As the new year leaps in, January surely becomes a time for new resolutions. New promises, new challenges to our own selves are always part of these resolutions. Some might have started the new year with new objectives which vary from reading more books (one of mine) to hitting the gym more often (again mine), find a new career, become more responsible, save more money and basically anything else we didn’t like about us the past year. Sadly, I have yet to meet someone who has accomplished all their New Year resolutions throughout the whole year. They usually last the first few month(s), very unfortunately.

These healthy gems might be part of my new year resolution: eating healthy, which means eating only fresh food and almost nothing processed. When you decide to create that kind of lifestyle, desserts are one of the biggest challenges. At the end of a meal, it seems so tempting to just devour a Lindor ( or 3) to satisfy that sweet tooth cravings, but I have discovered that dates delight you just as much. I like to call them “nature’s dessert”. They are so sweet and succulent. And if you add an almond or pistachio inside the date before eating it, the whole thing just becomes even more wholesome.

I have discovered Medjool dates here in Tirana, at a super market on my way home. They are the best kind of dates. SO huge and with so much flesh. They work perfectly for creating “truffles” or “bliss balls” as they are usually called, because they give the perfect texture to the truffles when they are mixed with nuts. They make the texture very easy to work with and of course very delicious.

My food accomplice,  Ejona from Mandarina, inspired me to experiment with this recipe, as we usually always end up talking about food.

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Ingredients

1 cup nuts ( I used hazelnuts and peanuts)

2/3 cup dried apricots

3-4 Medjool dates ( maybe a bit more if using smaller dates)

Assorted toppings ( cocoa, matcha, crushed nuts, seeds) I used crushed pistachios

Roast the nuts for a few minutes until they become fragrant. When using hazelnuts and peanuts rub off all the skin ( or try at least) before putting them into a food processor. Pulse on high for a couple of minutes, then add dates and the apricots and keep pulsing. When it all comes together nicely, start adding shape to the mixture. In the end, roll them into cocoa, nuts or matcha ( or anything nice you can think of). As a final touch use a sieve to sprinkle cocoa and matcha evenly.