These raw truffles taste pretty much like candy sweetened by dates. They are smooth, creamy, and so delectable. The recipe is vegan (dairy-free, egg-free), grain-free (gluten-free), soy-free, and refined sugar-free.
Raw truffles are as decadent as they’re simple to make. With just a handful of ingredients, you can have these truffles ready in a few minutes.
There’s no melting ganache when you bite into these, but you’ll experience a moment of sweet caramel-y chocolaty bliss as the truffles melt on your tongue. They’re incredibly decadent and will satisfy all chocolate lovers’ cravings.
Date truffles have much in common with other date-based treats, such as energy balls or bliss balls. However, the one thing that makes them special is how you decorate them. You can finish the date truffles in several different ways to make them look really special.
Tips for Making Raw Truffles
Ingredients
If you make raw dessert recipes often, you most likely have all the ingredients on hand already. If not, everything on this list is easy and accessible – no complicated ingredients here!
- Medjool dates: there are many varieties of dates harvested worldwide, but Medjool dates are one of the most commercially produced varieties in North America, with a juicy and tender texture. Medjool dates actually taste like candy but in an unprocessed sort of way. Their melting softness helps with the structure of the truffles because they blend easily into a sticky mixture. If all you can find are Deglet Noor dates, soak them in warm water first, so they soften up. Use as little water as possible - in order not to dilute the sweetness of the dates - and dry the dates off before adding them to the food processor.
- Cacao butter: a little bit of melted cacao butter helps the dates blend into a smooth paste and firm up once chilled. I prefer cacao butter over coconut oil in this recipe because the cacao butter imparts a wonderful chocolate aroma to the truffles. If you don't have cacao butter on hand, you can leave it out or substitute it with coconut oil.
- Almond flour: nut flour makes the truffle mixture more pliable and easy to roll. If you like a little bit more texture in your truffles, you could also use finely chopped nuts.
- Cacao powder: cacao works wonders to cut through the sweetness of the dates.
- Vanilla extract: I am a traditionalist when it comes to chocolate truffles. So, I often simply opt for vanilla extract to allow the chocolate flavor to shine. Feel free to get creative, though, and add almond extract, orange extract, or even a little bit of espresso powder.
How to Make Raw Truffles
These raw truffles are as simple as can be. So, take out your food processor - a powerful food processor is a must for this recipe - and a cookie scoop, and let's get started!
- Process the ingredients. Add the dates, cacao butter, and vanilla extract to a food processor bowl fitted with an S blade and process until completely smooth. The dates will turn into a smooth, sticky paste. Add the almond flour and cacao powder to the food processor and process until well combined. The mixture will be sticky but firm enough to roll into balls. Be careful not to add too much almond flour - you want the truffles to be moist.
- Roll the mixture into balls. Using a 1-Tbsp./15 ml cookie scoop or a spoon, scoop out the mixture and roll it into a ball. If the mixture is too sticky, dust some cacao powder on your hands. Place the ball onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Repeat until all the mixture is used up.
- Coat the truffles. You can roll the truffles in a little bit of cacao powder or some chopped nuts.
- Chill. Transfer the truffles to the freezer to firm up, for about 20 minutes.
Raw Truffles Variations
With this simple date truffle recipe, your creativity is the limit. Make all kinds of flavorful variations and find your favorite. Here are some ideas:
- Add nut butter: for creamier truffles, add 1 Tbsp./16 g of almond butter or cashew butter into the mixture.
- Insert a nut into the center of each truffle: to make Ferrero Rocher-style truffles, add a hazelnut into the center of each truffle. Seal and roll the truffle to smooth the ball shape.
- Roll the truffles in desired coatings: other than cacao powder, you could roll the truffles in desiccated coconut, freeze-dried fruit pulverized into a powder, or even matcha powder.
- Coat the truffles: I prefer dark chocolate, but any melted chocolate will work.
How to Store Truffles
- Refrigerating: transfer the truffles to an airtight container and refrigerate them for up to 1 week.
- Freezing: transfer the truffles to an airtight container, separating each layer with parchment paper so the truffles don't stick together, and freeze them for up to 1 month.
More Truffles Recipes
- Chocolate truffles: a recipe coming soon!
Raw Truffles
Ingredients
- 1 cup Medjool dates , pitted
- 1 Tbsp. cacao butter , melted
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- ½ cup almond flour , finely ground
- ¼ cup cacao powder
Instructions
- Process the ingredients. Add the dates, cacao butter, and vanilla extract to a food processor bowl fitted with an S blade and process until completely smooth. The dates will turn into a smooth, sticky paste. Add the almond flour and cacao powder to the food processor and process until well combined. The mixture will be sticky but firm enough to roll into balls. Be careful not to add too much almond flour - the truffles should be moist.
- Roll the mixture into balls. Using a 1-Tbsp./15 ml cookie scoop or a spoon, scoop out the mixture and roll it into a ball. If the mixture is too sticky, dust some cacao powder on your hands. Place the ball onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Repeat until all the mixture is used up.
- Coat the truffles. You can roll the truffles in a little bit of cacao powder or some chopped nuts.
- Chill. Transfer the truffles to the freezer to firm up, for about 20 minutes.
- Store. Leftover truffles keep well in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. For longer-term storage, freeze the truffles in an airtight container, separating each layer with parchment paper, so the truffles don't stick together, for up to 1 month.
Sue
These look so fancy and fabulous! I wonder how it would turn out to make a truffle by mixing cacao powder and acai powder, since chocolate and berries go so well together. Would you recommend that?
PetraScott
Thank you Sue! One thing you'll notice right away when you mix the two powders together is that the truffles will have a very dark color. As far as flavor goes, I prefer using acai powder and then covering the truffles in chocolate (rather than mixing the two powders together), but it's totally a matter of preference. Try it with a small batch and see what you like more 🙂