• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

My Sugar Free Kitchen

  • By Category
  • Dinner
  • Dessert
  • Baking
  • About
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • By Category
  • Dinner
  • Dessert
  • Baking
  • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×

    Home » Sugar Free Recipes with Chocolate

    Chocolate Almond Date Balls

    LAST UPDATED: March 18, 2021 | PUBLISHED: March 18, 2021 | BY: Kim

    Chocolate Almond Bliss Balls are the perfect after dinner treat for keeping cravings at bay.  These are easy to make in your food processor with just 4 ingredients. 

    Jump to Recipe
    a plate of chocolate almond date balls

    Much healthier than store bought snacks, I pack them in my work lunchbox, take them on hikes, picnics and to BBQ’s.  Energy Balls and Bliss Balls are one of my favourite things to make because they are ridiculously easy just like these Date Snickers.

    Recipe Highlights

    • Made with natural ingredients and no added sugar
    • Make them in just 15 minutes
    • They’re perfect with a cup of coffee
    • They keep in the fridge for a week and you can freeze them
    • They are the ultimate portable snack, like these Apricot Balls (another favourite!)
    • They’re the perfect combination of sweet, chewy, chocolate and healthy
    • Perfect for after dinner to keep cravings at bay
    • Perfect for an afternoon pick me up

    More cravings busters I love to make are these Lemon Cheesecake Balls, Carrot Cake Balls and my Coconut Bliss Balls – perfect for summer with light fresh flavours. These Chocolate Banana Brownies are also a must make. They're super moist and rich with only 7 ingredients.

    Ingredients

    ingredients for chocolate date balls

    Ingredient Notes

    • Chocolate Spread:  I use Nuttvia chocolate spread – a 95% sugar free chocolate spread available from Woolworths in the same aisle as the peanut butters.  You can substitute this for the same quantity of melted chocolate, natural peanut butter or almond butter
    • Medjool Dates:  I recommend using medjool dates over other types of dates as they are soft, sweet and juicy with less fiborous skins which means they break down better and have a nicer texture.
    • Almond Meal:  this is ground almonds.  You can buy it from the baking aisle of the supermarket, or make your own by blitzing almonds in a food processor until you end up with a fine crumb.
    • Cocoa Powder:  I use unsweetened cocoa powder for my energy balls.  Its different to the cocoa powder you use to make hot chocolate which tends to be much sweeter.  I generally find unsweetened cocoa powder in the healthy food aisle of supermarkets.

    For a similar type ball but with extra protein, check out my Chocolate Date Protein Balls.

    How To Make

    1. Add all ingredients to a food processor and blitz for a minute or two until a fine moist crumb forms.
    chocolate date ball ingredients in food processor before blitzing
    1. Remove blade from food processor and roll mixture into 12 bliss balls
    date ball mixture in food processor after blitzing
    1. Combine additional almond meal and cocoa powder into a small bowl and roll each ball.

    Expert Tips

    • Medjool Dates:  its best if your dates are at room temperature so they are soft and easily pull apart.  If straight out of the fridge, soak them in hot tap water for 3 to 5 minutes and then squeeze excess water out of them before adding to the food processor.  Make sure you’ve removed the seeds first.  I also used medjool dates in these Peanut Butter Bliss Balls and these Coconut Data Balls.
    • Making a cheats Chocolate Spread:  mix some peanut butter (or almond butter) with a little cocoa powder until it resembles a paste (a little bit of powder goes a long way)
    • Mixture too Wet:  add a little extra almond meal to the mix to help dry it out.  Adding too much cocoa powder will make them like rocks when they set!
    • Mixture too Dry:  add 1 tablespoon of tap water (or milk) at a time and re-blitz until it reaches the right consistency to stick together
    • Size:  This recipe makes 12 regular sized bliss balls, but you can also make 24 small mini sized balls.  To ensure you get consistent sizes, you can use a regular or mini ice cream scoop to get the mixture out.
    3 date balls stacked in a small bowl

    Common Questions

    Can Chocolate Date Balls be frozen?

    Yes.  Store them in an air tight container for upto 4 weeks.  TO defrost, let them come to room temperature naturally before eating.  Or you can put the frozen container in the fridge overnight

    How To Tell If The Mixture is Ready for Rolling

    The mixture is just right when you can grab it between your fingers and it sticks or clumps together.  It should be moist, but not wet.

    How can I stop the mixture from sticking to my hands when rolling?

    Make sure your hands are clean before you start and damp which will prevent the mixture sticking.  I don’t usually find this a problem, but if you can always pause halfway between rolling, to wash your hands and re-dampen them.

    3 chocolate date balls in a bowl

    Chocolate Date Balls

    Kim
    Chocolate Almond Bliss Balls are the perfect after dinner treat for keeping cravings at bay.  These are easy to make in your food processor with just 4 ingredients. 
    5 from 1 vote
    Prevent your screen from going dark
    Print Recipe Save Recipe Saved!
    Prep Time 15 minutes mins
    Total Time 15 minutes mins
    Course Snack
    Cuisine Australian
    Servings 12 Balls
    Calories 177 kcal

    Ingredients
     

    • 1 ½ cups Almond Meal
    • 2 tablespoons Unsweetened cocoa powder
    • 18 Medjool dates, pitted
    • 4 tablespoons Chocolate Spread - (see note 1)

    For Dusting

    • 2 tablespoons Almond Meal
    • 1 tablespoon Unsweetened cocoa powder

    Instructions
     

    • Add all ingredients to a food processor and blitz for a minute or two until a fine moist crumb forms.
    • Remove blade from food processor and roll mixture into 12 bliss balls. (use an ice cream scoop if you want to them to all be exactly the same size, otherwise you can just measure it by eye)
    • Combine additional almond meal and cocoa powder into a small bowl and roll each ball.
    • Store them in an air tight container in the fridge for 1 week.

    Notes

    1. Chocolate Spread: I use Nuttvia chocolate spread – a 95% sugar free chocolate spread available from Woolworths in the same aisle as the peanut butters.  You can substitute this for the same quantity of melted chocolate, natural peanut butter or almond butter
    2. Making a cheats Chocolate Spread: mix some peanut butter (or almond butter) with a little cocoa powder until it resembles a paste (a little bit of powder goes a long way)
    3. Medjool Dates: I recommend using medjool dates over other types of dates as they are soft, sweet and juicy with less fiborous skins which means they break down better and have a nicer texture.
    4. Almond Meal: this is ground almonds.  You can buy it from the baking aisle of the supermarket, or make your own by blitzing almonds in a food processor until you end up with a fine crumb.
    5. Cocoa Powder: I use unsweetened cocoa powder for my energy balls.  Its different to the cocoa powder you use to make hot chocolate which tends to be much sweeter.  I generally find unsweetened cocoa powder in the healthy food aisle of supermarkets.
    6. Sugars in Chocolate Date Balls:  These are naturally sweetened with medjool dates and do not contain any added sugars, therefore the sugar on the nutrition label comes from the natural sugars found in the dates.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 177kcalCarbohydrates: 32gProtein: 4gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 1gFiber: 4gSugar: 19g

    Note: Sugars contained in this recipe are from naturally occurring sugars in fruits, vegetables or other natural sweeteners.

    Keyword chocolate date balls
    Looking To Cut Out Sugar? Get the FREE Healthy Food Swaps Checklist Pack!Get your FREE Healthy Food Swaps Checklists with over 65 Healthy Food Alternatives to Help you Ditch The Sugar Without Feeling Deprived.

    More Chocolate Recipes

    • a stack of 3 date bars with nuts and chocolate on top
      Date Nut Bars
    • lots of date snickers with chocolate and sea salt spread out on a rack
      Date Snickers
    • low calorie bliss balls
      Low Calorie Energy Balls
    • a glass of chocolate mousse pudding
      Healthy Chocolate Cocoa Avocado Pudding
    • Facebook

    Hi there! I’m Kim and I'm passionate about living a life infused with mindfulness, simplicity and self-care. Here I share my recipes, tips, insights and wisdom for eating well, slowing down and reconnecting with the things that matter.

    Reader Interactions

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Kim Morris Hi there! I’m Kim. My sugar free kitchen is a site dedicated to creating healthy and delicious clean eating dinners and sweet treats with less sugar using simple ingredients and natural sweeteners. Read More...
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest

    Healthy Asian Dinners

    yaki soba noodles featured image

    Vegetable Yaki Udon Noodles

    mongolian chicken with rice in a grey bowl

    Chinese Mongolian Chicken

    6 chicken meatballs in a bowl with rice and broccoli

    Asian Chicken Meatballs

    Chinese pineapple chicken and rice in a bowl

    Chinese Chicken with Pineapple

    Most Popular

    a stack of 3 date bars with nuts and chocolate on top

    Date Nut Bars

    lots of date snickers with chocolate and sea salt spread out on a rack

    Date Snickers

    low calorie bliss balls

    Low Calorie Energy Balls

    a glass of chocolate mousse pudding

    Healthy Chocolate Cocoa Avocado Pudding

    places where this blog has been featured

    Footer

    ^ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Disclaimer
    • Amazon Disclosure

    Free Stuff

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates
    • Clean eating Tips
    • Mindful Eating Tips

    Contact

    • Contact
    • About

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2020 My Sugar Free Kitchen