My mom’s birthday fell on Thursday: two days after she started her new job, the same day of my dad’s critical 8-hour meeting, and the day before he flew to NYC. She planned ahead, buying her own birthday present the previous weekend and handing it to Dad for him to wrap and give, but because of their hectic work schedules, they “celebrated” with take-out on the couch in front of a Duraflame log fire.
Although Mom claimed, “I don’t need to celebrate—I’m not aging this year!” I still drove down Saturday to spend the afternoon with her. Over our favorite blueberry coffee cake, I surprised her with chocolate candles (they smell shockingly realistic!) and inspirational salad plates tucked inside a lavender gift bag. After nestling our leftovers in their crowded fridge, we watched Elf, decorated my dog with a festive blinking-light Christmas collar, and blitzed through stores searching for winter sweaters and stocking stuffers.
While waiting my turn in the long line at Kohl’s, my eyes wandered to their checkout stand displays. Packed with shiny bags of creamy Godiva chocolate truffles and peppermint bark, each one begged to be placed in my basket and taken home. At the Walmart next door, boxes of Ferrero Rocher hazelnut chocolates threatened to topple on my head as I balanced precariously on my tiptoes to inspect the Gingerbread M&Ms. And we vowed not to visit the mall; See’s dark chocolate truffles always called our names too loudly to resist!
Instead of indulging in those pricy, gourmet chocolates (well, for now at least… I can’t make any promises about Christmas Day!), I created my own homemade alternative: Healthy Dark Chocolate Peppermint Truffles. These rich, fudgy balls taste just as decadent but are secretly skinny, dairy-free and clean-eating friendly!
With the centers of my chocolate-filled wheat rolls as inspiration, I only used 4 ingredients for these low-fat truffles: cocoa powder, applesauce, honey, and peppermint extract. That’s it! Nothing fancy, and not one drop of heavy cream or melted chocolate. You probably store most of these things in your pantry already!
Although applesauce is included, you cannot taste it at all. Along with the honey, it acts as the glue to hold the truffles together, as well as providing a little natural sweetness. There are no fruit flavors in these skinny truffles—just lots of peppermint and dark chocolate!
For vegan truffles, substitute the honey with pure maple syrup or agave. Either one will work if you’re following a clean eating diet!
To add to this recipe’s simplicity, no heating is required either. Like I mentioned, there’s no chocolate to melt and no cream to warm. All of the mixing is done at room temperature. Just measure each ingredient into a bowl, stir until combined, and stick in the fridge to chill. It’s the easiest chocolate truffle recipe you’ll ever make!
To form the truffles, roll a heaping tablespoon of the chocolate mixture between your palms to shape it into a ball. The chocolate may stick to your hands a bit, but it washes off easily with warm water. (Go ahead, sneak a taste—I won’t judge!) Place each sphere on wax paper or in mini muffin paper liners for a pretty presentation, and leave them in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Chilling helps maintain their circular shape and intensifies the minty taste.
Although I stuck with a simple appearance, try coating them in extra cocoa powder or confectioner’s (powdered) sugar for a polished look. I also contemplated rolling them in crushed candy canes or peppermint bark for an extra minty taste. That red and white layer would look really striking against the dark chocolate truffles!
Without revealing anything about these Dark Chocolate Peppermint Truffles, I presented them to Mom for her approval. As she sunk her teeth into the center of one of the decadent treats, her eyes widened. “They’re only 27 calories??” she asked. “Did you use a sugar substitute to reduce the calories?”
I grinned and revealed the recipe. “They’re just as rich as regular ones made with melted chocolate and heavy cream,” she declared. “They’re going to be one of the most popular recipes on your blog!”
I wonder if she’ll be right!
And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your dark chocolate peppermint truffles!
Healthy Dark Chocolate Peppermint Truffles
Ingredients
- 1 cup (80g) unsweetened cocoa powder (measured like this)
- ½ cup (127g) unsweetened applesauce
- 3 tbsp (45mL) honey (see Notes!)
- ¼ tsp peppermint extract
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, stir together all 4 ingredients. Chill for at least 30 minutes, or up to 3 days. (If chilling longer than 30 minutes, cover the bowl with foil, plastic wrap, or a lid.) Working with about a tablespoon at a time, roll the chocolate mixture into a ball, and place on wax paper or in individual mini muffin paper liners. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Classic Dark Chocolate Truffles
♡ Dark Chocolate Peppermint Mocha Truffles
♡ Dark Chocolate Raspberry Truffles
♡ Dark Chocolate Orange Truffles
♡ Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Truffles
♡ Dark Chocolate Gingerbread Truffles
♡ Blueberry Greek Yogurt Truffles
♡ Ginger Fudge
♡ …and the rest of Amy’s healthy truffles recipes and fudge recipes!
Hi Amy!
First of all thank you for the great sharing. I have always wanted to try on any of your recipes but time are always not on my side. When I saw the healthy dark choc peppermint truffles (I luv anything to do with mint) & its quite an easy instructions, I set time aside & I have done it:) The only problem is I used hershey unsweetened cocoa powder & it turns out to be bitter & the shape is not as smooth as yours. Can you point out my mistakes please? Thank you! Have a pleasant day:)
Hi Putry! I actually used Hershey’s unsweetened cocoa powder as well. It’s important that you measure the cocoa correctly, using the spoon-and-level method (same as flour). This guide should help! If you use too much cocoa powder, the truffles’ texture would be dry and the taste much darker; I’m guessing that’s what happened. I hope your second batch turns out perfectly! 🙂
I was so excited to try them. They looked delicious! I was really disapointed when I tasted them. I love dark chocolate, but these truffles were too bitter for my taste. I would try them again, but I will certainly modify the recipe.
I’m sorry they were too dark for you Annabelle; that must’ve been disappointing. I recommend swapping another tablespoon or two for additional honey or agave instead. That should help make them sweeter!
I made these today but found them to be very, very bitter–like eating straight unsweetened cocoa powder. I followed your recipe and even tried adding an extra T of honey, but they were still bitter. I had to add a LOT of stevia powder before they tasted ok to me, and I like traditional dark chocolate! Do the truffles taste sweet to you or bitter (do you like bitter chocolate, maybe)? Thanks for your help!
I’m sorry the flavor of these truffles wasn’t what you expected; that must’ve been disappointing. They’re supposed to taste very dark, similar to the flavor of between 72-78% dark chocolate. Since dark chocolate’s flavor varies with the percentage, it may be that the chocolate I’m used to is a bit darker than yours. In the future, it’s also possible to try substituting more honey for some (or all) of the applesauce until it reaches the sweetness you prefer. I hope your next batch turns out perfectly!
Amy! I need help 🙂 I’m actually in Kenya and I planned to make these for a party. So, there is no applesauce here. I know you said in one comment you can use all honey for applesauce but I don’t want it to be too sweet. Is there another substitute?
I actually haven’t tried anything but applesauce San, but milk may work. Because milk is much thinner than applesauce, start with 2 tablespoons and slowly add 1-2 teaspoons at a time until everything comes together in a smooth mixture. You may also want to add just a touch more honey to make up for some of the missing sweetness from the applesauce. I’d love to hear how the truffles turn out for you, and have a wonderful party!
Will give it a try and let you know! Thank you 🙂
They came out amazing! It was a bit hard to get the correct consistency–esp. with my daughter eating it as went. 🙂 Works for the mint and peanut butter–YUM! Thank you!
I’m so glad you enjoyed the truffles San! You’re so sweet to let your daughter help. I hope you enjoy the party!
Oh. My. Gosh. These are incredible!! I was a little skeptical, but I had all the ingredients and this recipe is so easy, so I gave it a go. Wow. Seriously blew my mind! They are definitely dark, but I loooove dark chocolate so I think they’re perfect. Amy you are a genius!
I’m so glad you enjoyed the truffles Jessica! I know the ingredients list doesn’t seem like it’ll create a decadent truffle, so I really appreciate that you took the time to try them. 🙂
Love these! I was thinking of making a tart and using this mixture as the filling, but wanted to add something more. Maybe take out peppermint and do a peanut butter swirl. Any ideas?
Thanks Raquel! I hadn’t thought of turning these into a tart filling, but I love your ideas! I actually have a similar recipe to this one for dark chocolate peanut butter truffles (it’s here), so maybe that’ll help you too. 🙂
I saw this recipe and decided to try them, as I was supposed to make truffles for a violin recital. I halved the recipe just to try them. I followed the recipe precisely, and when I tasted it, all I could taste was peppermint oil, and cocoa powder. (not to mention NO sweetness) Is it supposed to taste this way? I don’t mind dark chocolate OR peppermint, but these were VERY bitter and “pepper-minty.” Any suggestions?
I’m sorry the truffles didn’t turn out how you expected Alyssa; that must have been disappointing. The truffles are supposed to be very dark (think 75%+ dark chocolate), but if they were overly dark and bitter, there was probably too much cocoa powder in the mixture. How did you measure the cocoa powder? Like flour, it should be measured with the spoon-and-level method (I describe that here), and I’ve found that if I scoop it directly from the container, I end up with 1.5 times as much. That would definitely cause the issues you’ve described! If the truffles are still too dark after lightly measuring the cocoa, then try swapping out a tablespoon or two of the applesauce for additional honey. I hope your next batch turns out perfectly!
Now that I think about it, I’m pretty sure I scooped the cocoa directly from the container:\ Thanks for the suggestions, and I will definitely try again!
You’re welcome Alyssa! I have my fingers crossed for you! 🙂