This is a funny story because I didn’t expect these bites to taste as good as they do. I know that probably sounds a little bit loony, but let me explain.
I have been seeing these type of natural food balls all over Pinterest and the blog-o-sphere for a long, long, long time now and I have just not felt intrigued enough to make any. Not because I don’t think they look good but I just enjoy the raw flavor of dates and nuts so much, I didn’t want to mix them up and roll them into little balls.
Then I saw this post from My Darling Lemon Thyme and was like, “What a minute – those are similar to the ingredients in these little balls I keep seeing but I want to dive into that Rich Chocolate Slice.” O.M.G that thing looks good right?
I immediately ran to the pantry and found that I had a lot of toasted, slivered almonds left over from this and this, a ton of dried, Medjool dates {we almost always have these!} and some unsweetened, shredded coconut that was screaming to be toasted. Great ingredients, but not exactly what I would need to create the Rich Chocolate Slice I was drooling over.
Since I promised my chocoholics a sweet treat, I decided to move forward and experiment a bit.
These bites turned out AMAZING. Like my little 2.5 year old ate four-at-once amazing and then took my husband’s and said, “No more for Daddy. Mine.” Amazing.
The best part is that I didn’t feel bad about it because there is NO added sugar and absolutely no junk in there. They are naturally sweet with a hint of caramel from the dates, a bit crunchy from the almonds, have just a touch of cocoa and a luxuriousness from the toasted coconut. All for 1 Point Plus each. Doesn’t get much better!! There is no question these are going to be staple in our fridge.
NOTES:
- Here is a quick photo tutorial on How To Toast Coconut if you need it.
- I think these are best straight from the fridge so they have a nice firm texture but soft bite.
Did you make this recipe? Please give it a star rating below!
Almond-Date Bites Rolled in Toasted Coconut
- 1 cup pitted dried Medjool dates (approximately 15)
- 1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds
- 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
- pinch sea salt
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil liquefied
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/3 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, toasted
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Begin by removing pits from dried dates and discard. If necessary, liquefy coconut oil by briefly microwaving or heating on the stove top.It is still warmish weather here (particularly in my kitchen) so my coconut oil was already liquid.
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Combine pitted dates, almonds, almond extract, salt, coconut oil and cocoa powder in bowl of food processor.
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Pulse until well combined and mostly chopped. Some pieces are OK.
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Lightly toast the coconut and set aside in a low bowl (for rolling) to cool.
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Use a teaspoon to scoop flat spoonfuls of the almond-date mixture into your hand and roll them into balls.
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Place on a parchment lined baking sheet.
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Once you have all your balls forms, dip each one in the toasted coconut and roll around to coat.
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Place back on the baking sheet and refrigerate for 10 to 15 minutes to set.
Did you make this recipe? Tag @EverydayMaven on Instagram with the hashtag #EveryDayMaven and please give a star rating below.
Hi, I’ve been having trouble with m blender pulverizing the dates. They tend to get stuck in the blade and this recipe takes me way too long! Can you recommend a great food processor that can handle dates? Thanks!
Hi Janet – that must be so frustrating!! I have always had Cuisinart Food Processors. Right now, I have a 14-cup but anything above a 9-cup should be plenty powerful to pulverize dates.
I have a 7 cup cuisinart and it’s fantastic. I can’t do onions or cucumbers in it alone tho or I’ll have onion or cucumber juice in 2 seconds. It handles everything better than any other processor I’ve had before.
So yummy! I made them without the almond extract since I didn’t have any and I didn’t feel as if anything was missing. I am on day 4 of paleo and have been craving a little something sweet.Thanks for the recipe.
So glad you liked them Ali! Thanks for tagging me on IG so I could see 🙂
These are really awesome. I wanna try it without the almond extract as I think that imparted a weird flavor, for me anyway. All we had was sweetened coconut so I used that. I couldn’t get as much coconut to stick as you show in the recipe. But we love these!
Made them earlier on….3 gone in one go!!Delicious!! I do agree, they look and taste like trifles!! Thank you for sharing
So glad to hear it Kate! They go FAST! Happy Weekend 🙂
No I went from my phone to computer to try to find it, doesn’t show up on the left!
I would love to pin this, but don’t see the option!
Hi Lisa! It is on the left side of the screen. Are you on a mobile device? (and thanks!)
I’m so excited!! Can’t wait!!