RECIPE: Chocolate Power Balls

Ever since I bought a jar of sunflower seed butter that both of my kids promptly rejected as a sandwich filling, I've been trying to find a way to use it up that my family would deem palatable. It would be even better if it was something that made a tasty, transportable snack suitable for my son's school lunch and other nut-free environments.

These Whole Food No Bake Cookies looked promising, so I gave them a try. I found they came out too soft and "gloppy" for my liking and did not hold their shape well at all as a cookie.

I thought they might do better in ball form (kind of like a truffle) and decided to tweak the recipe to pack in a few more goodies for extra nutrition and overall yumminess.

I have to say that these are a new favourite snack at our house. They hold up well in my son's lunchbox and make a great afternoon pick-me-up for us busy moms, too. Best of all, they are very easy to make (although that may be a bit of a downfall as it's a bit *too* easy to gobble them up and whip up another batch).

This is also a great recipe for messing around with; you could use any type of nut butter if you don't need a nut-free option, and any type of dried fruit would work well in place of the apricots. You could also sneak in some ground flax seed or just about anything powdered and mild flavoured (you know, those things your kids - or you - really don't want to eat on their own). I like to use a darker, stronger tasting honey like wildflower or buckwheat in these balls, but any honey you have should do just fine!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup coconut oil
4 tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 cup sunflower seed butter (or any nut butter of choice)
1/2 cup coconut
1/2 cup *uncooked* rolled oats or *cooked* quinoa
1/3 cup finely chopped dried apricots
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
coconut for coating

Instructions:
In a small saucepan, combine the honey, coconut oil, cocoa powder and sunflower seed butter.

Heat over medium-low heat just until mixture blends together well.

Remove from heat  and add coconut, oats, apricots, cinnamon and ginger.

Chill for about 30 minutes or until mixture firms up enough to roll into balls (I just stick a wooden cutting board under the saucepan and put it in the fridge).

Shape teaspoon-sized amounts of mixture into balls; roll in coconut. Store in refrigerator.

Makes about 2 dozen balls.

Do you have a favourite easy-to-make lunchbox treat? I'd love to know what it is!

For more simple, tasty and family-friendly recipes like this one, check out my book: Cheap Appétit: The Complete Guide to Feeding Your Family for Less Than $400 a Month (While Eating Better Than You Ever Thought Possible)

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Two Last Minute Gifts from the Kitchen

It's only four days left until the big day! If you're still looking for a couple of gift ideas to "fill in around the edges", here are two of my tried-and-true, super simple food gifts. Despite the fact that they are some of the easiest treats I make, they are always received with delight.

1. Cracker Toffee

(pictured above)

1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 sleeve soda crackers
2 cups semi sweet or milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 400F. Line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper. Lay the soda crackers over the top, covering the surface completely. In a medium saucepan, bring butter and brown sugar to a boil. Boil for 3-5 minutes, stirring constantly, until mixture becomes thick and toffee-like..Pour mixture over crackers and spread evenly over top. Bake in oven for 5 minutes. Be VERY careful removing from the oven, the sugar mixture will be extremely hot and bubbly. As it starts to cool down, you may need to rearrange the crackers back into their original position with a fork as they have a tendency to float around in the bubbling toffee mixture Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top and let stand about 5 minutes until the chips have melted. Spread the melted chocolate evenly over the top. Refrigerate until thoroughly chilled (at least 2-3 hours, overnight is ideal). Remove parchment paper and break into pieces. This keeps well for a few days in the fridge and can be frozen if you happen to make it further in advance.

2. Chocolate Barks

Barks are about the simplest candy to make but they really seem to impress people! You can do just about any combination of chocolate and "additions" that strikes your fancy.

Basic bark formula:
2-3 cups chocolate chips (semi sweet, milk, or white)
1- 1 1/2 cups additions

Line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper. In double boiler or microwave, melt chocolate. Stir in "additions" and spread in a thin layer on jelly roll pan (usually it won't cover the entire surface). Chill in refrigerator until solid, then break into pieces.

Some of my favourite combinations:
-white chocolate with crushed candy cane
-white chocolate with dried cranberries and pistachios or pumpkin seeds
-semi sweet chocolate with raisins and peanuts
-semi sweet chocolate with marshmallows and peanuts ("rocky road" bark)

Other possibilities:
-white chocolate with crushed Oreos ("cookies and cream" bark)
-milk chocolate with toffee bits and almonds

You can drizzle a contrasting colour of chocolate over top of the bark once it's chilled, then re-chill until the drizzle hardens. Store in the fridge or freezer until ready to give.

This is a fun and easy one to do with the kids, and they will enjoy coming up with their own combinations!

I'm going to be taking a bit of a blogging break over the holidays, so expect to see me back sometime next week.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!!