Any fans of Ferrero Rocher or Baci Perugina (or as my family calls them, “Baci Balls”) here? Chocolate + hazelnuts is one of those magical flavor combinations. But what I don’t love is the factory-farmed dairy, GMO soy lecithin, and non-sustainable palm oil used in these holiday treats.

So I decided to make my own!

I’d never actually made candy before, and while melting chocolate and letting it re-harden doesn’t exactly qualify as “candy making,” it’s about as advanced of a candy-making skill as I can handle.

Step one: Melt the chocolate and coconut butter and stir in the vanilla. Back up… the actual step one is to purchase some chocolate. I like Enjoy Life chocolate morsels because not only are they allergen-free (no soy OR dairy), but the only 2 ingredients are chocolate and cane sugar. Good? Good. You can either melt the chocolate in the microwave (stir every 30 seconds) or in a double boiler. If you don’t have a double boiler, set up a bowl over a pot of water, like so:

Then you want to pour the chocolate into a mold of some sort. I like silicone molds for this, because the little suckers pop right out when they’re ready. Be warned: this step can get messy! Don’t worry…the finished products will still look professional!

I pushed one hazelnut into the center of each chocolate and topped with one more hazelnut and a pinch of flaked sea salt.

You can let these harden on the counter or place them in the fridge or freezer to harden faster.

I have to say, I’m pretty impressed with myself! These were super easy and will look extra fancy on my holiday dessert tray. And they taste amazing!

With less than 6 grams of sugar and 6 grams of net carbs per piece, these are a smarter choice for anyone watching their carb intake.

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