Little Bites of Health

In my 22 years on this earth, I have never found such overwhelming happiness in such tiny form than with bliss balls. These humble little spheres are the poster children for healthy delicacies.

While I often find my-gluttonous-self having to actively try not to pop these bad boys like tic-tacs, normal human beings that have a lick of self-control will find just a few of these treats to be extremely filling and satisfying to that perennial sweet tooth. By using all natural ingredients and bountiful superfoods, your body won’t take the form of the balls themselves after eating them, but if you’d like to make your shape more, um, round, you can make these little nuggets as unhealthy as you’d like! The possibilities are somewhat endless, and experimentation with making them is almost (almost) as fun as inhaling them.

Another bonus about these little fellas is that they take a mere 20 minutes to make, and you can make a bajillion of them and store them in the fridge for the week. These balls have been my go-to lately to bring to BBQs and dinner parties because, for one, I know not all of the food there is going to suck, and two, people think I put in a lot of effort for them, when in reality, I just took remnants from the fridge and threw them into a plastic baggy.

If you are somebody in desperate need to step up your snack game, or you’re a sane individual who knows what’s important in life, here is how to concoct two of my favorite bliss balls:

Chocolate Peanut Butter Bliss Balls

Ingredients:

• 24 fresh dates, pitted
• ¼ cup of almond meal
• ½ cup peanut butter
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted
• 2 tablespoons raw cacao powder
• As many mini chocolate chips as your heart desires (I use enjoy life because, health)
• ¼ cup desiccated coconut, toasted

Method:

• Place the dates, almond meal, maple syrup, coconut oil, and cacao powder in a food processor.
• Process for 2-3 minutes, until all ingredients are combined.
• Scrape down the sides of your food processor, add peanut butter, and process until all ingredients are combined.
• Scoop out a heaped teaspoon of the mixture, add in your desired amount of mini chocolate chips and roll into a ball with your hands.
• Repeat until you’ve used up all of your mixture.
• Roll the bliss balls in the toasted desiccated coconut.
• Put in the fridge to set for around one hour or until set.
• Enter state of complete and utter bliss

This recipe makes about 20 bliss balls. They will keep in the fridge for about a week or so, but if a week (or a day) goes by and you still haven’t demolished the batch, you don’t deserve them anyway.

Chocolate Caramel Nut Balls

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of medjool dates
• 3/4 of a cup of almonds
• 3/4 of a cup of walnuts or any other nut
• 2 tablespoons of chia seeds
• 2 tablespoons of ground flax seed
• 1 tablespoon of coconut oil
• 1 tablespoon of hemp protein powder
• 1 tablespoon of raw cacao powder

Method:

• Place the almonds, walnuts, ground flax seed and chia seeds in your food processor
• Blend for 1 minute, until the a flour forms and the nuts have crumbled
• Add the remaining ingredients, pitting the dates before adding them in
• Use your hands to roll the mixture into little balls, place in a bowl, and store in the fridge
• Try not to eat all balls in under 24 hours

Pro Tip: Put in a baggy and take to the movie theater. You'll save an abhorrent amount of money not having to buy popcorn and you won't go to bed smelling like burnt butter.