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"Home" » Recipes » Sauces

Healthy Chocolate Sauce

Wendy Faulkner headshot
Modified: Sep 16, 2022 · Published: Aug 26, 2021 by Wendy Faulkner · This post may contain affiliate links · 4 Comments
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This healthy chocolate sauce without cream will transform fruit, brownies, pancakes and waffles into a delicious dessert. It's low sugar, low fat, low calorie, and oh-so-chocolately. It takes just 10 minutes to make, and is made with simple everyday ingredients.

Healthy chocolate sauce with fruit.

Why you're going to love this healthy chocolate sauce

It tastes fantastic. Chocolate sauce made with cocoa has a rich dark chocolatey flavour. But the addition of milk and a little bit of honey makes this kid-friendly too.

It's low in added sugar. Many bought chocolate sauces are based on invert sugar syrup - because it's cheap and easy to store. This healthy homemade chocolate sauce is milk based, and needs just one tablespoon of honey to sweeten it. So in place of a lot of sugar, you are adding more calcium and B12. It's a win-win!

It's low in fat. There's no cream in the recipe. By choosing the type of milk that you use, you can control the level of fat in the recipe. If you use skimmed milk, you won't lose out on taste taste, but you'll have a very low-fat chocolate sauce.

Low in calories. Cutting down on fat also means cutting down on calories, and a portion of this sauce has just 43 calories.

The recipe is gluten free. You can easily make the sauce dairy free by using non-dairy milk such as oat milk or rice milk.

And if you want a vegan chocolate sauce, be sure to switch the honey for maple syrup (as well as using dairy free milk!).

You might also like to try this vegan avocado chocolate mousse which you can make in 10 minutes! Or try this healthy chocolate hummus.

Healthy chocolate sauce is also very easy to make. It'll be ready to enjoy in just 10 minutes:)

Ingredients

Cocoa, cornflour, milk, honey, salt

Just a few everyday ingredients are needed to make this healthy chocolate sauce.

  • Cocoa. Chocolate sauce made with cocoa is rich and dark. Make sure that you use pure cocoa rather than drinking chocolate which has a lot of sugar added. If you prefer, you can use raw cacao powder.
  • Honey. Any type of honey will work here as it's going to be heated. In fact it's a great way to use up honey which has crystallised in the jar!
  • Cornflour. Note that this is cornstarch, not cornmeal. It's a flavourless white powder made from the kernel of corn.
  • Milk. This chocolate sauce is made without cream. But a little bit of diary makes for a creamier taste. You can use any type of milk in this recipe. I used skimmed dairy milk.
  • A pinch of salt. I know it sounds strange to add salt to a sweet dish, but a tiny pinch of salt will help to bring out the rich chocolatey-ness of the cocoa.

How to make healthy chocolate sauce without cream

This recipe is incredibly quick and easy to make. You simply add all the ingredients to a cold pan and stir until well mixed. The one golden rule with cornflour is to always add it to a cold liquid.

Milk, cocoa, cornflour and honey in pan.

Then, place the pan over a medium heat, and stir continuously.

Whisking milk, cocoa, cornflour and honey together.

After 4-5 minutes, as the mix comes to the boil, the sauce will thicken. Allow it to bubble for a minute, then turn off the heat and give it a final stir.

Low fat chocolate sauce in saucepan with a whisk.

Your healthy chocolate sauce without cream is ready to be enjoyed hot or cold.

The consistency of the sauce will be quite thick - you can dollop it onto other foods, and it will just hold on top of a muffin. It's also ideal for dipping. If you'd prefer a thinner sauce for drizzling, just stir in a tiny amount of extra milk until you get the consistency that you're after.

Pouring low calorie chocolate sauce from pan into bowl.

Serving suggestions

Where to start???

I first made this healthy chocolate sauce to go with stewed pears. And strawberries and chocolate sauce are a great match (you could also try these chocolate coated strawberries). Fresh cherries are another great option, and children are sure to love banana with chocolate dip.

Low calorie chocolate sauce, with less than 50 calories, is also a great way to turn brownies or muffins into dessert - try it with these healthy adzuki beans brownies, or chocolate coconut flour muffins.

And chocolate sauce is also a great addition to these healthy pancakes and this gluten free protein waffles recipe.

Of course, you don't need me to remind you how good chocolate sauce and ice cream is;)

This healthy chocolate sauce without cream will keep in the fridge for a couple of days.

You could also freeze any leftovers. It might split slightly on defrosting - just give it a quick stir to bring it back together again.

Homemade low calorie chocolate sauce on muffin

Optional flavours and additions

I have to confess, I love this low-calorie healthy chocolate sauce with cocoa just as it is. But depending on how you are planning on serving it, you might like to try some other options:

  • Chocolate and cardamom are a match made in heaven. For a grown up chocolate sauce, try adding a pinch of ground cardamom. Or go even more grown up with a splash of alcohol - maybe amaretto for a hit of almond flavour. For a mocha flavour you could also add a splash of strong coffee. Bear in mind though that any liquid you add with make the sauce a little thinner.
  • Orange zest. For a healthy chocolate orange sauce, add half a teaspoon of very finely grated orange zest. Make sure you don't accidentally include any of the white pith from the orange, as it'll taste bitter.
  • For a more rounded sweetness, you can also add half a teaspoon of vanilla extract.
Jar of homemade chocolate sauce without cream.

Frequently asked questions

How do you thicken chocolate sauce?

Cornflour is a quick and easy way to thicken chocolate sauce. Make sure that you add the cornflour to a cold liquid. Then as you stir the sauce over a heat, it will thicken up.

What is the difference between fudge sauce and chocolate sauce?

Fudge sauce is generally a richer, thicker version of chocolate sauce. It usually contains butter or cream, and plenty of sugar and chocolate. However, you can make a delicious tasting healthy chocolate sauce without cream which is much lower in sugar and calories, but still rich and chocolatey.

How long does homemade chocolate sauce last?

Homemade chocolate sauce will last for 2-3 days in the fridge. Give it a stir when you use it, and if necessary add a splash more milk as it will thicken up. Of course, whether you can resist eating it for couple of days is another matter!!

Other healthy chocolate recipes

If you're a chocoholic who likes healthy chocolatey treats, look no further...

  • Dark chocolate covered strawberries.
    Dark Chocolate Covered Strawberries
  • Avocado chocolate mousse
    Healthy Avocado Chocolate Mousse
  • Healthy florentines on tray.
    Healthy Florentines
  • Healthy chocolate coconut truffles.
    Healthy Chocolate Coconut Truffles (Dairy Free & No Refined Sugar)

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Recipe

Healthy chocolate sauce

Healthy Chocolate Sauce

Wendy Faulkner
This healthy chocolate sauce without cream will transform fruit, brownies, pancakes and waffles into a delicious dessert. It's low sugar, low fat, low calorie, and oh-so-chocolately. It takes just 10 minutes to make and is made with simple everyday ingredients.
4.67 from 3 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Total Time 10 minutes mins
Course Dessert
Cuisine Healthy
Servings 4
Calories 43 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 1 tablespoon cocoa
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 tablespoon cornflour
  • 200 ml milk any type
  • pinch salt

Instructions
 

  • Add all the ingredients to a cold saucepan and stir until well combined.
  • Place over a medium heat, and stir continuously. After 4 or 5 minutes of cooking, as the mix comes to the boil, the sauce will thicken. Allow it to bubble for a minute, then give the sauce a final stir and remove from the heat.

Notes

Always stir cornflour into cold milk to avoid lumps.
The recipe makes a thick syrupy sauce which can be poured over fruit, pancakes etc, and will also coat a brownie. If you want a thinner sauce, add a splash more milk at the end.
You can use dairy or non dairy, skimmed or full fat milk. The nutritional information shown is for a sauce made with skimmed milk.
For a vegan sauce, use non dairy milk and maple syrup rather than honey.
Serve hot or cold.
Chocolate sauce will keep in the fridge for 2 or 3 days.

Nutrition

Calories: 43kcalCarbohydrates: 8.9gProtein: 2.1gFat: 0.3gSaturated Fat: 0.2gFiber: 0.5gSugar: 6.9g
Keyword Chocolate, Healthy Dessert
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Please note nutritional information is per serving and is provided for guidance only.

« Oat Flour Banana Bread
Healthy Gluten Free Cheese Sauce with Cornflour »

Comments

  1. LJ says

    April 26, 2024 at 8:11 pm

    LJ
    Thank you for the recipe. Sensitive to corn -- so is there a substitution you can suggest?

    Reply
    • Wendy Faulkner says

      April 29, 2024 at 10:13 am

      Hi, sorry to hear that. You could use arrowroot to thicken the sauce. Start by using 2 teaspoons as it works quite effectively. If you're not gluten-free, you could also use flour - in which case you could need up to 2 tablespoons. I hope that helps!

      Reply
  2. Shirley says

    November 23, 2023 at 9:56 pm

    5 stars
    Excellent, so easy to make and yummy with ice-cream. Thank you

    Reply
    • Wendy Faulkner says

      November 24, 2023 at 9:43 am

      Thank you, ice cream and chocolate sauce sounds like a perfect combination:)

      Reply
4.67 from 3 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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Wendy Faulkner, creator of Cinnamon and Kale

Hi, I'm Wendy.
Welcome to Cinnamon and Kale.
Here you'll find lots of delicious, healthy recipes which are easy to make with everyday ingredients.

More about me →

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