Hello, my holiday party animals!

For those of us who indulge in the whole Santa cause, we know that Santa has a mean sweet tooth. And who can blame him with all the fresh baked cookies left out by the Christmas tree—not to mention the copious amounts of homemade treats to be found at every party, in every kitchen and office this time of year!

Believe me, I know it can be a struggle to say no to all that frosted, chocolate-chipped goodness. And, guess what? Now, you don’t have to—you can help decorate any dessert buffet with one of my favorite healthy superfood dessert recipes!

These desserts are refined sugar-free, dairy-free and gluten-free. Plus, they all include a little bit of nature’s own nutritional goodness in the form of much-needed vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.

So check out the recipes below, and get ready to be the bringer of both good tidings and healthy snacks this year!

Sexy Superfood Candy
(Makes 24-30 pieces)

Ingredients:
1 cup extra virgin coconut oil
¾ cup raw chocolate cacao powder
¼ cup organic raw almond butter
¾ cup almond flour
¼ cup organic unsweetened shredded coconut
¼ to ½ cup pure organic maple syrup (test for sweetness!)
1 tablespoon organic vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ tsp sea salt

Directions:

1. Spray an ice cube tray (a fun shaped ice tray is even better!) with coconut oil spray or use mini cupcake tins and paper wrappers.

2. In a small saucepan, melt coconut oil over low heat. Once coconut oil is liquified, pour oil into a medium bowl. You can use a food processor if you have one.

3. Slowly whisk in almond butter, cinnamon, and maple syrup one at a time.

4. Next, whisk in vanilla.

5. Then slowly stir in cacao, almond flour, and coconut one at a time, sprinkling evenly as you go.

6. The batter is ready when it runs off the spoon. Spoon mixture into ice cube tray or cupcake paper wrappers.

7. Top with cashews, almond bits, pumpkin seeds, goji berries, cacao nibs and/or edible flowers!

8. Chill in the freezer for 15 minutes. Use to carefully remove chocolates from ice tray if needed.

9. Eat and bliss out!

Optional: Try adding in a few drops of your favorite edible essential oil when mixing like peppermint, lavender, or rose.

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Perfect Chocolate Protein Balls
(Makes about 10 protein balls)

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Brazil nuts
6-7 pitted Medjool dates, roughly chopped (about 1/2 cup)
2 tablespoon organic cacao powder
1 big ass tablespoon unsweetened almond butter
1 heaping tablespoon sugar-free chocolate protein powder (I love NOW Foods Dutch Chocolate Pea Protein)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon alcohol-free vanilla extract
1-2 teaspoons water

Optional: Add 1/2-1 tablespoon of organic maple syrup or a few drops of vanilla stevia for extra sweetness.

Extras: Flavored extract (hazelnut or orange are my faves!), unsweetened desiccated coconut, cacao nibs, goji berries, a dash of cayenne pepper, crushed pistachios or almonds.

Directions:

1. Place raw Brazil nuts in a food processor and process until finely ground, about 1 minute.

2. Add in dates, cacao powder, chocolate protein powder, almond butter, vanilla, cinnamon and water. Process all together until fully incorporated, about 1-2 minutes.

3. Roll mixture into 1 inch round balls, and then roll balls in assorted toppings of coconut, crushed nuts, cacao powder, cacao nibs, etc.

4. Refrigerate for 1 hour to firm up. Store leftovers in covered container in refrigerator for 1-2 weeks.

5. Eat and bliss out!

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Healthy Holiday Chocolate Bark 
(Makes about 10 squares)

Ingredients:

2 cups dark chocolate chips (I like to use Lily’s (stevia sweetened) Dark Chocolate Chips for a truly sugar-free dessert. You won’t taste the difference!)
¼ cup goji berries
¼ cup pistachios
¼ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
¼ cup slivered almonds
1 tsp sea salt

Directions:

1. Using a double boiler method, melt the chocolate chips while stirring often.

2. Keep stirring until the chocolate is smooth.

3. Once finished, add a couple more room temperature chocolate chips and keep stirring.

4. Spread chocolate evenly onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. (I used a smaller baking sheet, and it was perfect)

5. Sprinkle remaining ingredients onto the chocolate, and press them down gently.

6. Stick chocolate into the freezer to firm back up for about 1 hour.

7. Break into squares and enjoy!

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Coconut Almond Fudge
(Makes 15, Prep Time: 10 minutes)

This recipe combines superfoods coconut and almonds to create a melt in your mouth fudge.

Ingredients:

½ cup almond butter
½ cup coconut butter
2 TBS maple syrup
1 TBS coconut oil
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp almond extract

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan, combine all the ingredients and stir on medium heat until everything is combined.

2. Pour into molds and store in the fridge to set.  These should take 1-2 hours to set in the freezer.

3. Enjoy!

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Berry, Apple, Cinnamon Crumble 
(Serves 4+)

This recipe is vegan, refined sugar-free, gluten free, woohoo!

Ingredients:

6 organic apples (I love Pink Lady apples)
¾ cup organic berries fresh or frozen (I use blackberries)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup apple juice
2 cups gluten free oats
2-3 TBS organic maple syrup
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
2 TBS coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla

Directions: 

1. Peel and core the apples, and slice the peeled apples into very thin slivers.

2. Add the sliced apples, apple juice and cinnamon to a saucepan.

3. Gently boil the apples for about 7 minutes—they should be tender but not mushy.

4. Drain the apples and spread them out on the your baking dish.

5. Spread the berries over the apples and set aside.

   Crumble Topping
   

6. Mix the gluten-free oats, maple syrup, coconut oil, cinnamon and vanilla together, then spread the crumble mixture evenly over the fruit layer.

7. Place the crumble in a preheated oven at 350° F for 25-35 minutes or until the topping is browned.

8. Remove from the oven, and let it cool just enough for you to dig in without burning your mouth!

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Let me know how your treats turn out by tagging me in a pic on Instagram @theplantelife!

LOVE + superfood sweetness!