[caption id="attachment_4437" align="alignleft" width="1000"]Laura's Peanut Cacao Raw Balls    Laura's Peanut Cacao Raw Balls[/caption] Ingredients (makes approx. 10-15 balls)
  • 200g soft dates (soak in boiling water if hard)
  • 75mls water (measure from water that dates were soaked in)
  • 80g cacao powder
  • 150g gluten free oats
  • 50g desiccated coconut
  • 50ml maple syrup
  • 20g cacao nibs
  • 300g crunchy peanut butter
  • Pinch of salt
For the raw chocolate
  • 50g extra virgin coconut oil
  • 30g cacao powder
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup
  • Desiccated coconut (to sprinkle on top)
Method
  1. Weigh out the dates and soak in boiling water if required.
  2. While the dates are softening, blend the oats in a food processor until you have a flour-like consistency.
  3. Drain the water from the dates (keeping aside 75mls).
  4. Blend dates, water and cacao powder in a food processor until the whole mixture comes together like a paste and forms a big ball in the processor.
  5. Scrape the paste into a bowl. Add the peanut butter and with your hands incorporate it into the paste until evenly distributed.
  6. Add in all the other ingredients and mix well to combine (I find this easier doing it by hand).
  7. Weigh mixture into 50g pieces and roll into balls.
  8. For the raw chocolate; melt the coconut oil in a glass heat-proof bowl over a pot of simmering water. Once melted, add in all the other ingredients (except for the desiccated coconut) and mix well. Remove from the heat and let the chocolate set until it thickens slightly. You can put it in the fridge if you want to speed up the process but it’s important to keep an eye on it. If the chocolate sets too much and turns rock hard, add in a little hot water. Evenly dollop the chocolate on top of the balls (like a little hat) and sprinkle some desiccated coconut on top and enjoy!
Download this recipe as a printable pdf