Hazelnut Chocolate Balls

These Hazelnut Chocolate Balls with goji berry, sesame, turmeric, cinnamon, and coconut will satisfy any sweet cravings. They are hazelnutty, chewy, naturally sweet, and filled with good nutrition.

We all need a little sweet indulgence from time to time. I am a slight sugar addict! I think deep down we all are in some way! My mental strength for avoiding sweets, chocolate, and cakes takes a lot of discipline.

One way to avoid temptation is to avoid having any sweet ''treats'' in the house at arms reach. This way we do not have to resist the temptation. I made these delicious healthy energy balls in 20 minutes with ingredients I had in the store cupboard.

They make a great pre or post-workout snack, enjoy with a late morning coffee, or pack into the kid's lunchbox. The ingredients are flexible to substitute if you do not happen to have something.

Star Ingredients in hazelnut chocolate balls

• Hazelnuts
• Goji berries
• Sesame seed tahini
• Cacao
• Sunflower seeds
• Dates
• Coconut oil
• Cinnamon
• Turmeric
• Vanilla paste
• Pink salt

Nutritional highlights

This recipe combination is a good all-around healthy nutritional booster ball filled with delicious natural ingredients. Here is a summary of the nutritional content and benefits of the star ingredients.

Hazelnut

Hazelnuts are a good source of protein, fiber, carbohydrates, fats, and essential minerals.

They are a rich source of vitamin E, manganese, and copper. Additionally, they have a high content of omega-6 and omega-9 fatty acids.

Hazelnuts are good for:

• Helping to lower cholesterol
• Supporting heart health
• Supporting healthy bowl movements
• Reducing weight gain
• Reducing inflammation
• Improving sperm count

Read more about hazelnuts here

Goji berries

Goji berries contain eight essential amino acids. A 30g serving provides nearly 10% of your daily value for protein. For fruit, this is a surprising amount of protein.

Due to the higher fiber content or complex carbohydrates in goji berries, your blood sugar will rise more slowly, reducing your risk for a sugar crash afterward.

Goji berries are good for:

• Building immunity
• Balancing blood sugar
• Anti-oxidants for skin and eyes
• Boost testosterone levels

Read more about goji berries here

Sesame seeds

Sesame seeds add a nutty taste and a delicate, almost invisible, crunch to many Asian dishes. They are also the main ingredients in tahini and the wonderful Middle Eastern sweet call halva.

Sesame seeds are an excellent source of copper, a very good source of manganese, and a good source of magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, iron, zinc, molybdenum, and selenium.

Sesame seeds are good for

• Bone health
• Lowering cholesterol
• Digestive health

Read more about sesame seeds here

Cacao

Raw cacao is an incredible superfood, complete with powerful phytonutrients, antioxidants, and unique plant-based compounds that are found in only a handful of other foods on the planet.

Raw cacao is good for

• Reducing inflammation
• Balancing blood sugar
• Boosting cognitive performance
• Mood enhancer

Read more about raw cacao here

Equipment you will need

There is no fancy equipment you will need for making this recipe, all you will need is:

• Weighing scales
• Mixing bowl
• Oven or grill
• Blender
• Spatula
• Storage container

How to make hazelnut chocolate balls

The first stage is to roast the hazelnuts to remove the slightly bitter brown skins. The hazelnuts get rubbed in a towel to help release the skin. The sunflower seed, coconut oil and spices then get roasted with the hazelnuts for a delicious flavor.

The goji berries get soaked in water for 5-10 minutes to soften, then everything get blended and rolled into balls which get rolled in cacao or toasted sesame seeds.

Read on to see the step-by-step photos.

Roast and peel the hazelnuts

Place the hazelnuts on a baking tray with parchment paper and bake at 170c / 350f for 15 minutes until the hazelnuts are lightly toasted.

Add the hazelnuts to a clean towel.

Rub the hazelnuts vigorously to release the brown skin.

Remove the peeled hazelnuts from the towel and place them back on the baking tray.

Add the coconut oil, sunflower seeds, cinnamon, turmeric, and a pinch of pink salt.

Bake for another 6 minutes in the oven.

Transfer the roasted hazelnut mix to a bowl to cool.

Soak goji berries

Soak the goji berries in warm water for 5 minutes to soften.

Strain the goji berries - discard the water.

Blend all the ingredients

Next, add the stoned dates, tahini, vanilla, soaked goji berries, and roasted hazelnut mix to the blender.

Blend the mixture for 10-20 seconds until the mix comes together - leave a little chunky, some texture is nice.

Roll your hazelnut chocolate balls

Shape into 25g balls and dip in toasted white and black sesame seeds.

Roll some in raw cacao or you can add extra raw cacao to the mix in the blender. Store the hazelnut chocolate balls in the refrigerator or freezer.

Recipe variations and substitutions

You can roll the hazelnut chocolate balls in different ingredients for a nice garnish. I like using raw cacao and toasted sesame seeds. You may also use shelled hemp, ground seeds, or dedicated coconut.

This recipe is customizable to use different nuts and seeds. You may use any type of nut in place of hazelnuts. Try using pumpkin seeds in place of the sunflower seeds. If you cannot access tahini, you can use any other type of nut or seed butter.

Adding chocolate

In this recipe, I rolled the spiced hazelnut and goji berry balls in raw cacao powder. I love the contrast in color and flavor. You may also add a spoon of raw cacao to the blender when you are blending the mix.

How to store energy balls

These healthy balls will keep for 10 days in the fridge or 2 months in a sealed container in the fridge. I suggest making a double batch and keeping some as a backup in the freezer. They defrost quickly by leaving them at room temperature for 20 minutes.

When to eat

An energy ball is a refined sugar-free treat delicious to serve as an afternoon pick-me-up sweet treat, post or pre-workout fuel, or as a late-night snack.

I crumble and sprinkle them on top of my breakfast or smoothie bowls. They make a great on-the-go snack or a lunch box filler.

More healthy sweet snack recipes to try

• Chocolate Brazil Nut Balls
• Coconut & Black Sesame Bliss Balls
• Chocolate & Spirulina Energy Balls
• Fig & Chocolate Flapjack

I hope you enjoy this recipe. I'm very happy to share it with you. If you do make this recipe please let me know in the comments below what you think. I love seeing your recreations. You may tag me on Instagram #holisticchefacademy and join me on Pinterest, Facebook, or Instagram for more healthy recipes and videos.

Good health wishes my friends.