It's holiday cookie season! I love this time of year because it forces me to get creative in the kitchen. Sure, I could make all the standard cookie recipes out there but where's the fun in that? I'd much rather experiment and come up with fun, healthy ways to indulge while still getting some good stuff in the kids.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not against all the traditional baked goods out there. Give me a standard chocolate chip cookie or double chocolate brownie and I'm good to go, but in a way I find baking that stuff at home boring and well, monotonous. It's what everyone bakes. It's what every store carries.
I'm much more motivated to cook and bake when I move past the old standbys and try to come up with something new that hopefully my family will embrace and I can feel good about them eating.
Yesterday these fit the bill and I'm IN HEAVEN!
Don't they look so festive?! The best part? Well, I can't pick ONE. First, they are no-bake. Total bonus during the busy holiday season. Second, there are only 5 ingredients and that includes the sprinkle of powdered sugar on top. Third, 3, let me repeat, THREE, are only 130 calories! And let me tell you, 3 are totally satisfying. Rarely do I stop at a single serving but my belly was full after eating these. Of course I did go back for more a few hours later but still. 😉
Oh! and the kids? Well both loved them!
Ryan had 3 after school.
Yeah, that's "The Toddler" all grown up giving old mom the look while calling his friend on the phone after finishing his homework. *sigh* When did THAT happen? Anyway, notice the chocolate lips. Evidence. lol
Little Bean, well, he was also caught red handed, err, faced.
But he attacked the plate during the photo shoot.
Of course he was taking bites of them and then putting them back before grabbing another one. Please tell me your kids do that too.
Anyway, how do they taste? Well delicious! The dates and cashews make a great indulgent combo, similar to the cashew cookie flavor of a Laura bar. The cocoa on the outside isn't sweet but gives that tart cocoa flavor which by itself isn't yummy, but once you bite into the sweetness, it all comes together for the perfect bite. 
I loved them at room temperature but kept the leftovers in the fridge only to realize they are even better cold. The dates almost takes on a caramel texture. Delicious!
Okay, lets get down to the recipe. I'm excited about these, can you tell?
- ½ cup Salted Cashews (65g)
- ~20 dates 140g
- ¼ tsp vanilla
- 1 tbsp Dark Unsweetened Cocoa Powder (5g) (Regular cocoa would be great too)
- ⅛ tsp powder sugar
I'm obsessed with nuts at the moment and cashews are on the top of the list.
If you don't have salted I'd add a pinch to the recipe.
Put the cashews, dates and vanilla in your processor or bullet.
Pulse until all the major chunks are broken up a bit.
Then keep going until the mixture forms dough balls while it's processing.
It took about 2 minutes for me shaking the bullet a bit to get things back down towards the blades.
Roll the dough into small balls around 10 g each. According to my calculations you should get 20 - 10g balls but I was only able to make 18. You lose a bit during the process and that includes nibbles. 🙂
Now you could stop there but I wanted to make these a bit more festive so I pulled out my secret weapon.
I LOVE this stuff. If you can't find it near you, regular cocoa powder would work great too. I'm just obsessed with all that is dark chocolate.
Put the cocoa powder on a plate and loosen any clumps with a fork.
Roll the balls until coated well and then tap to remove some of the excess.
I thought they looks just like truffles!
It was a last minute decision to add the powdered sugar. Just a touch for holiday effect.
I'm calculating the batch to make 6 servings of 3 balls each to be safe. If you get an extra 1 or 2, well BONUS! 🙂
Happy NO-baking. 🙂
| Servings | Amt per Serving | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 3 balls | |||
| Calories | Fat | Fiber | WWPs | |
| 130 | 5g | 3g | old: 2 | new: 4 |
| Sugar | Sat Fat | Carbs | Protein | |
| 15g | 1g | 21g | 3g | |
Rachel - I haven't used them but I'm thinking the same amount in grams in probably your best bet as they are larger, correct. Just weigh out 140g worth, you should be fine. Hope you like them!
REALLY looking forward to trying this. I usually use Medjool dates. Any experience with these? I highly doubt I should use 20 of them, right? Any idea how many Medjool dates would equal the 20 that you used? :S haha
Haha, sorry just read the WHOLE post. Thanks, they really are Delicious!
Just made these, and they are a hit!! Would love to make these as part of my holiday goodies baskets- How do you store them? in the fridge? do they keep well?
Oh my, just realized there was this link from the no bake thumbprints - cashews are my favorite nut. Yum!
Freezing would be fine but I'm not sure how they texture wil be once defrosted. If you try it let us know!
Is it ok to freeze these?
Yvette - That's pretty normal. It's the oil coming out of the nuts.
Yvette, mine were really oily, too. I just assumed that this was normal?
I just made these and they are really good. But mine are really oily...does this mean I didn't process the "dough" long enough? (I also used really cheap cashews-maybe they were oilier than they should be.)
I started with a few pulses and then let it run. If it starts to drag I'll pick up the whole unit and shake in towards the blades. I do this for single serve bana ice cream too... https://greenlitebites.com/2012/05/22/banana-soft-serve-magic-bullet/ <--video
Sort of like a Lara Bar. I am making them now. Unless you have a super powerful Magic Bullet, I would like to know how you did it - mine is about ready to burn out. Any tips?
Loved these! I couldn't bring myself to make 10 g balls--so they ended up being a slightly more indulgent 15 g--but still a very virtuous snack.
Liz - I was going to make other varieties with nuts but I didnt think of using raisins! I don't see why they wouldn't work but I'm not sure the proportions would be the same. Dates are much stickier and have almost a carmel consistency.
These look yummy! Purchased all the ingredients today and will be making these this week.
I tried them today (and I once before tried dates and wasn't impressed) - and the balls are sooooo good!!!
Right now they are chilling in the fridge, but I loved my sample.
Thanks!!
Could you use a different kind of nut and raisins instead? Just tring to use what I have in the pantry already.
I am currently eating these and they are amazing! The hubby couldn't believe what was in them when he tasted them, they are that good. Thanks, Roni, for another wonderful recipe.
I can't wait to make these. I already bought dates to try my hand at homemade Larabars, but these look even better! Here's hoping both of the 11 yo twins will like them. Usually, if one likes something the other one doesn't. Plus, it's something my Gluten Free hubby could eat. Bonus!
Just made these and my 9 and 12 year old love them! Thanks! 🙂 it always feels good to feed them good all natural food!
It IS a type! Thank you so much. Only 1g of sat fat.
These look so good! I might gift them to my office in little celophane gift bags for the holidays!
These look amazing - I can't wait to try! Quick question: your nutritional info shows all 5 grams of fat per serving to come from saturated fat. Is that a typo? Thanks!
Amy
that's it---dates and cashews added to the shopping list!
Dates? hmmm...never bought dates, but I am going to COSTCO tomorrow. & they have the best prices on nuts, so I may have to try these.
I am afraid I would eat them all! 🙂 Such cute pics!!!!!!!!!!