Upgrade your Chanukah gelt with these gorgeous homemade dark chocolate coins! Studded with dried fruit and nuts, these gourmet Chanukah gelt coins will be the star of your Chanukah party!
Would it even be Chanukah without chocolate gelt?
Yes, I know it’s really about the candles, and the miracle, and maybe even the fried foods. But who can pass up a chocolate coin when offered? Not me.
Which honestly is a problem. Because as much as I want them, they’re usually not actually very nice. Chanukah gelt is usually milk chocolate, which isn’t my favourite. And if they’re parve (dairy free), it’s still often disappointing. Just waxy brown over-sweetened circles that I ought to know by now to avoid.
So, this year, I decided to take our Chanukah gelt to a new level by making my own! I would transform these chocolate coins into a richly flavoured and luxurious delight. Keep reading to learn how you too can upgrade your Chanukah gelt, from a sad, cheap and nasty confection to a gourmet bonbon!
High quality chocolate – tasty and healthy!
The first change I made was to use good quality dark chocolate, with a high cocoa content. When making Chanukah gelt yourself, aim to pick something that’s at least 70% cocoa for the best results. This will ensure your chocolate Chanukah coins have a good ‘snap’ and a rich and indulgent ‘gourmet’ flavour.
Dark chocolate is packed with antioxidants, and is a good source of important minerals like iron, copper, manganese and zinc. Dark chocolate is also great for your heart. Phytonutrients including flavonoids can protect against high cholesterol, lower blood pressure and reduce heart disease risk.
The higher the percentage of cocoa, the greater the effect! In addition, more cocoa means less sugar, which offers additional health benefits. It also allows the complex flavours of the chocolate to shine through.
Added extras – fruit, nuts and more
Once I’d chosen my dark chocolate, the next thing was to add some extra elements to the Chanukah gelt. Why have plain chocolate when you can stuff it with exciting textures and extra flavours?
I love a fruit and nut chocolate bar, so added chopped mixed nuts and dried fruits, together with a pinch of cinnamon for some festive spice. You can also add mixed seeds, puffed rice or quinoa, citrus zest, flaked coconut, or whatever takes your fancy.
Dried fruits bring vitamins and minerals, as well as natural sweetness, to your Chanukah gelt. Nuts contain healthy fats and dietary fibre. And spices contain many antioxidant compounds which contribute to overall health and wellness, as well as tasting delicious!
Ingredients in homemade fruit ‘n’ nut Chanukah gelt
The ingredients for these luscious mouthfuls couldn’t be simpler. To make a batch yourself, you will need:
- Dark chocolate – choose something over 70% cocoa for rich flavour and mouthfeel and a good ‘snap’. I usually don’t go over about 85% as I find it a little bitter, but choose whichever you prefer.
- Mixed nuts – I used a combination of walnuts, almonds, cashews and hazelnuts. You could also add pecans, pistachios, macadamias or whichever nuts you enjoy.
- Dried fruits – You can play it safe and just use raisins, or add in some sultanas, dried cranberries, chopped apricots, dates, figs, or prunes. Really, use whichever dried fruits you fancy for maximum flavour and texture.
- Spices – I added a pinch of cinnamon to my Chanukah gelt mixture but you can leave it out, or do the opposite and add more spices!
You can also add some toasted desiccated or flaked coconut, mixed seeds, puffed rice or grains, or a dash of citrus zest, vanilla or peppermint oil for extra pizazz.
Shaping homemade Chanukah gelt
In an ideal world, I’d have cute little moulds to make perfect, round, professional-looking chocolate coins. Sadly, the only moulds I could find (in the UK) for chocolate coins were either pirate-themed, or had Santa embossed onto them. Neither seemed ideal.
Instead, I simply made circles of the chocolate mixture on a parchment-lined tray. The end results may be a little ‘rustic’ but they still taste amazing!
Of course, if you can find suitable moulds, you can make lovely chocolate coins that don’t look quite so chunky and rugged as mine. But either way, your shimmering golden Chanukah gelt will go down a storm with whoever has the good fortune to taste it.
Making homemade Chanukah gelt – melt, mix and shape
Delicious homemade Chanukah gelt is very straightforward to make. First, finely chop your chocolate, then gently melt about three quarters of it in a mixing bowl. You can do this over a pan of simmering water, or using a microwave. Either way, use gentle heat and be careful not to scorch the chocolate. Stir occasionally so the chocolate melts evenly – use a heat-proof glove or a towel to hold the bowl if it gets hot.
Once the chocolate is melted, add the remaining unmelted quarter and stir it in until everything is melted. Doing this will help to create even-sized cocoa butter crystals as the chocolate cools and sets. Keep stirring as the chocolate cools. To test if your chocolate is ‘tempered’, spread a thin layer onto a cold plate – it should set very quickly and have a smooth and shiny appearance.
Now it’s time to add your extras. Tip in the fruits, nuts and spices and give everything a good mix.
Once you have your chocolate mixture, you need to work quickly to spread spoonfuls of the into circles on your parchment-lined tray. Make different sizes, and don’t worry if they’re not perfectly round. You can draw pencil circles on the reverse side of the parchment paper to help you shape the coins if you like, or just freehand it! Each of your delicious, nutritious chocolates will be a unique, artisan-made confection.
Leave the chocolate gelt in the fridge or a cool place to set. Then carefully peel from the parchment paper and store in an airtight container.
A touch of gold – gilding the gelt!
Arguably, these delicious chocolate ‘coins’ only become gelt if there’s some element of gold involved. You can buy gold foil wrappers to wrap the individual coins, which is a great idea if you’re planning to package them as gifts. It also prevents them from sticking together in the box if you don’t eat them all straightaway.
Alternatively, you can brush the chocolates with edible gold flakes or gold lustre dust to give a metallic shimmer that doesn’t need to be removed before eating. This was my preferred approach as I still have some gold flakes left from making Chanukah gelt cocktails last year! I brushed each coin very lightly with water, then shook a few at a time in a bag with the gold flakes. You can see the results in the photos! Sparkly!
Looking for ideas to help make Chanukah extra special? My Ultimate Family Chanukah ebook is available now! It’s packed with resources, recipes, family activities, information and printables for every night of the festival.
Creative presentation ideas
For a special Chanukah celebration, don’t forget about creative presentation when serving your homemade chocolate gelt. Arrange the gelt on a pretty platter, board or tray, along with some fresh fruit or nuts for a splash of colour. These gorgeous nibbles will make a beautiful and appetising display.
If you’re gifting your Chanukah gelt to friends or family, consider packaging them in a decorative tin or a cute paper or cellophane bag. A pretty ribbon, Chanukah sticker or washi tape can add an extra touch of elegance and festivity to your treat.
Your homemade gourmet dark chocolate Chanukah gelt will be a delightful treat that will impress your guests and bring joy to your holiday festivities. These beautiful homemade coins will be the stars of your Chanukah party!
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📖 Recipe
Dark chocolate fruit and nut Chanaukah gelt
Ingredients
- 200 g dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa)
- 50 g mixed nuts, finely chopped
- 50 g mixed dried fruits, chopped if large
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
- gold lustre dust or edible gold flakes (optional)
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. You can draw circles in pencil on the reverse side of the paper to help you shape the coins if you like.
- 200 g dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa)Chop the chocolate into very small pieces (see note). Put around three quarters of it into a bowl and melt gently, either over a pan of simmering water, or in the microwave. If melting in the microwave, use medium power and stir every 30 seconds to prevent scorching the chocolate.
- Once the chocolate is melted, add the remaining finely chopped chocolate and stir until it is all melted and combined. At this stage you can test the 'temper' of the chocolate by spreading a small amount onto a chilled saucer. It should quickly set into a smooth and glossy surface.
- 50 g mixed nuts, finely chopped, 50 g mixed dried fruits, chopped if large, ½ tsp ground cinnamon (optional)Add the chopped nuts, dried fruit and cinnamon to the melted chocolate and stir thoroughly to combine.
- Working quickly, use a teaspoon to dollop the chocolate mixture and spread it into coin-sized circles. If the mixture starts to set, warm in 10-second bursts in the microwave until it is workable again. Don't over melt!
- gold lustre dust or edible gold flakes (optional)Put the chocolate coins in the fridge to set. Once they are fully hardened, you can wrap them in gold foil wrappers, or dust with gold lustre or edible gold flakes (see notes).
Notes
Nutrition
More Chanukah gelt recipes and ideas
If you love these homemade dark chocolate Chanukah gelt coins, you might also enjoy:
- Gingerbread Chanukah gelt – who says coins have to be made of chocolate?!
- Chocolate Chanukah gelt cupcakes
- Chanukah gelt hot chocolate
- The Chanukah gelt cocktail – an indulgent Chanauk tipple made with chocolate liqueur and real gold.
Or if you just want delicious Chanukah treats of all kinds, how about:
You can browse all of my Chanukah recipes and ideas here.
Dark chocolate Chanukah gelt FAQ
This delicious gelt is made with high quality dark chocolate plus nutritious additions like naturally sweet dried fruit and wholesome nuts. It not only has a rich and interesting flavour, but the ingredients also have notable health benefits due to their vitamins, minerals, and other phytonutrients.
Yes! This gorgeous gelt is naturally vegan and gluten-free, so it is suitable for vegans, vegetarians, celiacs and people with gluten intolerance. The recipe does contain nuts, so it is not suitable for nut allergy sufferers as written. However you can swap out the nuts for mixed seeds, coconut, or more dried fruits, to make this tasty Chanukah treat suitable for people with a nut allergy.
Store your dark chocolate gelt in an airtight container in a cool, dark place. It does not need to be refrigerated, but should be stored away from sources of heat to prevent the chocolate softening or melting.
The tradition of Chanukah gelt, which means “Chanukah money” in Yiddish, dates back centuries. Parents and grandparents would give coins to children during Chanukah for several reasons, including encouraging children to give tzedakah (charity), as a reward for Torah study, and as a tangible way to celebrate the holiday. Read more about the history of Chanukah gelt here.
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