I’ve been in the mood for ‘date truffles’ as of late, for something that feels indulgent but also carries nutritional benefits.
These are made with juicy medjool dates, raw cacao, argan oil, a pinch of sea salt & tahini. Some are flavoured with cardamon, some orange zest, some vanilla. Dipping into chocolate is optional!
Date balls and variations are starting to get trendy but I grew up with these types of things! To me there is so much in the quality of the dates/tahini/nuts you use as to avoid them tasting dusty!
Here is a loose recipe to follow should you wish to try; (Makes about 12 truffles)
250g ish of medjool dates
3 tablespoons of tahini
1 tablespoon of Arganic argan oil
1 tablespoon of cacao powder
A pinch of sea salt
150g of good quality dark chocolate for melting (optional as you don’t need to cover them in chocolate)
To flavour as per your preference (or you could make a mixed selection);
Vanilla to taste
Orange zest to taste
½ a flat teaspoon of ground cardamom
Method;
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Pit the dates and then put them in a bowl.
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Cover with boiling water for about 20 minutes to allow the dates to soften.
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Drain the water and then blend the dates with a fork or clean hands.
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Mix in the cocoa powder, sea salt, tahini and Arganic argan oil. Separate the mixture if making different flavours, otherwise add either the orange zest, vanilla or cardamom.
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Roll into balls and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.
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If covering in chocolate, break up the chocolate and melt in a bowl over boiling water. Dip your chilled truffles into the melted chocolate using a toothpick, sprinkle with ground pistachio, sesame or anything you fancy and then leave to set, either on a silicone sheet or baking paper.
Tips;
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The tahini is key in balancing the sweetness and curbing that blood sugar spike. I recommend sticking to tahini but you could experiment with a nut butter of choice too.
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Why not pack in a beautiful box and gift to a loved one? I often hold onto pretty boxes from other food items and recycle them for this exact purpose. Or you could up-cycle a cardboard box by covering it in wrapping paper for a splash of colour or print and present your truffles that way.
Enjoy! Dana x
