Date Truffles | Date Laddu

Can you think of a dessert without sugar, jaggery, cream, ghee or butter? Here is one for you – Date Truffles or Date Laddu! I got the recipe for Date Truffles from the magazine called “CookingLight”. I have tweaked it a little bit to suit our taste. Must admit this is one of the easiest dessert recipe!

I made the Date Laddu for navarathri. I like to term this as “Navarathri recipe“! During navarathri, sundal and other healthy snacks are given to guests visiting our Navarathri Kolu. Since Date Laddu is one of the healthy (yet tasty) snack, I would recommend this to be a perfect Navarathri Recipe!!

Date (Khajoor) is loaded with nutrients. Its a great source of dietary potassium.

If you have guests at home and not have enough time to prepare something sweet to munch, don’t worry! Dates Truffle can come to your rescue 😉 It requires NO cooking at all! All you need to do is have pitted dates, almond and little honey (optional) at home to prepare this instant sweet recipe.

Ingredients:

Pitted Date: 1.25 cups
Almonds: 1 cup
Honey: 1/2 tbsp (0.5 tbsp = 1.5 tsp)
Cinnamon powder: 1/2 tsp
Salt: 1/8 tsp
Cardamom powder: 1/2 tsp (optional)
Saffron strands: 4-5 (optional)
Coconut flakes: 2-3 tbsp (optional)

Honey is also optional. The natural oil in date and almonds is enough bind them together. If you are sweet toothed, go ahead and enjoy the truffles with pure honey!

Preparation Method:

• Roast almonds for 2-3 mins.
• Boil water and soak almonds for 5 minutes (or even less).
• Drain water if skin slips off the almonds easily else, allow it to soak for some more time.
• Do not over soak almonds, it would reduce the crunchiness.
• Mix pitted dates, almonds (with the skin peeled off), honey, salt, saffron strands, cinnamon and cardamom powder.
• Beat in a food processor (or mixie) until mixture forms a thick paste.
• Roll the mixture into balls.

To cover the Date Truffle with coconut:

• Toast coconut and place it a plate.
• Roll the date almond truffle/laddu in the toasted coconut flakes.

To make Date Burfi:You can even make this recipe as a burfi with little ghee

• Instead of rolling the date almond mixture into balls, grease a plate with little flour or ghee and pat the mixture to form 1/2-1 inch thick sheet.
• Cut it into small squares.

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