Raw Chocolate Bomb
8 April 2019
Sunday evening a while back I felt in need of relaxation and for me, being creative in the kitchen is therapeutic. I liken it to mindfulness: I am in the moment, focusing on a manual process with no time for my mind to flit around. I always feel rejuvenated at the end of these sessions and the best thing of all – sometimes I come up with something worth sharing.
This has been tested on all my family – and they are not necessarily the most receptive lot when it comes to my healthy treats – and it got a huge thumbs up. My eldest managed to eat 2 in a row and they are not daintily small these bombs…
I’ve not given quantities for this recipe. Just go with the flow and by texture to judge when it’s about right. You’ll see what I mean so bear with me!
Ingredients
- Dates – soaked, drained then blended to a puree (I use pitted dates from Grape Tree – at £2.99 for 1kg I can’t complain!
- Cashew nuts – soaked overnight, drained then blended to a paste
- Unsweetened desiccated coconut
- Coconut oil
- Ground almonds
- Vanilla essence
- Cacao powder
- 85% dark chocolate or 100% cacao mass depending on your taste buds. I use Real Food Source
- Seeds, petals, freeze dried berries, cacao nibs to decorate (or whatever you have in the kitchen)
Step 1
In a bowl, mix a couple of tablespoons of cacao powder into the date puree, then gradually add in ground almonds until you get a ball of “dough” that can be shaped but is still soft and in no way dry.
Step 2
In a second bowl, add a couple of tablespoons (max) of coconut oil into the cashew paste, along with a very good dash of vanilla essence and mash together using a fork. Now add in desiccated coconut until you get a ball of “dough” that can be shaped and which is creamy. If you add too much coconut it can become dry.
Step 3
Decide how big you wish to make your chocolate bombs and shape the white mixture into balls accordingly. I made mine the size of large marbles. Set aside on a baking tray lined with a silicon sheet and pop into the fridge to firm up.
Step 4
Get the coconut balls out of the fridge and coat with a thick-ish layer of the date, almond and cacao mixture buy. I did this by breaking off a substantial amount and flattening it on a non-stick surface before shaping it round the coconut centre. To make them perfectly round, you can then roll them between your hand and the silicon sheet.
Step 5
Melt your chosen chocolate either over a bain marie or in a dehydrator if you want to keep fully raw. Coat each bomb in chocolate and place on the silicon mat before topping with your chosen natural decorations. It’s good to have a mix of colours that contrast with the dark background of the chocolate
Allow to set in the fridge and keep them in an airtight container. If I were serving these as a dessert for a dinner party, I would make a raw raspberry coulis - blitz raspberries with a bit of maple syrup – to serve round the chocolate bomb along with some whole raspberries and blueberries.