Vegan Valentine's Day Treats

The first heart happy treat is truffles or chocolate candies. Making them even better by adding all the ingredients to keep your blood sugar regulated and balanced throughout the day is just the ticket for your loved one. Ive taken simple ingredients like coconut oil, cacao powder, stevia, nut butter, and no cow's chocolate protein powder to make these easy treats.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1/4 cup lakanto maple syrup
• 1/2 cup organic peanut or almond butter
• 1/4 cup cacao powder
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 1 scoop no cow chocolate protein

INSTRUCTIONS:

Slowly melt the coconut oil until liquid, then stir in remaining ingredients until smooth.

Pour into a silicone pan or foil-lined loaf pan. You could also fill  fun little silicone candy molds

Freeze for about 1/2 hour, or until firm.

Pop out, cut, and serve.

Next up......Chocolate Covered Strawberries. This is a staple when it comes to valentine's day! Most of us either rush to the store for the premade kind or we buy our own and make them with the usual melting chocolate. A great spin on this one is using a chocolate with less sugar and then dipping them in no cows chocolate protein powder.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 pint  strawberries, washed and dried thoroughly*
• 1/2 cup (3 oz.) dairy free semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips
• 1/2 tbsp. coconut oil
•  1 scoop of No Cow Chocolate Protein Powder
•  

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Line a baking sheet or large plate with parchment paper.
2. If you haven’t already, wash and dry your strawberries. Use a paper towel or very clean dishcloth to dry each strawberry. Make sure each strawberry is completely dry before dipping.*
3. Melt your chocolate. Add chocolate chips and coconut oil to a microwave safe bowl, and microwave** in 20 second increments, stirring in between each increment, until the chocolate is smooth and glossy. (I typically pull it out of the microwave when there are only a few small bumps remaining. They’ll finish melting as you stir and you don’t risk scorching the chocolate!)
4. Now, you’re ready to dip! Working quickly, hold each strawberry by the stem and coat it in chocolate, letting excess chocolate drip from the strawberry before transferring it to the prepared baking sheet. (Add any decorations other than a chocolate drizzle at this point.)
5. Repeat with remaining strawberries until they’re all coated.
6. Place your protein in a bowl and dip each berry into the powder to coat.
7. Chill the strawberries at least 20-30 minutes, or until the chocolate is completely set.
8. If you want to drizzle them with additional melted chocolate for an extra layer of decoration, add that drizzle at this point and return to the refrigerator until set. 
9. Remove from the refrigerator about 10-15 minutes before serving, and store any leftover strawberries in a single layer in an airtight container in the refrigerator.