Date and Seed Balls - Crazy Delicious

As a mother trying desperately to keep additives and preservatives out of my kids diets, and to manage coeliac disease and major behavioural problems in my eldest child, not being able to use nuts at daycare (and next year, school) is tough. I can't send anything made of almond meal, or almond milk or cashew nut custards or even a peanut butter freaking sandwich. I'm not saying for a minute it should be overturned or that it's wrong to ban nuts, but it just throws another spanner in the works in the quest to trying to be healthy. I hate that little packets of junk food can be labelled as "NUT FREE" or "NO NUTS" and these are apparently healthy options to take to school (the same goes for the gluten free label, and dairy free and soy free and sugar free and fat free...). Meanwhile the E-numbers & chemicals & white sugar & artificial sweeteners are things I wouldn't feed my dog! I understand why it has been done, and that nut allergies are very severe, it's just a shame because for the majority of kids they are - like eggs & honey - nutritious little power sources of plant based proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals. Still - Namaste to the mothers & fathers of kids with nut allergies, it must be a tough trot and really scary.

Anyways, I alter quite a few recipes by using seeds instead of nuts. And one of my boys' favourites are these date & seed balls. Or bars. You can push the same mix into a tray and cut it into sticks, which my toddler (who tends to stuff the entire balls into his mouth) prefers. I've used this same recipe for birthday parties & as an alternative to cake pops. I make the balls, push them onto paddlepop sticks, and then dip them into melted raw chocolate or carob. Then top with Hoppers safe sprinkles. They are always a hit. But these are the ones I make every week. Adults love them too - I often take them to work for morning teas (and in that case, I add the nuts).

For this recipe, you'll need a high powered blender or food processor. Of course, I use my beloved Thermomix.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups mejool dates, deseeded
1 cup mixed seeds (and nuts, if they're not for school)
I use a mix of sunflower, pepitas, hemp and chia seeds. Hemp seeds are unbelievably nutritious. Check out the benefits here.  Yes it is illegal to consume hemp seeds in Australia and New Zealand (the only two countries in the world to have such a dumb-ass law). They can be purchased at many health food shops or online. And no, they will not make your children high, nor can they be grown into marijuana.
1/2 cup cacao nibs
1/2 cup shredded coconut

Process seeds and nibs in the Thermomix on speed 8 until they form a course meal (20 seconds or so). Add coconut & process again on Speed 8 for about 5 seconds. Add dates and process Speed 9 until mix is as smooth as possible.

Roll the mix into walnut sized balls & refrigerate. Or push into a tray lined with baking paper & refrigerate, then cut into bars.