A few weeks ago I put out a call out for bloggers interested in the 2nd Annual International Holiday Cookie Exchange. I’m excited to say that we had nearly 20 people respond and they are all now sharing recipes and baking away.
The idea behind the exchange is to share cookies or candies without the shipping; so we share recipes instead. Over the next couple weeks those participating will be posting about the recipes they received from a fellow blogger.
So now it’s my turn. There is no way I could help host such a fun event without participating myself!
My recipe comes from Melissa of My McDonald Meal. Melissa just happens to be a fellow Kentucky Food Blogger and friend. If you haven’t checked out her blog, definitely stop by. She creates delicious, real food recipes that are kid-friendly and approved by her beautiful daughters.
When Melissa sent me the recipe, she wrote:
I tend to stick with old time favorites when it comes to holiday cookies; not something you would likely see on my blog during the rest of the year… I’m going with a favorite of mine from my childhood. — Date Balls. Sounds kind of boring but I found a way to kick these up a notch!
I have to say, while I’ve heard of Date Balls, I had never made them. I’ve used dates in a few recipes, but they aren’t a staple for me. So, long story short, I had no idea what to expect.
Well, Melissa wasn’t kidding when she said she kicked these up a notch. Wow, they are so good! I’d be tempted to say that even if you are not a date fan, you will like these. The flavor of the nuts and peanut butter really come through and the cereal adds a great crunch.
I got a little creative with my dark chocolate; a different style depending on how much you like – a drizzle, half and half or a solid dip.
Crunchy Peanut Butter Date Balls
Recipe from My McDonald Meal
1 cup natural peanut butter (crunchy or smooth)
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 cup finely chopped almonds
1 cup brown rice crispy cereal (you can use regular rice crispy cereal too)
1 cup finely chopped dates (pits removed)
1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
4 oz. dark chocolate
Mix peanut butter and sugar together in a large bowl. Add in almonds, cereal, dates, pour in butter and combine.
Scoop out rounded tablespoons of mixture to make balls and place on a wax paper coated cookie sheet. Place balls in freezer for about 10-15 mintues. Melt chocolate in a double boiler. When balls are ready, dip the top of them in the melted chocolate and let cool. Makes about 50-60 balls. (I made mine a bit larger and came out with about 30).
Stay tuned for the official round-up of the International Blogger Holiday Cookie Exchange the week of December 12! There will be lots of great ideas for your cookie tray.
These look delicious! I love Melissa’s blog; a ton of great recipes. I love the idea of the date/peanut butter combo! These will be added to my holiday baking, for sure.
These look so good. Would love for you to share this with us over at foodepix.com.
This is a nice combo! and they look good!
Looks very tasty!
I’ll take mine with a solid dip! These sound delicious! The peanuts are a rockstar addition.
Your balls are pretty Lori! (Seriously, how could I not?) Peanut butter balls are probably one of my most favorite things. I love that these have dates for sweetness, I might have to give them a try!
You cannot go wrong when both peanut butter and chocolate are involved. These sound lovely and look so festive! Especially with the little prancing Santa in the background 🙂
Well they sure look good! My baking always tastes yummy but never looks like it came out of a magazine 🙂
Hmmm, I’m not really a date fan, but I think I could handle these…they look more like cookies than dates!
Just included these delicious looking little guys in a Cookie Roundup post on my blog: http://mirabellecreations.blogspot.com/2011/12/cookies-cookies-cookies.html
Can’t wait to try them out!
Chris – Yes, definitely some great stuff on her blog. These are easy, except for a little rolling, super quick.
FoodEpix -Thanks, I’ll check it out.
Sonia – The flavors are great together.
Melinda – They are!
Joanne – Ha! I went for half and half. 😉
Andrea – Heh, heh. Can’t blame you. I’m planning to try them with a powdered sugar substitute see if I can make them into a running snack.
FlexYourFood – I agree. Funny you mentioned the Santa. A friend gave that too me and I’ve been trying to figure out a way to use it as a holiday background. 🙂
Michelle – Ha, ha! I don’t know about magazine quality, but I have plenty of baked goods that fall into taste good/look not-so-good category. 🙂
emily – I’m sure you would like these. I know what you mean about dates and I honestly couldn’t taste a date flavor in them. The pb really takes over.
Deanna – Saw your post, thanks for featuring the Kentucky Food Bloggers.
It’s no coincidence that in cleaning out my cupboard I found 3 packages of dates! These are getting made in my house – they look delicious!
I like it – simple, no cooking involved, and they use ingredients I probably have on hand. They might just make it onto our Christmas cookie plates 🙂