SNICKERS TRUFFLES (VEGAN AND GLUTEN FREE)

Have you guys gotten into the holiday spirit yet? Maybe some of you don’t celebrate Christmas even. I have a very secular relationship with Christmas and it’s all about being with family, giving gifts and eating a lot of food and sweets. All of which can be quite stressful sometimes but I totally think it’s such a cosy and relaxing time all at the same time. I guess that’s what Christmas is a little bitfor me; a big old paradox. Filled with yummy stuff. Like these vegan snickers truffles.

They are basically a really easy homemade snickers like treat that are perfect for gatherings around this time of year. The filling is rather healthy consisting of dates, cashews, desiccated coconut and peanut butter along with some whole roasted and salted peanuts if you wish. The coating is just plain chocolate melted and then coating the balls to make an impressive treat without much effort spent. For me that last part is quite important around this time. We spend a lot of time cooking many different dishes, and it’s not always easy to find ready made vegan alternatives to lighten the load, so I always like to keep the dishes I choose relatively simple. What is your kitchen strategy during the holidays?

I hope you guys enjoy these truffles this Christmas and are able to share them with friends and family as you gather. And that you light lots of candles because for me that’s where the real Christmas spirit is found. Maybe even dedicating some of your moments and thoughts as you do to someone you think need a little extra thought, someone you’ve lost or simply to yourself and something you want to spend a minute to acknowledge for yourself. It’s easy to get caught up in the Christmas shopping, family feuds and other drama during this month and I hope you all take care of yourselves and take time out to set the intentions and do the things needed to make this time a lovely one.

Myself I’m going to spend some time leading up to Christmas in my home town with my parents and then travel to London to spend actual Christmas with Rob’s family there. Next week we take a little road trip to my mother’s house and from there we visit my father and his wife in shorter stints. It’s my mother’s birthday within that time as well which we hope to celebrate together with some good food and coat shopping. That’s my mother’s wish this year. I’ll be trying to make a little vlog from my home town this time. I don’t think I’ve ever really shared where I grew up (mostly) and my parents in that way so I think that could be fun. I hope you agree.

Now I’m off to photograph another holiday inspired recipe to share with you that’ll hopefully inspire you to embrace the vegan options available to you in this rather meat centric time of year (at least here in Sweden). Wishing you all a lovely weekend and see you back here next week with another recipe. It’s a good one, if I may say so myself, so don’t miss out! x

SNICKERS TRUFFLES

YIELDS: roughly 15 truffles / TIME: 60 min

1 cup raw cashews

1/3 cup desiccated coconut

9 small/medium sized fresh gooey dates*, pitted

4 tbsp smooth peanut butter, unsalted

2 handfuls roasted and salted peanuts + a little more for topping

150 g vegan chocolate, can use mylk or dark depending on preference

*If your dates are not very gooey and/or sticky you might want to soak them in hot water for roughly 15-30 minutes before making the balls. Drain before using. This will ensure they have enough moisture to create a good texture and stickiness of the ‘dough’.

Take one handful of your peanuts and crush them somewhat in a pestle and mortar and then set aside.

In a food processor pulse your cashews and coconut until it’s a rough meal. Add your dates and peanut butter and process again, using pulse feature if you see fit, until it has created a mainly sticky dough. If the dough seems dry add another date and process again and see if it’s made a better consistency. If not add another half a tablespoon of peanut butter and hopefully by now it should be sticky enough to roll into balls. If not add another date or two and process again.

Place your dough in a bowl and add the other handful of peanuts. Mix and press to incorporate into the dough. Then roll about 15 equally sized balls. Freeze the balls for roughly 30 minutes, or more if you wish (do note that you might not b able to eat them straight away after coating them if you’ve left them in the freezer or more than 30 or so minutes as they will be hard).

Break your chocolate into small pieces and place them in a small glass bowl. Place the bowl in a pot of hot water over medium heat on the stove. Melt the chocolate and turn it occasionally with a spatula in the process.

When the chocolate is melted smooth coat your now cold snickers like balls and then place them on a parchment paper. Sprinkle with a little bit of the crushed peanuts when the chocolate has set somewhat but before it is completely set.

Place the truffles in the fridge if you live in a hot climate or keep a very warm home. If not you can let them set on the counter and then serve.

Keep your truffles refrigerated for maximum freshness and eat within a week.