It’s that time of year when you are surrounded by desserts! Steal the show at your gal pal’s cookie swap or holiday gathering by bringing our healthy Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice Balls. They are the perfect healthy treat to sneak into the sea of unhealthy sugar-filled sweets. Made with 10 simple ingredients and a food processor, they are easy to make and you won’t be slaving away in the kitchen all day!
We love using Medjool dates in our baking and protein ball recipes. Not only are they a great natural sweetener but they have many health benefits too. They are high in vitamins and minerals like fiber and potassium. They give you a boost of energy, can help with vision, digestion and prevent heart disease. Pretty powerful stuff for such a tiny fruit! Combine that with some of our favorite spices….
- Cinnamon – packed with antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties and is linked to reducing the risk of heart disease
- Ginger – used throughout history in forms of medicine, reduces cholesterol and inflammation, helps to treat nausea and muscle pain
- Nutmeg – high in minerals that help regulate blood pressure, aids in digestion as treat insomnia
We eat nuts all year round as a heart-healthy snack and the holiday time is no different. We incorporated 2 different nuts in this recipe, pecans and almonds. They help to increase HDL or “good cholesterol” and decrease LDL otherwise knowns as “bad cholesterol”.
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Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice Balls
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup Medjool Dates
- ½ cup pecans
- ½ cup almond flour
- ⅓ cup milled flaxseed
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp ginger
- ½ tsp nutmeg
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1½ tbsp pure maple syrup
Instructions
- Start by cutting the Medjool dates in half and removing the seeds and add them to a bowl of hot water (completely covering the dates) and set aside allowing them to soften for about 5-10 minutes. (if dates are already plump and soft this step can be skipped.)
- Add the whole pecans to a food processor and blend until flour is formed (if using whole almonds they can be added and blended at the same time).
- Add in almond flour, flax seed and dry spices and blend.
- Next, remove the dates from the water and chop into smaller pieces and add to the blender.
- Then add the vanilla extract, maple syrup and blend until a paste/dough is formed. You may need to stop and scrape down the sides of the blender.
- Place the mixture in the refrigerator for 15 to 20 minutes. This step makes forming the balls easier.
- Pour more cinnamon on a small plate for rolling the formed balls.
- Remove the mixture from the refrigerator and roll about a tablespoon of the mix in your hands to form the balls. Then roll the ball on the plate of cinnamon until it is completely coated. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
