should be for both sides. this had nothing to do with obama…just I get mad to think how many of my military friends are going through in order to keep the freedom of a bunch of liberal ingrates. My relatives live in Saudi Arabia and when they found out people here CHOOSE not to vote, they were bewildered. it’s a civic duty. yes, a duty. all I’m saying is, be proud to that you have this right and excercise it for God’s sake. And maybe try studying up on our founding documents. adios, seeya in 2016 when America is no more thanks to your guy.
Nothing beats dark chocolate!! (Just wanted to make sure I remained on the Dark Chocolate Side) I’m glad to have a healthy white chocolate recipe though, thank you!
I had never even thought about making about my own white chocolate chips. you are such a genius. I am not much of a white chocolate person either but occasional macadamia nuts with white chocolate chip cookies.
I was wondering if I could make dark chocolate chips by adding cocoa powder to the recipe .Also, do the chips hold their shape in baking ( cookies ).
They do! Not sure about adding chocolate… if you try, let me know 🙂
People.. This is a FOOD blog. Not a political or technical fact blog. FOOD. Everyone getting upset at her joke about not voting seriously needs to pull the stick out of their butts. This is KATIE’S blog. She can say whatever she wants too. If she wrote a post on how she put Willy Wonka in the right in space, thats okay! That’s what blogs are for! If voting wasn’t important to her (from what she said, anyone with half a brain can see she planned to vote.) She has every right to say so. Because in this country not only do we have the right to vote, we also have the right to free speech! So Suck it, haters.
Anyway Katie, looks delicious. I’m totally craving dark and white chocolate dipped strawberries! Thanks for the recipe!
Freedom of speech goes both ways, just saying 🙂
Has anyone considered that it might be in good taste at this point to just stop talking about all things political just for the sake of showing respect for the person that provides this amazing blog (and other readers)?
Just and idea – not pointed at anyone poster specifically – pointed at ALL those who want to continue to discuss politics after the topic is already exhausted here.
Sometimes we must remember, just because we can – doesnt always mean we should.
I agre. I’m tired of yacking my political big mouth 🙂
Such a great idea! You never fail to amaze with your inventiveness..now it’s just trying to decide how to best make use of the little gems! 🙂