Roll Up, Roll Up!

These bliss balls are delicious, nutritious and contain no sugar or sweetener (other than the dried fruit). They have a variety of nuts and seeds – including super-foods such as goji berries and chia seeds – to get you the most varieties of nutritious elements and a perfect blend of flavor. However, you can change, add and substitute most of them.

We used tahini as a binder so that we do not need to use as many dates. It also gives a very grounding feeling, and balanced the sugars in the dried fruit as well as adds a boost of calcium.

As an option, we covered one side of them with dark chocolate. It looks beautiful. gives enough chocolate feel, but not an overdose. It is also easier to make.

These bliss balls are the perfect pick-me-up snack any time of day. They are a perfect substitute for sweets, or when you have a sugar craving. Because they contain a good amount of fat, they will provide a long-lasting sense of fullness, so that just one or two of these can carry you through the afternoon.

Yield: Approximately 20 bliss balls / Prep time: 15 minutes / Cooking time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

• • 1 cup pitted dates
  • 1 cup dried apricots 
  • ½ cup almonds
  • ½ cup brazil nuts
  • 2 tablespoons chia seeds
  • ½ cup walnuts
  • ¼ cup pumpkin seeds
  • ½ cup sunflower seeds
  • ¼ cup goji berries
  • 3 tablespoons sesame seeds
  • 2 tablespoons tahini
  • 5 cups dark chocolate (72% or above)

Procedure

1. In a large bowl, mix the above ingredients except for the dark chocolate thoroughly.

2. Place half of the mixed ingredients in a food processor. Use the pulse mode if you have it. This will ensure it gets chopped but not powdery.

3. With your hands, make golf ball size bliss balls and place them aside.

4. Place the second half of the mixed ingredients in the food processor and repeat step 2.

You can either leave the bliss balls as they are, or roll them in cacao powder or shredded coconut. If you like the chocolate idea follow step 5.

5. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler (if you do not have a double boiler, fill a medium size pot with 2 cups of water and place a slightly smaller pot on top with the chocolate inside; Do not let the water from below boil over into the smaller pot (The chocolate becomes chunky and difficult to spread). Keep the temperature on low until the chocolate is completely melted, mixing it, and then taking the pot(s) off the heat. Wait 1 minute for the chocolate to cool before using. 

6. With a spatula, place one large spoonful of chocolate on top of a bliss ball and use your fingers to spread it around. Place it on a clean plate with chocolate facing up.It’s ok if some chocolate drips down to the plate. It will stick, but you can remove it later with a knife.

7. Place the bliss balls in the refrigerator. They should be ready to eat after an hour.

8. Store them in the refrigerator and eat within one week. 

More healthy dessert recipes like this can be found in The Doron Yoga Cookbook, featuring many joyful recipes for hungry yogis, available to download here.

Enjoy your cooking journey and taste the bliss!