These beautiful ruby red beauties have been on my mind for months now and have finally materialised after a little play in my test kitchen! Hopefully this recipe will appease the requests on my Facebook page. My lemony bliss balls will soon follow I promise, recently I translated them into a lemon slice, remember that old favourite?
There's nothing like a real food treat . . . for me they beat confectionary or a cafe bought muffin or dessert hands down! When sugar no longer has a hold on you it's a wonderful feeling, one that my Real food detox clients will also attest to :) The only treat that hits the spot for me these days is a homemade one assembled from real food ingredients without an overpowering sweetness . . . and usually I go the raw, vegan option . . . like this one gushing (or should I say blushing) with an abundant supply of phytonutrients, healthy fats, protein and dietary fibre. It pleases me to see that many cafes advocating a 'real' food menu are choosing to stock a selection of raw vegan goodies which are certainly a healthier option to the traditional white flour & white sugar laden items which can usually be found filling cookie jars and under counter glass cabinets.
Another big difference is that this type of treat is not providing 'empty' kilojoules which fail to satisfy you. Vegan treats are usually made from raw wholesome ingredients like nuts, seeds, fruit, even vegetables like sweet potato or beetroot, with the addition of healthy fats such as coconut oil, and natural flavour additions like raw cacao, vanilla, maca and berry powder and sometimes maple, agave or coconut syrup to add extra sweetness. I usually opt out of adding sweeteners in my own recipes.
Of course, you can overdo this type of treat too. Sugar in any form is unhealthy in excess, whether natural, intact or processed. What I like is that not only are the portion sizes usually small and bite-sized, but the exy prices being asked for such treats (owing to the quality of the ingredients I should think!) usually impose a limit on how much you consume in one sitting. So the crux is you are unlikely to get too much of a sugar hit from consuming one shop-bought bite-sized bliss ball, raw chocolate brownie or nut 'cheese' cake. Ideally, the best option is to make your own which is considerably cheaper and I like that I can control the level of sweetness.
If you have persistent cravings for sweet, you likely have a sugar addiction. But what's really amazing it once you reset your taste buds by cutting sugar out of your diet for as little as 10 days, even a so-called 'healthy' treat can be overpoweringly sweet. These balls, like the other bliss (treat) balls on my Thermomix blog are sweetened using real fruit e.g. medjool dates, berries etc. You can balance the quantity of these ingredients to suit your personal taste.
ingredients
30-40g freeze dried raspberries (or your choice of berry e.g. strawberry or cherry)
95g raw cashew nuts
45g raw cacao butter, cut into chunks
35g white chia seeds
pinch Himalayan or sea salt (optional)
100-120g fresh medjool dates
1 tsp vanilla bean paste (or ground vanilla beans)
10g coconut oil
45g desiccated coconut (preservative free)
method
1. Use a food processor or coffee grinder to grind freeze-dried berries, cashew nuts, raw cacao butter pieces and chia seeds into a powder.
Thermomix: add freeze dried berries, cashew nuts, raw cacao butter, chia seeds to the TM bowl. Grind on speed 9 for 5 seconds.
2. Add the remaining ingredients and mix until well combined and the mixture comes together and is shapeable. You may need to add a little water if the mixture doesn't come together.
Thermomix: Add the remaining ingredients and mix for 20 seconds on speed 8 or until well combined.
3. Roll tablespoonfuls of the fudgy pink mixture into balls, roll in extra coconut if desired, and refrigerate. Remember to enjoy in moderation ;)
Please let me know what you think with a comment below or on my Facebook page :)
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