Chocolate and Coconut Truffles (shhh... they're raw!)

I had just made the coconut milk recipe that is on this blog and had a cup full of shredded coconut that I needed to use. I had originally anticipated this recipe without the coconut but hey, I do like coconut and it does lend these truffles a "Bounty" style feel. Not bad for a guilt free snack. They keep well in the freezer too.

Time: 10 minutes.

Makes: 30.

Ingredients:

• Three cups of walnuts.
• One cup of shredded coconut.
• Two cups of dried currants.
• 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla essence.
• 1/4 cup of agave nectar or other sweetener.
• One cup of cocoa or cacao powder, plus extra to roll the truffles in.

Method:

Place the walnuts in the food processor and blend until they resemble biscuit crumbs. Blend some more until the oils are released from the walnuts.

Add in the other ingredients and blend until the mixture clumps up into something that you can roll into balls.

This should take a few minutes.

Take a spoon and scoop out small parts of the mixture. Using your hands, roll these into small balls.

Roll the balls into the spare cocoa. Put the balls in a container and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes.

Delicious. Healthy. Killer of chocolate cravings.

Vegan Honeycomb!

Damn! I loved honeycomb covered in chocolate. Vanilla honeycomb ice cream was my favourite type. Up until now I have lamented over these foods but not anymore!

I try to stay away from buying confectionery these days as you just don't know what is in it. They often contain so many preservatives made from god knows what. The only way to entirely know what is in your food is to make it yourself, right? So, I'm not claiming that this honeycomb is healthy but it is a far better alternative to buying the pre-made stuff. Oh, and it's delicious!

Time: To cook, about ten minutes. Overnight to set.

Feeds: Quite a few, really.

Ingredients:

• Half a cup of raw sugar (Get ready for that sugar hit!).
• 2 Tablespoons of rice syrup (or you can use golden syrup).
• 1 and a half teaspoons of bicarbonate soda.

Method:

In a saucepan over low heat, add the sugar and syrup. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon while it melts. Be careful! This really hurts if you get it on your skin.

It will turn into a syrup. You'll know that its ready by dripping a small amount into a glass of cold water. If it solidifies, we're ready to add the bicarb. This next part needs to be done quite quickly.

Turn off the heat and add the bicarbonate soda, stirring the whole time.

Pour this mixture into a greased pan/dish, about 15x15 centimeters or 6x6 inches wide. I used one that was 10x20 cm.

Allow the mixture to set, preferably overnight. If you are in a particularly humid part of the world, you may wish to leave it in the fridge to set, as the weather can really effect the mixture.

Once the mixture has set, take out of the pan and either cut with a knife or break into shards.

Cover with chocolate, add it to vegan ice cream or eat as is.

Enjoy! xx