I’m not going to get it twisted here and claim that holiday sweets aren’t delicious. Because they are. But they’re also a little heavy and a few days of holiday parties/dinners/work things can leave you feeling less than stellar.
This grab and go snack-breakfast-dessert will pretty much make you feel the opposite of that. Light, healthy, raw, vegan, and gluten-free, these Chocolate Peppermint Balls are the answer to so many things. Running out to do some last minute Christmas shopping or on your way to a holiday party and need some quick fuel? These balls have your back! Want a quick hit of energy before you work out? Grab a few balls. Want to bring something healthy to your work holiday party because no one else is? Bring the balls! (How many times can balls come up in one paragraph?)
They’re also pretty fantastic because they take about 10 minutes to make and don’t require any crazy preparation. If you don’t have a food processor, you can finely chop the dates by hand. Use a high-speed blender, blending in quick short bursts, to grind up the nuts.
- 3/4 cup raw walnuts
- 3/4 cup raw almonds
- 1 cup packed medjool dates (seed and stem portion removed)
- 1/4 cup cacao powder (can sub cocoa powder)
- 1/4 tsp peppermint extract
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
- Add walnuts and almonds to a food processor. Process until finely ground. (Try not to overprocess.) Put ground nuts in a bowl to the side.
- Add seeded dates to the food processor. Process until finely chopped.
- Add ground nuts, cacao powder, peppermint extract, and sea salt to dates. Process until fully combined. Mixture should be sticky.
- Roll mix into small balls, about 2 tbsp mix per ball.
- Refrigerate for up to a week.
Happy holidays!
They are delicious!