ube blueberry coco butter bites
There are many moments in life where we feel less than ourselves–stuck or broken or blank or foggy. It's the moments when the ideas don't seem to want to come, when our relationships feel fragile or strained, when we feel physically or mentally trapped in a situation that has not gone according to plan, when even the rhythms of daily life seem arduous and hard to comprehend. And it is so easy, when the wall appears in front of you, to exhaust yourself clawing your way through it, or to assume the key to your cage does not exist. It is a tiring and taxing process, this stupid thing called being human.
Yet what if instead, when the stuck-ness happens, we simply take a moment to remember our breath, and trust that the fog will blow away as quickly as it came in? What if we cut our bodies and our brains a little slack, and allowed our minds to wander, or to play, or to just get some rest? It is in these moments that the inspiration comes, that we can become empowered by our own humanity, not trapped by it. It's that whole ying and yang, ebb and flow thang, and most times we gotta roll with it, not control it.
These crunchy little bites are like white chocolate bark, only they are vegan and low-sugar and a little funky to keep your mouth guessing. They came about, as many ideas do, in and out over the course of a week, over the magnificent discovery of an ube iced tea during a Saturday of wandering, and couple late night spoonfuls of coconut butter, straight from the jar, because my brain and my bod love fat and that's just how I roll.
Go make em! Then take a nap. Then wake up and trust that everything will be okay.
• 3-4 tbsp. freeze-dried blueberries (find them at Trader Joe's!)
• 1/4 cup coconut butter, melted
• 3/4 cup cacao butter chunks
• 2 tbsp. maple syrup, or honey
• 4 tbsp. powdered ube (see NOTE)
• 2-3 hefty pinches sea salt
Equipment: a chocolate mold, or large loaf pan lined with foil or parchment
In a small bowl, crush the freeze-dried blueberries with the back of a large spoon until broken down into smaller bits. Sprinkle into the bottom of the chocolate mold, or lined loaf pan and set aside.
In a small saucepan, combine coconut butter, cacao chunks, and maple syrup, and heat over very low heat until melted and smooth, stirring occasionally with a whisk or large spoon to ensure it doesn't burn. Remove from the heat, and whisk in the powdered ube and sea salt, whisking until ube powder is well incorporated. Pour mixture into your prepared mold or pan, and refrigerate until fully hardened, at least 2 hours.
Remove the hardened bark/bites from the mold/pan, and break into small chunks using a knife or your fingers. Mixture will melt fairly quickly on a hot day, so work quickly! Depending on the consistently of your ube, the mixture will likely separate and leave two pretty layers of purply-blue and white. This is fine! Rolllll with it.
Store leftovers in the fridge or freezer, and crunch on them when a craving strikes.
NOTE: Ube is magical and delicious! Try it out if you are curious, but if this ingredient is inaccessible to you, feel free to leave it out, and just stir in more crushed freeze dried blueberries at the end.
