Hazelnut Bites

Plate of hazelnut chocolate chip energy balls.

These delicious, sweet and soft energy balls feature 4 simple ingredients: hazelnuts, almond butter, cacao nibs and dates. With no added sugar or oil, these delicious bites are perfect for a healthy snack or dessert.

Prep Time10

Total Time10

Course: Snack

Cuisine: Amercian

Diet: Vegan

Servings: balls

Author: Deryn Macey

Ingredients

1 cup packed, pitted dates 220 g
1 cup hazelnuts or filberts 145 g
1/2 cup cacao nibs 65 g
1 tbsp almond butter 15 g
1/2 tsp sea salt optional
1 tsp vanilla extract optional

Instructions

If your dates are hard or dry, place dates in a bowl, cover with hot water and soak for 15 minutes. If using soft and moist medjool dates, you can skip soaking. Drain well. It's okay if they're a bit wet when you add them to the food processor. Just be sure to drain off all the excess water.
1 cup packed, pitted dates
While the dates are soaking, add the cacao nibs and hazelnuts to a food processor and process on high for about 30 seconds until it resembles a coarse, grainy meal.
1 cup hazelnuts or filberts, 1/2 cup cacao nibs
Add the almond butter and soaked, drained dates to the food processor with the hazelnut cacao mixture and mix into a thick, sticky dough. If the dough isn't sticking together, add 1-2 tsp warm water and process until it does, however, if you soaked the dates it should be perfect.
1 tbsp almond butter, 1/2 tsp sea salt, 1 tsp vanilla extract
Use your hands to roll the dough into 14 balls.

Notes

If you don't like cacao nibs on their own, this may not be the recipe for you as they have quite a strong cacao flavour. If you do like cacao nibs, you will love them paired with the sweet dates, hazelnuts and sea salt. You can also substitute chocolate chips for the cacao nibs.

Store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 1 week or freezer for up to 3 months.

Nutrition