It’s always a great idea to have a healthy, tasty snack prepared that’s easy to munch on when you’re on the go or to pick you up before the 3pm slump hits at work. Having a delicious treat on hand, that’s full of goodness, will help to keep you away from the cookie jar when those hunger pangs kick in. If you’re a mum, with growing kids that nibble all day, then this one is certainly for you. And if you’re like Holly racing from the office to the Pilates studio and you need something to keep you going until dinner time then these are also the perfect, delicious solution. Holly usually adds protein powder to the mix and uses less dried fruit than the following recipe recommends, to reduce the sugar content.
Volcanic Choc Rocks
AKA protein or fruit and nut balls. My kids prefer fun names for their food, so in our house, these are known as ‘Volcanic Choc Rocks’.
I make a big batch of these each week and the balls are a staple snack for my family. Hubby takes them to work and the kids to school for a healthy sustainable morning tea energy boost.
This recipe makes around 20-25 medium sized balls so adjust measurements to suit your needs.
You will need a powerful food processor for this recipe.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups of nuts of your choice (almonds, cashews, macadamias). Preferably they have been soaked overnight in water and drained.
- 1 cup of dried fruits (figs, dates, apricots, raisins or goji berries)
- 2 tbsp of cacao powder
- 180mls hot water
- 8 tbsp dessicated coconut on a plate (for rolling the balls into)
Method
- In a cup, mix cacao powder with boiling water until a smooth consistency. Add to the food processor
- Add nuts and dried fruit and mix
- Now for the fun stuff. Using your hands, roll the mixture into balls between your palms and roll into the coconut. The kids absolutely love helping with this step as you will get messy/sticky hands….lots of fun and yum! Or if you are a little bit of a princess, lay down some cling wrap, scoop the mixture for one ball into the cling wrap and shape and roll into a ball on the bench.
- Place balls into a container and place into the fridge for at least 8 hours to set.
Handy hints:
- If the consistency is too thick for the processor to work well, add more liquid (plain water or cacao water)
- If you prefer a smoother consistency, soak the nuts for at least 8 hours before using them and mix all the ingredients for longer.
- If you are weening yourself off sugar, you can always add coconut into the actual mixture or coconut syrup for additional sweetness however, most people find the dried fruit sweet enough.
- My husband doesn’t love coconut like I do and he prefers a smoother consistency than I do; my kids prefer the smoother consistency of the mixture and shaped like volcanic rocks and I like a chunkier consistency of the mixture and don’t care about the shape. So I just plan the stages of processing of the mixture. Firstly I take out and roll my 5 rocks in coconut (chunky); then I process the mixture for a minute or so longer and roll hubby’s rocks (smooth with no coconut), then the kids (smooth with rolling in coconut).
The biggest problem you will have is finding any left in the fridge when you get home as everybody loves these for a sweet snack.
Enjoy!
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