Raw Food: Chocolate Balls

Raw Food: Chocolate Date & Prune Balls

Ingredients:

1 Cup of pitted Prunes

3 Cups of pitted Dates

¼ Cup of LSA (Linseed, Sunflower, Almond mix) * Ok to omit, add extra nuts instead.

1 Cup of Roasted Mixed Nuts (or nuts of your choice!)

1-2 Tbsp. of Orange Juice or Water

3 TBSP Raw Cocoa powder

Desiccated Coconut to roll balls in *use Raw Cocoa Powder, Crushed Nuts, Freckles etc. as alternatives

Method:

·      Add nuts to food processor, blend to crumbs.  Add LSA, Prunes, Dates and Cocoa powder.

·      Process until mixture begins to clump together. If mixture seems a little dry, add the Orange Juice or Water (only a tiny bit at a time, approx. 1 Tbsp.).

·      Using a large chopping mat, take out a handful of mixture and roll into a sausage.

·      Cut into even pieces and roll into balls, roll balls into Desiccated Coconut. Keep balls in a sealed jar or container in either the cupboard or fridge.

Notes:

These are great for kid’s lunchboxes, as a gift, or just with a cup of coffee. They are high in fibre (which is why I started making them in the first place) and yummy – the chocolate flavour gets the kid’s attention.

There are many alternatives for this recipe – use alternative dried fruits such as cranberries and sultanas for example. The nuts do not have to be roasted, I just prefer the flavour and texture of roasted nuts.  I have used pecans and walnuts as well (just depends what is in the cupboard!). I am planning to try adding some rum at Christmas for some adult rum balls – or maybe soak the dates in rum? This may work if the dates are quite dry, you do not want the mixture to be too wet (add extra LSA if mixture gets too wet).