My friend Jo will tell you I love balls. I love any kind of nibble-y snack that is round. While I used to bake us a lot of vegan cakes (because vegans love their treats too!) I kinda fell out of the habit and started to replicate the flavours of my favourite desserts in ball form for a healthier, quicker snack.
I had previously posted my recipe for coffee and walnut cake--a perfect flavour combination, in my opinion. I am *ridiculously* sensitive to caffeine so I must for the sake of all involved use decaf, but do whatever works for you. Even with decaf they give me a tiny buzz but not the heart pounding, running around the room like I am child who just ate sugar and tartrazine with a rocket up my butt reaction that regular coffee gives me.
Coffee and Walnut Nibbles
3/4 cup (GF) oats
3/4 cup walnuts
pinch salt
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 heaping cup pitted dates--the soft squidgy kind
1 TB instant coffee dissolved in 1/4 cup hot tap water. (you probably wont use it all)
a drizzle of liquid sweetener if the coffee feels too bitter--I used golden syrup
Put the oats, walnuts and salt in a food processor and process until coarse crumbs. Add the vanilla and the dates and run the machine. Slowly stream in the coffee through the hatch a TB at a time as the machine runs. Stop and check it after every TB. If it is moist and sticking together then stop adding coffee. If it is dry then add another TB and check again. Taste it--is it too bitter? Add a drizzle of liquid sweetener and blend again briefly. Roll into balls and store in the fridge.
It made 17 balls, but sadly only 16 fit in the box.Oh no! I was forced to eat one. What a shame!
You could of course make it with all walnuts and no oats, but that doubles the cost as nuts can be expensive. I like the oats as they lower the price, but also give it more of a cake quality.
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