Trust me on this, the whole family will love this salty sweet caramel bliss ball recipe! And the added bonus is that you can make them in just five minutes, they stay fresh for up to a week and they are an excellence source of fibre and natural proteins.
I promise, you’ll never again buy those health halo brands that make you feel like a good human and an even better parent while costing you an arm and a leg! Let’s do this!
Children Approved: The best salted caramel bliss balls!
I have to admit, even though I have a marketing background and am very much aware of the tricks of the trade, I do love and fall for great marketing claims and health halo designs (check out my post of what a health halo is and how to spot it in the shops). But I also have a trick how to make me feel better about it: I buy the product that tells me I am good, health-conscious mother, I get my children to taste it, and if they like it, I try to replicate it.
This is the origin of these salted caramel bliss ball recipe! I bought the tub that told me that I am buying a wholefood, that is gluten-free, plant-based, has no preservatives, no GM (genetically modified) ingredients… Just to discover I can make them myself – cheaper, with fewer ingredients and the kids gobble them up even more willingly than the shop version.
Win, win, I say!
Can salted caramel bliss balls be good for you?
The short answer is yes! My salted caramel bliss balls contain lots of fibre, natural sugars and a great amount of natural protein, meaning they give you energy, feed your gut and satisfy sweet cravings.
- Fibre – according to the Australian Food Composition Database, two of our salted caramel bliss balls contain around 2.3g of fibre which is about 10% of the recommended dietary intake for children (women need about 25g of fibre/day and men around 30g/day). Read more about in my article Why is fibre important to the body & how does it affect health.
- Protein – protein is a hot topic right now! Two salted caramel bliss balls will provide you with 1 – 1.5g of protein (depending on the version, sunflower seed being the highest). While most of us do have an adequate intake (the estimated average requirement suggests 0.6g to ~ 0.75g/kg of body weight, the recommended intake is around 0.75g to ~ 1g/kg per day), if you are seeking to lose weight, if you are in a period of growth (e.g. childhood, pregnancy), in old age and if performing extensive exercise, a higher protein intake may be beneficial.
- Natural Sugars – while carbohydrates AKA sugars have received a bid of a bad wrap recently, consuming natural sugars is nature intended. It is a quick energy source for our brain and body and coming from wholefoods these sugary carbohydrates are packed together with lots of essential minerals and vitamins.
How to adjust our salted caramel bliss balls to your diet
Okay, this was an easy one and pretty much every version provides similar dietary benefits and values. The original salted caramel bliss ball recipe is naturally egg- and dairy-free (i.e. plant-based in health halo language) but may contain gluten as we use rolled oats. While oats are naturally gluten-free, they are often gluten contaminated and it’s be safer for people suffering from ceolic disease to avoid them.
Gluten Free Salted Caramel Bliss Balls
(contains nuts) – to make the bliss balls gluten free, simply swap the oats with almonds or almond meal.
Nut Free Salted Caramel Bliss Balls (also gluten free)
if you suffer from a nut allergy (and a gluten intolerance or allergy) or to make these into a school safe snack (in Australia), simply use sunflower seeds instead of the oats/nuts.
Low Sugar/ Low Carb Salted Caramel Bliss Balls
if you require a lower sugar version of these bliss balls, you can swap the dates for fresh carrots. You may want to add a tablespoon of honey, maple syrup or other natural sweeteners if you tolerate these and go for nuts or seeds instead of the oats. This version will require more moisture and you might have to add a little coconut flower for added stickiness. My kids aren’t a big fan of these but I don’t mind them at all.
How to make Foodamentally’s Salted Caramel Bliss Balls
As promised, this is possibly the easiest recipe you’ll ever make. And all you need is a powerful mixer (I love my Thermomix but have had just as good results using the Ninja Food Processor when I ran our school’s tuckshop.
- Place the dates, desiccated coconut, oats (or almonds or seeds) and sea salt into a blender (I recommend this one!).
- Blitz the ingredients into a fine powder.
- Depending on the freshness of your dates, you may or may not need to add a little water (start with a teaspoon; I usually need about 1 TBS) to bring it all together into a mouldable paste.
- Use a metric half-tablespoon measuring spoon (if you love consistency ;-)) to scoop out small amounts of the paste and roll them in the palm of your hands into small balls.
- lasty, place them into a shallow bowl filled with more desiccated coconut and coat evenly.
- They will keep fresh and delicious for about a week in a food safe container in the fridge.
Endless Flavour Options? Here we go…
I am currently experimenting but feel that the options I am coming up with are too simple to turn them into separate recipes (despite being so incredibly tasty that they do need mentions). So for now, here are some inspirations. Please let me know your favourite flavour combos in the comments below.
- Choc Cherry Bliss Balls: add 60g of semi dried sour cherries and a teaspoon of almond essence. Roll in desiccated coconut.
- Cinnamon Choc Brownie Bliss Balls: Add 15 g of raw cocoa powder, two pinches of cinnamon and about a teaspoon of freeze-dried coffee granules. So good!
- Orange Chocolate Bliss Balls: add 15g of raw cocoa powder, a few drops of orange essence and some grated organic orange zest.
- Raspberry Delight Bliss Balls: add 15g of freeze dried raspberries and roll in raspberry dust. So sweet and bursting sour.
Ultimate 5 Minutes Salted Caramel Bliss Balls
Equipment
Ingredients
- 100 g Medjool Dates, ideally organic
- 30 g Rolled Oats, ideally organic
- 30 g Desiccated Coconut
- 2 pinches Sea Salt Flakes
- 1-2 tbsp Filtered Water (as needed)
- More Desiccated Coconut for coating the Bliss Balls
Gluten Free Bliss Balls
- 30 g Raw Almonds or Almond Meal, organic and activated is best instead of Rolled Oats
Nut Free Bliss Balls (GF)
- 30 g Raw Sunflower Seeds, organic and activated is best instead of Rolled Oats
Low Carb/Sugar Bliss Balls (GF, NFO)
- 100 g Raw Carrot, grated if necessart instead of Medjool Dates
- 30 g Raw Almonds, Almond Meal or Sunflower Seeds instead of Rolled Oats
- 30 g Desiccated Coconut
- 2 tsp Sea Salt Flakes
- 1 tbsp Maple Syrup, Honey or Natural Sweetener
- 1 tbs Filtered Water, as needed
- 1-2 tbs Coconut Flour, as needed
Instructions
- Place the dates (carrots if low carb), oats (almonds, sunflower seeds in gluten free/nut free), desiccated coconut and salt flakes into the bowl of a food processor.
- Process all the ingredients into a fine powder. Depending on how powerful your food processor is, this may take about 30-60 seconds. Scrape the sides down and repeat if necessary.
- If your dates are very moist, the bliss ball mixture will already come together at this stage and you are welcome to progress with the next step. If not, simply add 1tbps of water and continue to process for 15-30 seconds. Add a little more water at a time, process for 15-30 seconds until you have a darkish looking paste.
- Once the paste has come together (you want it to be moist but not very sticky), take a 1/2 tablespoon measuring tool (or simply a teaspoon) and scoop equal amounts of mixture into your hands. Roll in the palms of your hands into small balls and then roll them into desiccated coconut until evenly coated.
Gluten Free Salted Caramel Bliss Balls
- Proceed as above, however, use raw almonds instead of rolled oats. If you don't have a powerful food processor (I highly recommend this Ninja one from above), use almond meal instead.
Nut Free Salted Caramel Bliss Balls (also gluten free)
- Proceed as in the base recipe above, however, use sunflower seeds instead of rolled oats. You can use pepitas/pumpkin seeds as well but they will alter the taste.
Low Carb/Sugar Bliss Balls (GF, NFO)
- In order to make the Salted Caramel Bliss Balls low carb, we have to replace the dates and the oats from the original recipe. You might want to add a little natural sweetness as they will definitely not be as sweet and caramelly without the dates. If you find them too crumbly, add 1-2 tbsp more water (or even replace with silken tofu for added protein) and 1-2 tsp coconut flour which will absorb the moisture and make them more sticky.
Leave a Reply