Raw, vegan Energy bonbons aka Lara bars!

bon·bon

noun \ˈbän-ˌbän\


The term comes from the French word “good, good” and is a category that contains confections that have a hard shell of chocolate around a softer center. Another term for this type of candy is filled chocolates


Bon-Bon - "Bon-Bon" is a comedic short story by Edgar Allan Poe, first published in December 1832 in the Philadelphia Saturday Courier. Originally called "The Bargain Lost", the story follows a man named Pierre Bon-Bon, who believes himself a profound philosopher, and his encounter with the devil. ...


Back to the sweet stuff...
I decided that I need an on-the-go snack to give me some energy and fill me up because I've started taking extra fitness classes which gives me less prep-time each morning. I found a healthy "bonbon" recipe from a blog called The Witchy Kitchen. It's a bit date-ish for me but it's the same premise of Lara Bars which I love (but are heinously expensive and have a lot of nuts which I try to avoid). These little energy balls/bonbons are a chocolaty flavor (yum!) using sunflower seeds (something I never get enough of...linoleic acid). I'm calling them energy balls because they are NOT low-cal - they will satiate you however.




Now that I have made them once and learned a few tricks I can easily adapt them to my tastes. You can substitute some almond or peanut butter for some of the dates, add cranberries, add chocolate chips, add banana chips, add dried apple and use apple juice (instead of orange). If you want something a little more indulgent, instead of rolling in cocoa powder, coat in melted chocolate =) 


Play with flavors to create your own!

A few tips I learned while making them: Increase the amount of oats, add some flax seed, reduce the amount of dates, chop the dates well before adding to processor OR before even starting the oats chop the dates in the processor...otherwise,you'll have huge date chunks and trouble getting them ground up. 


Here's the recipe with my changes:

3/4 Packed Cup of Dates, WELL CHOPPED --> by hand or 1st thing in food processor.

3/4 Cup Raw Sunflower Seeds, toasted --> you can add other nuts here if you choose.

1/2 Cup Rolled Oats

2 Tbsp. Cocoa

1 Tbsp. Raw Agave Nectar or Maple Syrup*

1 Tbsp. Orange Juice

1/4 Tsp. Cinnamon

1/4 Tsp. Real Vanilla Extract

For Rolling: Cocoa, Coconut, Sesame Seeds, Powdered Sugar, Crushed Pistachio, Etc...

*Honey substituted for either of the sweeteners above will cause for a somewhat greasy ball, so beware...

Place sunflower seeds in a dry pan and toast on medium heat for about 5 minutes. Allow to cool.

In a food processor, place the oatmeal and whirl for about 8-10 seconds. Add cooled sunflower seeds and whirl till the seeds and oatmeal become a fine meal. Then add the dates, cocoa, cinnamon, agave, and vanilla. Whirl till the dates are broken down and everything is very well mixed-this was about 20 seconds for me. You will notice the mixture is dry and not quite coming together. Measure out 1 Tbsp. of orange juice and whirl about half of it into the mix. See if the mixture comes together. If not, add the other half tbsp.

Wet your hands slightly with water before rolling (orange blossom or rose water are really nice, but regular water is fine too). Take a piece of the sticky dough and roll into balls that are about the size of a quarter or a bit larger if you like. After being rolled, immediately toss each ball in cocoa or your desired coating.

p.s. If you are tossing in cocoa or powdered sugar, be sure to tap off the excess powder! One can inhale it...

I am storing these in the freezer. Defrost awhile before eating.