Chocolate Orange Fruit and Nut Christmas Clusters
This article is from our guest blogger Luca Bogen, find more of her amazing recipes here
With so many Christmas movies to watch and so many nights snuggled in blankets with mulled wine or a hot chocolate treats are always needed! These clusters are absolutely perfect for a cold December night in with friends and family. Super easy and quick to make, you can store them in the fridge for days, but they are so delicious I’m sure you’ll be making another batch in no time.
I’ve used the Master Class 12-Hole Non-Stick Shallow Baking Tray / Mince Pie Tin, 32 x 24 cm, which you can buy from Amazon for only £5.99 but you can use any shallow baking tray to create your clusters, or alternatively use cupcake cases.
Makes a tray of 12
Ingredients
Chocolate
100g Coconut Oil
50g Raw Cacao Butter
30g Raw Cacao Powder
4 Tbsp Maple Syrup
1 Tsp orange extract
Filling
100g Mixed Nuts - I used Cashew, Walnut and Brazil Nut which you can buy premixed.
100g Sultanas, Raisins and Currants - Again, you can buy these premixed
Method
Fill each cup in your baking tray with the mixed nuts, sultanas, raisins and currants until full.
To melt the chocolate set a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of water on simmer, making sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water. The aim is to keep the temperature nice and low so the raw cacao isn't damaged by the heat. Put the coconut oil and cacao butter into the bowl and let it melt, stirring occasionally. Add the maple syrup and continue to stir until all the butter and oil have dissolved. Slowly sift the cacao powder over the mixture, and stir slowly until all has dissolved and becomes a melted chocolate consistency.
Pour the chocolate mixture into each cup over the fruit and nuts, I poured 2tbsp in each cup, which worked perfectly for the sized tray I have.
Set in the fridge until hardened, this won’t take too long, about an hour or two. Once they have set remove from their cases and store in an airtight container, a glass clip jar works perfectly. Take these out for cosy winter nights on the sofa and enjoy!
Love always,
Luca xxxx
This post was originally found on Consume Positivity, please visit for more great ideas and recipes