If you're a fan of the classic chocolate and hazelnut combination, you will love these truffles!

They are simple to make, full of nutrient-dense ingredients, and can be stored for up to three months in a sealed container in the freezer – if they last that long! The truffles will also make a yummy Christmas dessert without the sugar rush.

MAKES: 14-18 truffles | TIME: 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 cup hazelnuts
• ¼ cup cacao nibs
• ½ cup rolled oats
• ¼ cup raw cashews
• 1 cup dates
• ¼ cup sultanas
• ¼ cup cacao powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Pinch of sea salt
• 1-3 tbsp coconut oil or cacao butter, melted

Method

Place the hazelnuts on an oven tray and roast at 150°C for 15 to 18 minutes, shaking the tray halfway, until the skins start to crack. Remove and leave to cool. Pour nuts into a clean tea towel, close it into a bundle, and rub it together so some of the skins flake off. 

Put cacao nibs and half a cup of hazelnuts in a food processor and blend until finely chopped, and pour into a flat bowl.

Place the remaining hazelnuts (except about 18 nuts), rolled oats, cashews, dates, sultanas, cacao powder and vanilla in your food processor and blend. Pour in coconut oil little by little and continue blending until the mixture starts sticking together. 

Roll the mixture into bite-sized balls, insert one hazelnut in the centre of each, and roll the balls in the cacao and hazelnut mixture to cover them. Place in the freezer for an hour to set.