The long weekend has barely started and I already feel relaxed. But we may have to pick up another Cuddle Cube Pet Bed from Amazon since one is not cutting it anymore.
There was a lot of grumbling in the chilly house this morning as the pups and cats tried to unsuccessfully share it.
The other beds are getting too old and flat apparently. But I did save money for another one today by avoiding going to the grocery store to pick up raw dessert ingredients for a family gathering tonight. Instead I invented a great recipe using what I had, sometimes the best recipes come from playing MacGyver in the kitchen. I planned on making a raw chocolate cake, but had no medjool dates or vanilla extract in the house. After surfing many chocolate cake recipes, I got a little daring with maple syrup and nutmeg to create gooey, chunky, and delicious spiced fudge balls that will be much easier to serve!
Spiced Fudge Balls
- 1 1/2 cups shelled hemp seeds
- 2 cups raw walnuts, unsoaked
- 2/3 cup raw cacao powder
- 1/2 cup organic maple syrup
- 1 tbsp. cinnamon
- 1 tsp. nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/4 cup shredded dried coconut (optional)
Place hemp seeds, cacao powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and 1 1/2 cups of the walnuts into a food processor fitted with the “S” blade. Process until well blended. Pour in maple syrup while processing and continue to process until mixture is a smooth, fudge-like texture. Pulse in the remaining 1/2 cup of raw walnuts for a chunky texture.
Roll mixture into about 1/2″ to 1″ balls. Roll balls in shredded coconut for optional texture. Chill in freezer for 30 minutes before serving. Makes 20-30 balls.
The texture is much more gooey and smooth using maple syrup in place of pitted dates, but still rolls into firm little balls.
You can also roll the balls in hemp seeds instead of coconut for texture, I like the mild sweet crunch added by the coconut.
The balls are nicely sweet and rich without being too sweet and have a wintery, holiday spice to me with the cinnamon and nutmeg.
And the texture is perfect, smooth and gooey, but not too heavy or caked like traditional fudge can be.
Awww, those poor pets! None of them seem too happy to be sharing, ha.
These look awesome– so dense and fudgy!
these look so good! what a great simple recipe :)
Cutest picture ever!! When my brother’s dog comes over to my mom’s house, her cats get sooo mad – they hate the poor thing! This reminded me of that. And these fudge balls look delicious! Yummmm :)
Thanks, sharing is so hard sometimes! :-) The balls came out great, just the right amount of sweetness with a rich chocolate flavor considering.
Love the pics with your babies sharing the bed! Too cute! The cube bed looks pretty cool, although, too small for my guys (Dalmatians). :-)
Your fudge balls look delicious and love the fact it’s so simple with just a few ingredients!
Enjoy your long weekend! ;-)
Thanks on the balls, they were a hit at the party and agave nectar could easily be used in place of the maple syrup.