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Apricot Balls

apricot balls on plate with one bite taken out.
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5 from 1 review

These soft, tender balls have a deliciously tangy and slightly sweet apricot orange flavor. Takes only a few ingredients and a few minutes to make!

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 cup (167 g) dried apricots, see note 1
  • 6 pitted Medjool dates (130 g), see note 2
  • 1 medium orange
  • 1 1/4 cup (149 g) roasted salted cashews, see notes 3 - 4
  • 1 - 2 tablespoons honey (optional if you want a sweeter ball)

Instructions

  1. Place cashews in the bowl of a food processor and pulse in 1 second increments until the cashews are finely chopped. This should take about 9 - 10 pulses. Remove the cashews from the food processor and set aside. Separate out 6 tablespoons (40 g) of the cashews to save for coating the balls at the end.
  2. Place the dates and apricots in the food processor and pulse in 1 second increments until the fruit is broken down into chunks (does not have to be perfectly even at this point). This should take about 5 pulses.
  3. Zest the orange and measure out 1 teaspoon of zest. Cut the orange in half and squeeze out 1 tablespoon of juice into a small bowl.
  4. Add the 1 teaspoon zest and 1 tablespoon juice to the fruit in the food processor. For sweeter balls, add in 1 - 2 tablespoons honey (optional). Pulse the fruit, zest and juice mixture a couple more times until the fruit is broken down into smaller, even pieces and the mixture begins to clump up.
  5. Add in the finely chopped cashews, except for the reserved 6 tablespoons (40 g). Pulse a few more times until the cashews are evenly incorporated and the mixture starts to form a ball.
  6. Taste a bit of the mixture. If you want it sweeter, add in a little (more) honey. If you want the texture to be softer, add in a little bit more orange juice. (Keep in mind that the balls will firm up a little more in the fridge.)
  7. Dump the reserved cashews onto a plate. Roll the fruit and nut mixture into balls. You can make the balls any size; I made mine about 1 1/2 inches (3.8 cm) in diameter. Place the balls onto the plate and roll them around in the cashews until they are evenly coated. Store in the refrigerator or freezer, tightly covered. Balls will firm up as they chill. (See note 6 for storage times.)

Notes

  1.   You will need sulfured apricots; these are the bright orange-colored dried apricots that are most commonly available (at least in the US). Sulfured apricots work best in this recipe because they are much softer and more moist than unsulfured apricots.
  2.   The dates I used were about 2 inches long; if you have smaller dates you can add an additional 1 - 2 dates. Or, go by the weighted measure listed in the ingredients section (130 g).
  3.   If your cashews are unsalted you may want to add in a pinch of salt to help enhance the flavors.
  4.   Feel free to buy cashew pieces rather than whole; they are less expensive and it won't matter since they will be ground up. If using mostly pieces, try to use the weight measurement (149 g) instead of volume measurement for better accuracy.
  5. If the mixture is sticking to your hands too much when rolling, try wetting your hands first, and/or place the mixture in the fridge for 5 - 10 minutes before rolling.
  6.   The balls will last in the fridge for 3 - 4 days, or for 3 - 4 months in the freezer.
  7.   The nutrition information below was calculated to include 1 tablespoon honey. This nutrition information is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator, and should not be considered a substitute for professional medical, health, or nutritional advice. See our full disclosure policy.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://nibbleanddine.com/apricot-orange-energy-balls/