The festive season brings with it many treats.
Usually associated with over-indulgence and richness. But, not these special treats. A friend of mine, Caroline, brought these delectable treats over on New Year’s Eve. Now, when she told me she was bringing ‘Chocolate Date Balls’, I visualised the decadent, sugary variety. One bit of these proved my thinking to be correct. But, not accurate in the least.
Caroline’s son is a bit of a health foodie and a very talented ultra-runner. In his quest to enhance his performances, he constantly experiments with a variety of superfoods, recipes, and natural, wholefood diets. Inspired by the antioxidants that cacao provides (the good-quality raw version), his girlfriend found this little treasure of a recipe.
Pure goodness in a natural state with minimal ingredients:
dates
cacao
water
and rolling goodnesses of choice
Too easy and tastes almost too good to be truly good for you. And yet it is. Hard to believe, I know.
Something that needs to be tried for yourself to believe how good they really are.
DATE CHOCOLATE BALLS
makes approx. 30 small balls
ingredients
500g packed pitted dates, roughly chopped
3 Tbsp good-quality raw cacao powder
dash of water
handful chopped almonds (or nuts of choice)
extra cacao for rolling
shredded/desiccated coconut (toasted if you prefer)
preparation
- Add dates, almonds and cacao to a bowl and toss through so cocoa is spread evenly.
- Add a dash of water and using hands, mould and squash mixture to form a sticky, smooth paste. Add more water if necessary (be careful as too much will make mixture too runny).
- Have small, individual bowls of the extra cacao, coconut or other rolling ingredients (eg. finely chopped nuts of choice)
- Using a teaspoon, scoop up a small ball of mixture. Place in palm of hand, use both hands to roll mixture into a smooth, ball shape.
- Roll ball in topping of choice. Place in sealed container, lined with baking paper. Continue forming balls and rolling in mixture. Seal container and store in fridge.
Be warned. They may not last too long, though.
Goodness shared from Donna
6 responses
Looks beautiful. I will definitely try this recipe and let you know how it tastes. Thanks.
Hi Anna, Thanks for the feedback. Hopefully you have had an opportunity to try the recipe. Please let me know your thoughts. Thanks, Donna.
Hi Donna made these last night for Pesach dinner. I added dessicated coconut, cinnamon powder, and added a little coconut oil to the mixture – and placed it all in the food processor – really scumptulously (sp???) delicious!!! xxx stace
I also made these last night for Passover. I thought they would be a perfect touch of sweetness after a big meal, and the dates are a dessert fruit and fit the Passover occasion. I did follow the ingredients of your recipe, but improvised the quantities.
I used chopped pecans and added a bit of cinnamon. I also added about 3/4 of a cup of almond flour to hold the mixture from being too soft and sticky to roll into balls. I rolled the balls in coconut.
They turned out absolutely delicious.
The best thing, though, was that I made another batch with freshly ground cardamom instead of the cocoa. Now, that was amazing! People loved it. Worth while trying out.
A great recipe and very simple to make. Thanks again.
Hi Anna,
I am so pleased you enjoyed them. Ooh, I love the cinnamon & almond flour addition. Will try this, & also the freshly ground cardamom. Sounds amazingly delicious! I can smell the cardamom already. Hope all is well with you.
Donna x
I have been enjoying the leftover date balls from last night’s Passover meal. They are as good today as they were yesterday. Both the cocoa and cardamum versions are out of this world. A great way to end a satisfying meal if you have a sweet tooth.
Love to both of you. Anna