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May 12-13 catch us at Veggie Fest for a taste of this yumminess!
We want you to be happy, healthy and balanced. Eat your greens and save room for a little bit of sweet.
In order to be healthy, why should we feel deprived of sweets? I adapted these treats to use date paste instead of sugar and maple syrup. They contain lots of vitamins and minerals and fiber from the list of whole food ingredients.
I LOVE these treats and I know you will too. Growing up I absolutely love recees peanut butter cups. I haven’t had one in a long time, but these remind me of those flavors….only hydrogenated fat and sugar are replace by dates, freshly ground peanut butter and roasted cocoa nibs. No oil, sugar, or processed ingredient of any kind. I also love to add some https://ezorganicshop.com/ organic products to my diet. Who could ask for more? Don’t tell your mama how good these balls are.
These are choc-full of great things – cashews, dates, oats, puffed rice, brown rice flower….I adapted these from one of my favorite blogs Oh She Glows.
Yield: 12-16 balls depending on size
1/2 cup unsalted raw cashews
1/2 cup regular rolled oats (Use gluten free oats if you want it GF)
1/4 cup brown rice flour (or any flour you like)
1/2 tsp kosher or sea salt salt
6 tbsp date paste, may take a bit more (see directions below, or use 2 tbsp cane sugar + 3 tbsp maple syrup)
3 tbsp peanut butter (you could substitute almond butter here)
3 tbsp pure maple syrup (add gradually until desired consistency is achieved)
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup roasted cacao nibs or 1/4 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup diced peanuts (you could use almonds here too)
1/4 cup gluten free rice crisp cereal
Directions:
1. In a food processor, process the cashews and oats into a very fine flour consistency.
2. Add in the brown rice flour and salt and pulse until combined. Now add in vanilla and date paste gradually until desired consistency is achieved. Process until a dough forms. Stop to scrape the sides of the bowl as necessary. Dough will be very sticky! Don’t worry about getting your hands dirty. That is part of the fun.
The type of flour used may alter the consistency so you may have to adjust it a little bit.
3. Add cacao nibs and peanuts into processor and pulse. Scoop dough into a bowl and stir in the rice crisp cereal. Form balls with the dough (lightly wet fingers if necessary). Store in the fridge or freezer. I like to freeze these and pop one into my mouth when I have a craving for sweets.
I made a paste of dates, hence the name date paste.
Here is my method
1 cup of pitted dates (medjool is my favorite for their rich flavor)
put into a bowl, cover with boiling water. Let sit for 10 minutes (sometimes I don’t have the patience and wait only 5). Put the dates into the food processor, add around 1/2 cup of water, puree for a few minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and blend some more. Keep in a sealed container and use in place of sugar or other sweeteners in recipes. Yum.
What is your favorite home made sweet treat? Post your recipe here for a chance to win a free class at Balance!