Every Day I'm Truffling!!

Good Day!

I've been back in the kitchen, non-cooking up a storm! Har har!!

So with my Cacao stocks at an all time low (BOO), and already looking in two MegaMarts (Supermarkets) and having been told to try Spinneys, I was like 'you know what? The Cacao can wait!!'
THEN, the sweet tooth kicked in and I was like ARGH....NO CHOCOLATE!! So I hastily went online in search of a recipe that was raw and sweet and didn't include chocolate!!

I came across a website www.rawmazing.com that gave me a ton of ideas, but the one recipe that stuck out in my mind was the Raw Cinnamon Ginger Truffles! I didn't have all the ingredients, so I made it up as I went along! And actually, truth be told, I didn't even measure the ingredients (apart from the Almond Powder) I just approximated and threw it all into a food processor!!

TA DA!! This is what I was left with

Here are the Ingredients and the approximations!! I cannot guarantee you will get the same results, just do what you feel is right!!

1 cup Almond Flour

1tbs Cinnamon

Fresh Ginger (about half a tsp)

Fresh Nutmeg (about half tsp)

1/4 cup Raisins

3/4 Pitted dates

1/4 cup Agave

I put all the ingredients except the Agave Syrup into a food processor, whizzed until mixed, then added the agave and mixed until it formed a doughey/sticky like texture. Then I rolled them into balls and then rolled the balls in coconut!

The taste was really quite divine! But VERY VERY sweet. Probably because of the Agave Syrup and Date combination....for those of you that may not know much about Agave, here is a brief lowdown! 

Agave Nectar was discovered by the Aztecs who used it as a medicinal aid in healing wounds and infections. It is 10 times sweeter then Sugar, so you can use less of it in a recipe if using instead of sugar. It also has a low Glycemic Index, meaning your blood sugar levels wont go crazy when you eat the stuff...

Back to today...On this occasion, maybe I had used too much? Or maybe the Agave and Dates combined?( the original recipe asked for cranberries) . Although, still enjoyable, I was thinking 'I know I can make these better, what could I use instead?!' So, as I'm taking a look around my kitchen, I see it..staring right at me...some VERY over ripe bananas that had about 24 hours left in them!! That was it! That was the ingredient that would change this recipe, so I tried again!! 

It was a learning experience, that turned out fab in the end!!

So as I start up the food processor, food whizzing around, I throw in half a banana....nothing happens to the mixture, so i throw in the other half...still...nothing...another half banana.....o darn!! too much! The mixture is now WAAAY too gooey. I tried to roll some into balls, and although they formed some sort of shape they were just so soft and sticky and borderline unmanageable.  The only thing holding them together was the coconut. This was mistake number 1

Mistake Number 2, I let the Food Processor get hot from being on for too long, this added to the gooey problem. I ended up putting in more Almond Powder and (I already had this in my cupboard) some ground linseed and gojiberry to try and thicken it up a bit, I then decided to put the whole bowl of mixture in the fridge for 10 minutes. After it had cooled, it was easier to work with.

After I had finished rolling, I put some of the truffles into the freezer and some into the fridge. I left them overnight..

12 hours later...The truffles in the freezer didn't actually freeze. You could take the truffle out and eat it right away, they had hardened. It was delicious!

The truffles in the fridge also hardened, but were a lot softer...still just as delicious

I must say that I prefer the recipe using banana. It tasted more balanced and wasn't too 'in your face' sweet. My boy LOVED them too and I kept catching him in the fridge having a sneaky truffle. The best thing though, was that I didn't mind. They had no sugar in them and were actually good for him!! 

Here is a general idea of the final recipe (I doubled up this time too :))

2cups Almond Powder

2tbs or as much cinnamon as you like (I love it!)

1/2tsp Fresh Ginger

1/2tsp nutmeg

1/2cup raisins

5/6 pitted dates

1/2 to 1  small banana + a little bit of blending patience

Mix until it forms a sticky, dough like consistency.  Roll into balls, roll into coconut, sesame seed, cacao or whatever you like and VOILA!! A yummy, healthy sweet treat!!

Enjoy xx