Energy ladoo
Small dense balls of dates and soaked almonds, rolled by hand to sustain us without a sugar spike.
The little energy balls of the Indian tradition, no cooking, ready in minutes. Dates, soaked almonds, coconut and cardamom — a dense sweetness that fits in a pocket and sustains without a sugar spike. My children love them, and so do I.
Ingredients
- 150 g pitted Mazafati dates
- 80 g almonds (soaked 8 h, skins removed)
- 40 g grated coconut
- 1 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 tsp virgin coconut oil (or sesame oil)
Method
Pulse the almonds in a food processor, coarsely — keep texture, not powder. Blend the dates with the coconut oil into a paste. Combine almonds, dates, cardamom, and knead by hand. Roll into walnut-sized balls, then in the grated coconut. Chill thirty minutes so they hold.
The tip
The soft dark Mazafati date replaces refined sugar while bringing magnesium, potassium, fibre and slow-release energy; soaked and skinned, the almonds become more digestible and release their minerals — the ayurvedic gesture par excellence. On keeping: a drier version lasts several days, but as soon as you work with dates and soaked almonds, it is 24 to 48 hours refrigerated at most. The trick that changes everything: fresh Mazafati dates (from the chilled organic aisle) or, better still, Jurassic Fruit's fresh gourmet dates — they make a ball that is unctuous AND holds together. To go further, a touch of lucuma (a very soft powder, my everyday stroke of genius), baobab, raw cacao, or a few crumbled freeze-dried fruits.
The ingredients of this recipe
The key suppliers
Where I source the right ingredients for this recipe.