Bliss Balls

My little sister is getting married and I have a maid of honour dress in a very hard-to-pin-down shade of raspberry to firstly find and then fit into. This is presenting a problem right now as I'm approaching 40 and I find I can't eat carbs without them fucking hanging around on my waist. Things are thickening and I am doing nothing differently. It's catastrophic.

That is where these two-bite bliss balls come into the picture. It's hard to escape morning and afternoon tea when you have little kids, but if I have one of these with my morning coffee instead of banana bread/bickie/hot cross bun, I feel better about things. My kids love them too, which is handy.

I have developed two flavours - a date and cacao one to satisfy any chocolate cravings and a date and peanut crunch, which my husband says tastes like the inside of a Picnic bar. Do they still exist? For the younger players, Snickers with rice bubbles.

I have started selling them to my cafes, sharing around the skinny love. Cmon skinny love....

My my my. My my my my my my my my....

Sorry, blame the lack of sugar.

Date and Cacao Bliss Balls - refined sugar, dairy and gluten free

(Makes 10)

300g pitted dates

1 cup natural cashews

1 tablespoon goji berries

2 tablespoons raisins (dried sour cherries are nice here too)

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

2 1/2 tablespoons cacao powder

3 tablespoons coconut oil

1/4 cup desiccated coconut

Extra desiccated coconut for coating

Blitz all ingredients except extra coconut in food processor for one to two minutes until finely chopped and a thick paste forms.

Shape handfuls into balls (slightly smaller than golf ball sized) and roll in extra coconut to coat.

Place in the fridge for at least 30 mins to set. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Date and Peanut Crunch Bliss Balls - refined sugar and dairy free

(Makes 10)

400g pitted dates

1/3 cup natural unsalted peanut butter 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup roasted unsalted peanuts, chopped

1 cup puffed brown rice

Dessicated coconut for coating

Blitz dates, peanut butter and vanilla in a food processor. 

Transfer to a large bowl and mix in rice and peanuts.

Shape handfuls of mixture into balls (like small golf balls) and roll in coconut.

Place in the fridge for at least 30 mins to set. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Come on skinny loooooooove...