Poco Mountain Girl

The other day I had a hankering for a little something sweet, and yet something that would hold me over for a while, too. After briefly scrounging around in the kitchen, I came up with this yummy snack ball recipe. It was exactly the ticket – sweet, satisfying and nourishing all at the same time. I downed half the recipe, didn’t feel stuffed, and was satisfied for the rest of the day.

Although they seem like a snack, these little balls stand alone as a satisfying meal due to the good amount of protein and healthy fats they contain. They have a seed base, which are higher in protein and lower in fat than nuts, and the coconut oil in this recipe is actually a metabolism booster – it’s a fat that burns fat. The flax meal adds fiber to this already high-fiber concoction, not to mention the omega-3 fatty acids it contributes – which are great for overall health and especially women’s health.

Existing recipes for raw date balls abound – and they are all different so I really didn’t worry about following a recipe. I just threw these together with what I had on hand. If you try them, feel free to substitute ingredients or adjust the sweetness, taste and texture to fit your liking. I used sesame seeds as the base because I love their slight savoriness in sweet recipes, but you could definitely use a different seed or nut for a sweeter taste. Almonds, cashews, and sunflower seeds would all be delicious. I can’t wait to try a few more variations myself – I might throw in some carob powder and peppermint oil for a “chocolate mint” version. And maybe I’ll try a gingery-spice version in the fall.

Here’s my basic recipe:

1/2 cup seeds or nuts (I soak mine)

1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1 T flax meal

1 T coconut oil

1 tsp vanilla

a dash of sea salt

4 or 5 dates (I tend to like things not too sweet, so you may want to add more dates for a sweeter taste, or you can add a bit of stevia. We love Sweet Leaf liquid stevia, which comes in several different flavors. But you do need some dates, to hold it all together nicely.)

Blend all the ingredients together, adding a little water if you need it to make a sticky cookie-dough consistency. Roll into small balls and then roll the balls in some extra shredded coconut.

They’re done! Just try not to eat them all at once…they’re so yummy!

An added note: For Zia, I make these with sunflower seeds and just a tablespoon of sesame seeds. I roll them in coconut, flatten them to form a nice little cookie shape, then refrigerate them stacked in a tupperware. That way they keep their shape and are easy for little fingers to handle. They make a great quick and healthy snack. Best of all, she thinks she’s eating cookies. Well, she is.

P.P.S. I tried these dehydrated (or you could bake them at a really low temp) and they were extra good – it added a little crunch.

This entry was posted on Monday, May 30th, 2011 at 6:30 am and is filed under Happy Healthy Hippie Food, Making Stuff, Recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.