Vegan Fruit and Nut Clusters
Ingredients
- 200g Mixed Nuts
- 100g Mixed Dried Fruit
- 100g Dried Coconut
- 4 tbsp Smooth Peanut Butter
- 1 tbsp Ground Flax Seed
- 500g Vegan Dark Chocolate
Directions
I love chocolate. I also love peanut butter. Almost all of my Christmas chocolate has gone (I still have a bit left, can you believe it?!) so I decided to make some treats that are a little bit healthier. I’m not claiming that these vegan fruit and nut clusters are healthy but they have a bit more nutritional value than a chocolate bar and they give you a more steady energy kick than a chocolate bar sugar rush does.
This recipe makes about 30 good sized vegan fruit and nut clusters so although it can get a bit fiddly when you’re adding the chocolate, it’s well worth it because you’re stocked up for a good few weeks.
If it seems too fiddly or you want a faster recipe you can just mix in the melted chocolate after the peanut butter. They don’t look as tempting in my opinion but if you’re in a hurry for treats this might be the way to go.
You can make these as big or small as you like. I made them big enough to have one but you could make them smaller and have two or three at a time. As for the type of nuts and fruit, I used a bag of mixed hazelnuts, almonds, cashews and walnuts and some left over raisins and dried, chopped apricot. You can use whatever nuts and fruit you like. You could even used a bag of ready mixed fruit and nut as long as the total weight is 300g.
If you want a more indulgent vegan treat try my vegan lemon loaf cake. Check out Veganuary for more vegan tips this January.
Line three baking trays with parchment. Mix all of the ingredients except for the peanut butter and chocolate in a large bowl.
Melt half the chocolate in the microwave for 30 second then 20 second intervals until fully melted. Spread about half a teaspoon of melted chocolate onto the baking parchment in circles. This will be the base for your nut clusters.
Melt the peanut butter In the microwave for 30 seconds. Pour into the fruit and nut mix and stir. Put a small amount of the mix onto each chocolate circle.
Melt the rest of the chocolate and put a blob onto each nut cluster, helping it spread over the nuts with the back of a spoon. The nuts don’t need to be completely covered with chocolate but there needs to be enough to hold the clusters together. Place in the fridge for an hour to set.
Ingredients
| 200g Mixed Nuts | |
| 100g Mixed Dried Fruit | |
| 100g Dried Coconut | |
| 4 tbsp Smooth Peanut Butter | |
| 1 tbsp Ground Flax Seed | |
| 500g Vegan Dark Chocolate |
