Vegan Chocolate Orange Bliss Balls. The PERFECT healthy and most indulgent snack around…
Firstly, I can’t believe we’re already more than half way through the Vegan Advent Calendar 2016!! Are you all caught up on what we’ve had so far? And secondly… how can something this beautiful be as healthy as this?! Ok, so it’s not exactly vegetables… but these bliss balls sure beat working your way through an entire box of Christmas truffles…
I’m seriously regretting waiting a week after I made these bliss balls to write up the blog post, because now I have to look at all these pictures of their sweet faces, and they’ve ALL been eaten… so I can’t enjoy them whilst I write this :( Oh well, I’ll just have to do my best to describe to you how gooey and citrussy and chocolatey they are!
The balls themselves are largely date based. I like to think of medjool dates as nature’s caramel. Straight out of the box they are fudgey, soft and super sweet. There’s REALLY no need to add any sugar whatsoever to these bliss balls. All we’re going to add is a little cocoa powder, some coconut oil (this helps them keep their shape as it’s solid at room temperature), some almonds for some crunch, and a little orange zest for a burst of zingy flavour.
Now, while it would be perfectly acceptable to just roll up these little balls and eat them straight away… I do recommend going the extra mile. But when don’t I? So what we’re going to do is roll each little ball in some melted dark chocolate, and sprinkle on some kind of topping before letting it set in the fridge for an hour. For the toppings, I went for a mix of nuts/berries/cacao nibs etc… but you can really use ANYTHING you like! There are no rules here.
These would also make the cutest little gifts this Christmas. Can you imagine how happy your friends would be to receive a beautiful little box of these delights under their tree this year?
| Prep Time | 15 minutes |
| Passive Time | 90 minutes |
| Servings |
Balls |
- 15 Medjool Dates pitted
- 1.5 cups (225g) Whole Almonds
- 2 tbsp Chia Seeds
- 1 tbsp Cocoa Powder
- 2 tbsp Coconut Oil
- 1 tsp Orange Zest
Ingredients
Bliss Balls
| |
- Place the almonds into a food processor and blitz until they are finely ground.
- Add the chia seeds, dates, coconut oil, cocoa powder and orange zest and blitz until the mixture is completely combined and holds together when you press a chunk together.
- Roll into tablespoon sized balls using your hands, then place in the fridge to cool for 30 mins-1 hour.
- If you want to coat and decorate them, melt 100g of dark chocolate and roll each bliss ball in the chocolate then place on a flat baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle on the toppings you desire, or leave them plain. Pop into the fridge for 1 more hour to set completely.
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 7 days.
About Lauren Caris
Lauren is the author and chef of the vegan food blog, Lauren Caris Cooks. She is passionate about showing people just how awesome vegan food can be with simple, delicious recipes and vegan lifestyle tips.
