The World’s Best Date Balls
If you’re trying to cut out added sugars, but still craving something sweet and delicious, this date ball recipe could be just what you need. It’s the perfect sweet treat to indulge in, with no artificial junk, just natural healthy goodness. It also only has six ingredients and is super easy to make, making it the World’s Best Date Balls Recipe! Enjoy!
The Worlds Best Date Balls Recipe
When we went on the Whole30 challenge for the first time, quitting added sugars was tough. We were craving something sweet and eventually started looking for some healthy alternatives. This led us to Yummly and this is where we discovered darling date balls. What a revelation… a sweet and indulgent treat, but packed with natural goodness. A whole new world was discovered!
Sweet Natural Goodness
That said, it’s important to remember, sugar is still sugar, no matter where it’s coming from, and dates do contain a rather high amount of sugar. But, because you’re eating a whole food – whole dates – you’re getting all the other nutrients and dietary fibre too. The sugar is also released slower into the bloodstream, unlike processed sweet foods, so you don’t get the nasty sugar spikes that can wreak havoc on your system and cause cravings.
So, just be aware that this recipe still contains sugar, even if it’s natural, and that moderation is always a good idea, even with the healthy stuff.
Train your tastebuds
Moving away from my regular processed treats, like Snickers chocolate bars, was an interesting experience. From the familiar taste of chocolate bars lining the supermarket shelves to raw and homemade cocoa date balls, what a change.
And that’s what was so interesting, this concept that you can, in fact, change your taste buds. Your body adapts to what it’s used to. So, when you start eating more of something else, it readjusts.
Have some fun and experiment with sugar. Make a batch of date balls – this recipe makes about 16 balls – Then, instead of eating that favourite chocolate bar, have a couple of these, and see how it feels. Do that for a week or as long as you can, and then, after some time has passed, have your favourite chocolate bar again. Note down if it tastes any different? Does it taste the same? Or perhaps a little sweeter? Or a little more artificial? Let me know in the comments, I’d love to know!
If you’re trying to cut our processed sugars, instead of going on a restrictive diet of ‘no sugar’, start adding healthy alternatives to the menu. This way, you’ll start to train your taste buds to crave natural sweetness, rather than processed unnatural sweetness. Before you know it, you’ll be craving those date balls long before you inhale a snickers chocolate bar 🙂
Tips to make them just right:
Buy quality ingredients. You’re only using six ingredients, so get the best quality to can. Enjoying quality in moderation (like in smaller portions) is a habit I’m trying to instil, what a challenge! 🙂
Get yourself a good blender. Having a good blender in the house is very useful. We have a small Defy Hand Blender and love it. We use it to quickly chop up veggies for soup, to make smoothies, and of course, to make these date balls, amongst other things.
Add in the Cashew Butter towards the end. Blend all the ingredients together, except the Cashew Butter. Instead, when everything is well blended, add 1 tablespoon at a time of Cashew Butter. The Cashew Butter is sticky, and by adding it towards the end prevents too much clumping.
Add in the nuts towards the end for more crunch This is a personal choice. If you add in the raw nuts right at the beginning, they can break down too much and you end up not having any crunchy bits in your date balls. If I’m using whole raw almonds, I add them in about halfway or even right at the end with the cashew butter, ensuring that I get lots of crunchy pieces!
Use already-crushed almonds. Instead of using whole raw nuts, you can also just get a packet of already-crushed almonds. These you can simply add right at the end, and instead of blending them, you can simply work them into the mixture with your hands at the end.
When it gets too sticky, keep working it. The mixture can get sticky at the end. So much so that the blender may hardly spin 🙂 I take half the mixture out and blend it. Then I take that half out and blend the other half. This gives the mixture space to blend properly. Then I put the 2 half portions together in a bowl, and I work it with my hands for a few minutes.
Add pressure, then roll. When the mixture is ready to roll, take a portion of the mix and squeeze it in the palm of your hand. Alternate from hand to hand, and keep compressing the mix. When it’s nicely compressed, roll between your hands until it’s a nice ball, and put down on a breadboard.
Adjust the nuts to your preference. Try out different types of nuts and nut butter, and create your perfect mix. I love cashew butter and raw almonds, but you may want to try another combination. Also, adjust the amount of raw nuts to suit you – I like a lot of nuts, and often add a full 100g for extra crunch.
Here is the Worlds Best Date Balls Recipe, enjoy!
This is a wonderful sweet treat that is filled with healthy goodness. It also only has 6 ingredients and is super easy to make, making it the World's Best Date Ball Recipe! Enjoy!
Blend the Dates (de-pipped), Raw Cocoa Powder and Salt together in your blender.
When the ingredients look nicely blended, slowly add the Cashew Butter and the Raw Whole Nuts to the blender. *Add a tablespoon of Cashew Butter and some of the nuts at a time, then blend a bit, and then add more. It can get quite sticky, so stop regularly to unstick the mixture from the sides of the blender with a little spoon. Blend until it looks like a good consistency, but don't overdo it otherwise you'll loose all the crunch.
NOTES: If it gets too sticky to manage, blend half the mixture at a time.
Once blended nicely, add the mixture to a bowl and work it for a few minutes with your hands.
NOTES: If you are using nuts that are already crushed, add them in now and work them in with your hands.
When the mixture is ready, roll your balls. Take a portion at a time, squeeze it in the palm of your hands to compress the mix, and roll into a ball. Lay them out on a breadboard or a plate.
When all your balls are rolled, roll each one in some coconut flakes until fully covered.
Put all your date balls in a covered container and into the fridge. Leave in the fridge for a day before eating (if you can wait that long!)
Ingredients
Directions
Blend the Dates (de-pipped), Raw Cocoa Powder and Salt together in your blender.
When the ingredients look nicely blended, slowly add the Cashew Butter and the Raw Whole Nuts to the blender. *Add a tablespoon of Cashew Butter and some of the nuts at a time, then blend a bit, and then add more. It can get quite sticky, so stop regularly to unstick the mixture from the sides of the blender with a little spoon. Blend until it looks like a good consistency, but don't overdo it otherwise you'll loose all the crunch.
NOTES: If it gets too sticky to manage, blend half the mixture at a time.
Once blended nicely, add the mixture to a bowl and work it for a few minutes with your hands.
NOTES: If you are using nuts that are already crushed, add them in now and work them in with your hands.
When the mixture is ready, roll your balls. Take a portion at a time, squeeze it in the palm of your hands to compress the mix, and roll into a ball. Lay them out on a breadboard or a plate.
When all your balls are rolled, roll each one in some coconut flakes until fully covered.
Put all your date balls in a covered container and into the fridge. Leave in the fridge for a day before eating (if you can wait that long!)
Notes
