date cocoa nut balls

 These are terrific.  Not too sweet, with lots of "superfoods" like nuts and dark cocoa and dates.  Also a good way to use up some old dates and nuts and nut butter that is too solid to combine by hand.  I needed a powerful snack for an upcoming intense day and these are so much better than any kind of packaged snack. 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup pecans (toasted)
  
• 1/2 cup pitted dates (about 7 to 8), cut into quarters
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• Scant 1/2 cup maple syrup (more like 1/3 c)
  
• 1/2 cup nut butter
  
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• I also added in some chunks of dark chocolate with blueberries at this point
  
• 1/2 cup whole almonds (toasted)
  

For topping/rolling the balls:

• 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder

1 Make the date balls: Place the walnuts and dates into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade, and pulse several times until well combined. The pieces should look like a rough crumble.

Add the cocoa powder, maple syrup, almond butter, vanilla extract, and sea salt and pulse until the mixture is smooth and thick; it will start to peel away from the edge of the bowl.

When this happens, stop the food processor; if it keeps whirring away, it may get stuck because these ingredients are, well, sticky! Keep a close eye on this, as it will come together quickly.

2 Add the almonds: Add the almonds and pulse a few times to incorporate them. You want them sort of irregularly sized, so that some pieces are still pretty crunchy and offer a variety of textures.

3 Roll the date balls: Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment or wax paper. Place the coconut in a small bowl and the cocoa powder in another bowl.

Scoop out the mixture, roll it into golf-ball shapes, and roll in the shredded coconut or the cocoa powder (or leave plain).  

4 Chill and store the date balls: Transfer the date balls to a baking sheet with wax paper and chill them for a few hours or overnight, if needed. Once they've firmed up, transfer to a plastic lidded container and keep in the fridge.

Rosemary Maple Spiced Almonds

Sounds crazy, doesn't it? Nuts even. But I'll give it a try on Friday. From here.

Ingredients

• 2 cups whole raw almonds
• 1/3 cup maple syrup (I think 1/4 c would be sufficient)
  
• 2 teaspoons rosemary
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to taste)
• Sea salt, to taste

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Combine almonds, syrup, rosemary, cayenne, and sea salt in bowl. Stir to coat well.
3. Spread on a sheet pan (parchment paper lined is great for clean up).
4. Bake in the oven for 10-14 minutes. Watch carefully as they burn quickly.
5. Remove from oven and cool.
6. Once cool break up the nuts. They can be stored in an airtight container for about a week.

****
Quilt group is on Friday and I volunteered to take a cake for our birthdays, but somebody ELSE called dibs on cake (which he will buy - ugh - little worse than grocery store bakery cakes) and I was told I could bring "snacks like cheese and crackers." But two other people volunteered for that, so what to do?

Look through my cupboard and figure it out. This recipe sounds nasty - such a weird combination. But I have everything on hand (thank you, Trader Joe's) and it's simple, so hopefully it's good!

Almond Tofu Jello

Don't get scared by the name - there's no tofu in this deliciously light and refreshing dessert! It's basically almond flavored gelatin that looks white because of its ingredients. It's one of my favorite desserts, and I eat it as it is (my brother too...who can eat bowlfuls at a time!), but it's also great on top of a giant scoop of shaved ice drenched in condensed milk. ^_^

This just so happens to be a special recipe. Most of the time, if you buy the almond jello tofu box to make at home, from a regular Chinese grocery store, it's made with a different type of gelatin, a type of agar...something that is denser in texture and chewier. The texture of this one is silky and soft, and many who've tried it say they always like this version better. I hope you will too!

Ingredients:
4 Packets of KNOX unflavored gelatin
1 Can (12 oz) of evaporated milk
1.5 Cups of sugar
4 tsp. almond extract
4 Cups of hot, boiling water
2 Cups of cold water
1 Large Can of fruit cocktail (keep the syrup!)

You'll definitely need:
1 9x13 inch glass pan

I've found this to be the perfect size, however, anything that will hold the gelatin will suffice. Glass is preferred because you'll have to slice the gelatin into blocks, and cutting up your metal bakeware is probably not ideal!

You can also make these in little cups, and serve with just a dollop of the fruit cocktail and syrup on top, like in the picture above. =) A lot of Asian restaurants will do that because it's quick and simple to portion out to their guests.

Directions:

1. Mix the cold water into the gelatin well in your glass pan.

2. Add and stir in the hot water to dissolve the gelatin crystals. Add the sugar till dissolved.

3. Add the almond extract. Stir.

4. Place in the refrigerator, and then add the evaporated milk and mix gently. Because the dish gets very full after adding the milk, it's wise to put the pan into the fridge first!

5. Refrigerate until firm, about 2-3 hours. I usually tend to make this in the morning or at night, and then check on it towards dessert time or when I get up, so it's definitely had enough time to set. It's best to make this ahead of time, as there's absolutely no loss in flavor. =)

6. Cut into square blocks, about 1-2" cubes, so it looks like tofu. =) Serve mixed with fruit cocktail in its syrup. Keeps well for the week, but well, it never lasts that long...=)