Superfood dark chocolate beet fudge made with medjool dates, cacao powder, unsweetened chocolate, coconut oil, walnuts, and beets – A healthful take on the classic dessert.
Around the holidays, my momma whips up batch upon batch of fudge to share with our extended family.
Her version is so sinfully addicting, made with straight up-marshmallow fluff, butter, cream, and hunks of chocolate – anyone who has had it can barely contain their elation when the mega holiday treat-making event goes down.
Because I’m a fabulous specimen of offspring and always enjoyed helping out in the kitchen, I took it upon myself to clean up any remaining melty chocolate goo that didn’t make it into the pan with my face. Via rubber spatula.
No fudge left behind.
The sweet, creamy treat made my siblings and I bounce to and fro from the couch to the wall, then crash into a fudge coma in front of Disney movies. Yeah, that stuff was gooooood.
But now that I’ve reached the ripe age of (almost) 30, and have the metabolism of a sloth rather than a cheetah but still enjoy chocolate on-the-nightly, I cleaned up the family fudge fave and whipped out the next best thing: fudge au natural.
Insert eye roll.
I know… nothing beats a real batch of silky smooth milky chocolate decadence that melts on your tongue and sends insta-pleasure signals to your brain, but hear me out. Way I see it, nightly dessert eaters such as myself can enjoy this cleaner Superfood Dark Chocolate Beet Fudge version in higher frequency without feeling the brain fog that comes with the real deal.
Plus, you get to give yourself a pat on the back for making wise food input decisions. Desserting in adult-like fashion? We’ve got this.
Let’s break it all down, beat boy style. Recipe highlights:
Healthy fudge.
Minus the dairy and refined sugar.
Made with all natural ingredients.
In a food processor.
Takes like 7.23 minutes to make (if you don’t count refrigeration time).
And you can quote me on that.
This healthy fudge recipe is super to prepare and uses straight-forward ingredients – medjool dates, cacao powder, beets, etc. – with the added benefit of packing a superfood punch.
Chocolate + beets + walnuts award you antioxidants galore, and the subtle flavor of the dates makes them taste super sweet, without tasting “healthy.”
I will say, this dark chocolate beet fudge isn’t going to taste like your momma’s high-octane authentic fudge recipe, but it certainly will please your palate.
For those of you who are beet-averse, fret not – you’ll taste chocolate, not beets – I promise.
In addition, this super simple fudge takes less time to prepare than your classic sugar and dairy-filled fudge. All it requires is tossing a few ingredients into your food processor, then letting it set up in the refrigerator.
This recipe is ideal for those times you have leftover steamed or roasted beets. Note: you can also use pre-cooked beets from the grocery store!
Using the already cooked beets eliminates the long roasting time and makes for easy preparation.
If you’re in the market for a quick and healthy chocolate recipe, this’s your go-to guy.
Superfood Dark Chocolate Beet Fudge
Ingredients
- 16 ounces medjool dates pitted
- 1/2 cup cooked beets
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup raw cacao powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 6 ounces unsweetened chocolate chopped
- 1/4 cup coconut oil
- 1 cup raw walnuts chopped
Instructions
- Place the dates in a bowl and fill with boiling water. Allow dates to sit for 10 minutes to soften.
- While the dates are soaking, place the chopped chocolate and coconut oil in a glass bowl over a small pot of boiling water, stirring occasionally until chocolate has melted.
- Drain the dates and place them in a food processor, along with the chopped beets, vanilla extract, cacao powder, cinnamon, and salt. Process until thick and smooth — you may need to stop the processor, scrape the sides with a rubber spatula, and start again several times.
- Leaving the food processor on, pour the melted chocolate/oil through the top and allow the mixture to process until smooth.
- Fold the chopped walnut into the fudge mixture with a rubber spatula.
- Transfer the fudge mixture to a parchment-lined 8" x 8" square baking pan and spread evenly. Place another piece of parchment paper on top of the fudge and gently press down in order to create an even, packed layer.
- Refrigerate at least two hours. Turn the block of fudge out onto a cutting board and slice into 16 square with s sharp knife.
Notes
Nutrition
This looks wonderful. I’m one of those exact cooks and wonder what 1/2 cup beers looked like. Could you give me a weight? Has anyone used canned beets in a pinch?
Hi Caroline! I just googled how much 1/2 cup of beets weighs and it looks like it’s around 68 grams. I’ve never weighed them myself, but see if that does the trick. I assume canned beets would work too as long as any excess moisture is patted dry 🙂 Hope this helps! xo
I love peanut butter fudge. I wonder if a peanut butter version might be possible, maybe using cooked carrots instead of beets. hmmm,
This turned out rather disastrously. I followed your instructions precisely and it came out waaaay too soft even after sitting in the fridge all afternoon. i tried cutting it into squares and lifting it with a spatula but with no success. Rather than wasting it, I’ll try to serve it as a sort of healthy mousse au chocolat (it’s certainly closer to that consistency than to fudge).
Hi Andrea,
I’m so sorry the fudge didn’t turn out. I’ll re-make the recipe to try to troubleshoot what may have happened.
@Julia,
Hi Julia,
The same thing happened when I made it….way to soft, I don’t know why it didn’t set.
I did not add walnuts.
I totally understand how deep your fudge obsession goes and while the holidays are the perfect time to indulge in the real deal THANG this is so awesome for everyday eating!
Hello, I want to thank you ever so much for this recipe…I´ve made the fudge this weekend and it´s been divine. Something incredible delicious! I love every bit of it. I was reluctant to believe that the beet won´t be felt or tasted and it was true. Pure heaven…left me speechless. Thank you 🙂
Hana S x
PS. It took me forever to puré the medjool dates since I used the stick blender. I guess you need someting more powerful.
Would you believe me if I told you I rather eat this than classic milk chocolate fudge? I’ve never been a fan of the real thing but this I can definitely get down with. Using beets is a brilliant “adult dessert” idea. But I bet you could sneak it right past little ones and they wouldn’t even know the difference!
Ya girl. Get that metabolism kickin! no more sloth. LOL! love this idea! you go the beet! haha
This fudge looks UNREAL and so good for you! Love it- pinning 🙂
What a lovely idea! I love beets and chocolate. Great superfood recipe
How can you make in 7.23 minutes when the dates have to soak for 10 minutes? 🙂 Still a great and easy recipe. I think this will replace my brownie recipe that seems to fall apart. The beets probably help it stay together better.
This looks so decadent and I LOVE that it has beets in it. So good!!!
‘The metabolism of a sloth rather than a cheetah’ <– haha, I'm feeling this right now! Why can't we have child metabolisms foreverrrr?! Also, I'm trying to cut down on allll that processed sugar and this is PERFECT. Also, beets? Who knew!?
This looks so decadent! I love that you made a healthy version of fudge, well done!