Surprisingly Healthy Cashew Butter Cups

|Updated May 26, 2020

One common dealbreaker for people who want to go vegan tends to be giving up dairy cheese. For me, it was Reese's peanut butter cups-- I thought I could never give those up. The chocolatey peanut butter treats were my go-to when I needed to satisfy my sweet tooth. Luckily, I found delicious vegan recipes and store-bought candies that mimic the candy perfectly.

My favorite store-bought brand of peanut butter cup is Justin's, which carries a vegan dark chocolate version of the treat, but once in awhile, I like to make my own. There is something about homemade cups that tastes more decadent, and if you use good quality ingredients, you'll taste the difference.

This recipe calls for Hu Kitchen chocolate gems that are rich and sinful--they work the best for this recipe in my opinion. Instead of classic peanut butter, this recipe calls for cashew butter which thicker than peanut butter--however you can substitute almond, peanut, or sunflower butter. I like to use different kinds of butter from time to time to switch up the taste.

Another plus side, this recipe requires no baking so you can indulge in the sweetness after 10 minutes of freezing the cups. Enjoy!

Recipe Developer: Victoria Marano, @healthwithvictoria
Why we love it: Cashew butter cups are delcious and this recipe uses real ingredients and no processed sugar. The cups are still sweet without the extra calories.
Make it for: A special treat topped with a little sea salt or crumble the cashew cups on top of your ice cream sundae.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Freeze Time: 10 minutes

Healthier Cashew Butter Cups

Makes 12 cups

Ingredients

1 bag Hu kitchen gems
1/2 cup cashew butter (or use your favorite nut butter!)
2-3 tbsp maple syrup
2 tablespoons of coconut flour
1 tsp vanilla extract
Flaked sea salt for topping

Instructions

Melt the chocolate in 30-second increments until melted.
Place 12 cupcake liners in a 12-cup muffin tin.
Add 1 tablespoon on the melted chocolate into each cupcake liner.
Using a spoon, coat the cupcake liner with chocolate, so the chocolate comes up about 1/3 of the liner.
Repeat until all liners are coated. Place in the freezer for 5 minutes to harden.
Add the cashew butter, maple syrup, coconut flour, and vanilla in a bowl and combine.
Take the chocolate cups out of the freezer and begin to add 1-2 tablespoons of the cashew butter mixture into each cup. Use your fingers to press the mixture down!
Finally, pour the remaining chocolate over the tops of the cashew butter cups and sprinkle some sea salt over each cup.
Place back into the freezer for 5 minutes or until hard. ENJOY! I like to store these in the fridge, for the perfect little treat!