Date, almond and chia energy balls

with dates, almonds, cacao powder, chia seeds and coconut oil

(makes 20)

These little healthy energy balls based on dates and nuts are the guilt-free snacking option! It makes sense as dates are high in fibre and iron, and a great natural source of sugar whilst almonds are full of good fat. Chia seeds, cacao powder and coconut oil seem to be very popular energy foods nowadays, so I'm hoping this will help as I am in need of energy these days at the end of pregnancy! 

They're super simple to make, just chuck it all in the food processor then a bit of rolling and you're done! There's plenty of variations of nuts and other nutritional goodies that you can put in, probably just depends on what's around the house. 

Prep time: 20 minutes
Setting time: 20 minutes

Ingredients 
1 C almond meal (or whole almonds)
1 C pitted dates, soaked for one hour
3 T coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 T cacao powder (or milo)
1-2 T desicated coconut
1 T chia seeds

To decorate;
4 T desiccated coconut/grated chocolate/cacao powder/crushed almonds

Method
1. Put the almond meal, dates, coconut oil, vanilla extract, cacao powder, coconut and chia seeds into the food processor and process until a fine paste.

2. Remove the mixture from the food processor and set up a separate bowl with decorating ingredients.
3. Use your hands to take out approximately 1 teaspoon of mixture and roll into a ball approximately 2cm in diameter.

4. Roll in decorating mixture then refrigerate flat for 20 minutes until firm, then pack away in an air-tight container in the fridge.