Mock Chocolate Truffles

Mock Chocolate Truffles

 

This recipe is courtesy of wellness coach, and my friend, Sandy Thomas.  We made these mock truffles in a cooking class I took with Sandy and friends last year.  They were delicious, and I made them with Brennan today.

 

Excuse the state of the kitchen, we're having interior painting done this week!

 

While Brennan really prefers creating his own recipes, he is also good at following a recipe, so I put him to work today in the kitchen.

 

We started by chopping pecans in the food processor.

 

Then we added pitted dates, maple syrup, vanilla extract, cocoa powder, and one tablespoon of water, per the directions.  This gave us a rough texture, so we added another tablespoon of water or two until we go the right texture - rather smooth.

 

Then we rolled the truffles, and rolled half through cocoa powder, and half through shredded coconut.

 

 

 

I chilled them in the fridge until after dinner, but we didn't make it that long.

 

 

 

This recipe made about 3 dozen.  I loved the coconut.  David and Brennan (my dark chocolate lovers) really liked the cocoa powder ones.

 

 

 

I am understating how much they loved this dessert.

 

They absolutely loved these.  In fact, they completely disappeared.  Before dinner!

 

David thought they made a great special treat to take to a dinner.  Brennan wants to make more to take to his grandmother's house this weekend.  And he wants to make them for Thomas.

 

If you have any leftover, store them in an air tight container in the fridge.

 

Double click to print as a 5x7 recipe card.

 

Enjoy!

 

Lemon Mousse

Lemon Mousse

Let me start by saying this is the strangest recipe I've made in awhile.

Wait until you see the ingredients.

I am always on the lookout for a delicious dessert recipe that also uses fresh produce.

And Lemon Mousse?  Sounded great!

I found this recipe in Gillian McKeith's You Are What You Eat cookbook - one that I reference a lot!  She encourages her clients to try this recipe because so many are lacking in essential fatty acids, which can lead to a number of health issues.

A healthy lemon dessert?  I was certainly willing to give it a try.

You start by zesting one lemon, then peeling four, cutting them in half and removing the seeds.

You place the lemons in the food processor along with 4 peeled avocados, fresh lemon juice, fresh orange juice, pitted dates, and maple syrup.

With all those yummy avocados, there's no way this Lemon Mousse was going to be yellow.

And shouldn't Lemon Mousse be yellow??

Once it's super smooth, you spoon the mousse into individual dishes and chill for 2 hours before serving.

Looks like guacamole, doesn't it?

Top with lemon zest, and serve.

The Results:

David and Thomas thought it was waaaay too tart, and they'd cut the lemons in half.

I liked the flavor - it's really tart from all those fresh lemons, and I liked the texture.

 I'd eat this dish again, but....

It was almost heart breaking to me to use up those delicious avocados and dates in this way.

I love each and every one of the ingredients that are combined in this (rather strange) dish.

I think I'd just rather eat them individually.

Note:  cover with Saran Wrap if you don't eat them all that day or they won't look awesome the next day.

Double click to print as a 5x7 recipe card.

Bon Appetit!