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And it begins with the Christmas treats! Are you ready?!
Remember that vanilla cashew butter I made a while back?! It was so yummy, and creamy, and naturally sweet that I figured it would make some awesome vanilla cashew butter cups. You know? Like Reese’s peanut butter cups? Only with vanilla cashew butter…and homemade.
What’s not love about that?
These cute little vanilla cashew butter cups have a dark chocolate coating with a gooey, creamy, vanilla cashew butter center. Seriously so good. Why have’t these been a thing before? Don’t get me wrong, I love peanut butter as much as the next American does, but there is something special about cashew butter oozing out of chocolate.
These vanilla cashew butter cups only requires 5 ingredients. 3 ingredients for the vanilla cashew butter and then only 2 extra ingredients to turn them into decadent little cashew butter cups! 3 + 2 = 5 ingredients, total! I’m good at math! yay!
Here’s all you need to make these 5 ingredient vanilla cashew butter cups:
- 3/4 cup of my vanilla cashew butter (if you haven’t made it already)
- raw cashews
- salt
- pure vanilla extract
- dark chocolate – for the coating
- coconut oil – to keep the chocolate a little softer, it’s easier for eating
That’s it!!!
Oh, and you will need some cute little mini muffin cups. I used silicone ones, which makes removing the cashew butter cups a breeze, but paper would also works.
Oh, hello beautiful jar of creamy golden deliciousness.
Yes, I’m talking to my jar of vanilla cashew butter above….you are amazing covered in chocolate, or on toast with honey, or spread onto a sweet medjool date. It’s wonderful to have you back in my pantry.
Making these vanilla cashew butter cups is super easy. It’s simply melting chocolate, assembly, and freezing. The hardest part is not getting chocolate all over yourself. Seriously, when I made these I somehow wound up with chocolate smeared between my eye and my nose. I didn’t know it was there until I went to the bathroom. Also, there may have been some in my hair haha!
But, what’s the point in making Christmas treats if you don’t get a little bit messy? Lol!
Here’s how you make these adorable vanilla cashew butter cups:
- melt chocolate and coconut oil in microwave. Spread on bottom and up the sides of mini muffin cups. Freeze to set.
- Add 1/2 tablespoon of vanilla cashew butter to each mini muffin cup. Freeze.
- melt more chocolate and coconut oil. Spread the chocolate on top of frozen cashew butter.
- Freeze to set. Remove from the cups.
- STUFF YOUR FACE!….I mean, savor each dainty bite!
That’s the gist of it. More details in the recipe card below.
As you may have noticed the only sugar inside these vanilla cashew butter cups is the sugar that’s in the dark chocolate. I personally don’t feel the need to sweeten the cashew butter, it’s perfect just as it is. However, if you prefer a sweeter treat you can add powdered sugar to the cashew butter. Directions in the notes of the recipe card below.
Not only does the powdered sugar make the cashew butter a little sweeter, it does change the texture a bit. Without the powdered sugar the cashew butter oozes out of the little chocolate cup once you bite into them. It’s gooey and delicious, I love them this way! When you add the powdered sugar the cashew butter becomes thicker and won’t ooze out when you take a bite. It’s more of a soft, melt-in-your-mouth experience, similar to how you expect a store bought version to be.
Both ways are really good. Paul preferred them with powdered sugar, I preferred them without, ha! Either route you take you will love these adorable vanilla cashew butter cups, I just want you to know your options.
I love the combo of the hard, bitter dark chocolate shell with the gooey cashew butter center that has a hint of vanilla. They are so simple, yet so impressive. And as usual, they are way better than any version of these you could buy.
But, maybe I am biased?
As you can tell I had a lot of fun photographing these vanilla cashew butter cups. They are so cute!
They would make a great edible gift because they aren’t delicate like a cookie. They travel well, and they last a long time – bout 1 to 2 months in the fridge. They would also be a fun addition to a cookie swap (you don ‘t HAVE to just make cookies for those things, ya know?). They would be a fun dessert at a Holiday party. Or make them just because you are as obsessed with chocolate cups filled with nut butter.
Vanilla cashew butter cups aren’t just for Christmas time. They would make a great homemade Halloween treat to share with your close kiddos. They would also be a great Easter basket treat. Is there any Holiday that a cashew butter cup would’t be welcome at?
I hope that these vanilla cashew butter cups bring you as much joy as they did for me.
Here are more no bake chocolate Holiday treats:
- dark chocolate bark with candied oranges
- healthy dark chocolate peppermint truffles
- homemade vegan chocolate turtles
- Mexican chocolate cake balls (no bake)
- Quinoa crunch chocolate bark with cherries
Enjoy all of that glorious chocolate! YUMMMM!!!
If you made this recipe do me a favor and leave a comment below, along with a star rating. This helps my recipes to rank higher in google. And it makes my day to read your comments. Thanks, friends!
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5 Ingredient Vanilla Cashew Butter Cups
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 16 cups 1x
- Category: dessert, easy, chocolate
- Method: assembly
- Cuisine: vegetarian, vegan, dairy free, gluten free
Description
Vanilla cashew butter cups are the perfect homemade treat for any Holiday. They are simple, yet impressive and easy to make.
Ingredients
Chocolate coating
- 14 ounces dark chocolate bar, divided (about 3 1/2 4 ounce bars)
- 1 3/4 teaspoon coconut oil, divided
Vanilla cashew butter filling
- 3/4 cup + 1 to 2 tablespoons of 3 ingredient vanilla cashew butter – (click here for recipe)
Instructions
- Prepare: If you haven’t already, make a batch of my vanilla cashew butter, and allow it to cool completely. This can be done several days to weeks in advance. Note: you will need about 3/4 cup + 1 to 2 tablespoons of the cashew butter for this recipe, the rest you can enjoy. YUM! Also, just before you are starting to make the cups place 16 mini silicone muffin cups or other mini paper cups on a rimmed baking sheet and set aside.
- Melt chocolate for bottom coating: Place 4 ounces of the chocolate bar, broken up, in a microwave safe bowl. I like to use a glass spouted measuring cup so that the handle is easy to grab out of the microwave. Also add 1/2 teaspoon of the coconut oil. Microwave on high in 30 second increments, stirring in between until the chocolate is fully melted.
- Make bottom coating: Measure out 1 teaspoon of the chocolate into each cup. Use the back of a 1/2 teaspoon measuring spoon to push the melted chocolate all the way up the sides of each cup, making sure no major holes are visible. You need to work quickly before the chocolate starts to set too much, work in batches if needed.
- Freeze bottom layer: Place the baking tray with the chocolate cups in the freezer for 5 minutes, or until solid.
- Add the cashew butter center: Add 1/2 tablespoon of vanilla cashew butter to each cup, using a spoon to spread out the cashew butter into a mostly even layer.
- Freeze the cashew butter center: Place the baking sheet in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the cashew butter is solid to the touch.
- Melt the top chocolate coating: Returning to the same chocolate bowl melt the remaining 10 ounces of chocolate along with the 1 1/4 teaspoon coconut oil. Microwave on high in 30 second increments, stirring in between until the chocolate is fully melted.
- Make the final chocolate layer: Measure out about 2 teaspoons of melted chocolate on top of the now frozen cashew butter cups and use the back of a spoon to spread the chocolate over the entire cup.
- Finish: Freeze one last time, for 15 minutes, or until solid. Carefully remove the cups from the molds.
- Serve/store: Store the cashew butter cups in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 to 2 months. To serve you can either eat them straight out of the fridge, the chocolate is a little hard – or you can allow them to sit at room temp for 15 to 20 minutes to soften up the chocolate. The butter gets all gooey. They are kind of messy this way (but I love them), so have a napkin ready.
Notes
Variation: The way the cashew butter cups are as written in the recipe is how I prefer them. The only sugar comes from what is in the dark chocolate. However, you can add powdered sugar to the cashew butter to sweeten it more. This will also turn the cashew butter into more of a paste so that when at room temp they aren’t super gooey, the consistency will be more like what you think of with a Reese’s peanut butter cup.
Powdered sugar: To add the powdered sugar simply mix the 3/4 cup +1 to 2 tablespoons of the cashew butter with 1 tablespoon + 3/4 teaspoon powdered sugar until well combined. Continue with the recipe as stated above.
Vegan/dairy free: To make this recipe vegan/dairy free simply use vegan and/or dairy free chocolate.
Prep time does not include time needed to make the vanilla cashew butter (about 30 minutes). Also, the prep time may seem like a long time for something so easy, but I did include the hands off time needed for all the freezing, so it’s a lot more down time than it sounds like.
These are my favourites! I cant wait to make them again
That’s awesome. so glad to her that you liked the recipe, Ellie. Thanks for the kind review. 🙂