Chocolate Bombs

It's the afternoon.  You're dragging.  And you're hungry.  "Is there still ice cream in the freezer?" you think to yourself.  "Wait, no, there's a bag of chips in the pantry!"  Or maybe you're at the office and there's leftover birthday cake in the break room.  Or donuts.  Or both!

Let me introduce you to my secret weapon against those junk food temptations.  I wage war on those moments with this recipe in my arsenal.  I call them....(pause for dramatic effect).....Chocolate Bombs!

Ever since I found this recipe from The Gabriel Method E-Cookbook, it's been my go-to for fighting hunger and snack attacks with a healthy and filling alternative.  One of my most vulnerable times for hunger is Sundays.  I try to eat something right before I leave, but by the time I get home after church (which is three hours long) I am ready to eat the front door!  Armed with a few of these tucked away in my purse or waiting for me in the car, I soothe the hunger beast during the twenty minute drive home.

You could make a breakfast of these if you like; or just snack on them when you need a pick me up or have an afternoon snack attack.  I always have a big glass of water (or water bottle) on hand with these as they are quite the mouthful!

It's the afternoon.  You're dragging.  And you're hungry.  "Chocolate bombs to the rescue!" you shout triumphantly.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup almonds

1 Tbsp chia seeds

1 Tbsp pumpkin seeds

unsweetened coconut (to taste)

1 tsp. sesame seeds

4 tsp raw cacao

3 Tbsp almond butter

2 Tbsp coconut palm sugar

1 Tbsp raw cashew butter

5-10 drops liquid stevia

1 tsp cinnamon

1.  Place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until the almonds are in very small pieces.

2.  Check the consistency by taking a small amount of the mixture and forming it into a ball.  If it's too crumbly, add more almond or cashew butter in small amounts and process again.  Once it will form a ball, you've gotten it right!
3.  Using your hand or a small cookie scoop, take out tablespoonfuls of the mixture, squeeze if necessary, and roll into a ball in your hands.  

4.  Eat immediately or store in the fridge in an airtight container.

Makes about 10-12 bombs, depending on how big you make them

A few notes:

• The original recipe calls for Tahini in place of cashew butter.  Not a Tahini fan, so I subbed.  The original also called for a teaspoon of stevia but I only had liquid.  For the cacao I increased the amount from 3 teaspoons in the original, to 4.
• How much coconut you say?  I'm a coconut lover, so I would guess I add 1/4 cup.  This will affect how much extra nut butter you need to add at the end (if any).
• I love these.  So when I make them, I triple the batch.  Tripling just fits the mixture in my Ninja food processor.

Source:  slightly adapted from the Choc Seed Treat recipe in The Gabriel Method E-Cookbook