Nutella Cookie Dough Balls Recipe
Today we are making a Nutella Cookie Dough Balls Recipe! Who else here used to lick up every last ounce of Nutella in those oddly shaped wide-bottleneck plastic containers that Nutella was sold in? That, plus spoonfuls of peanut butter (straight out of the jar) was just the best. Snacktime? Breakfast? Dinner? Give me that Nutella and PB all day long!
BUTTTTT THEN … I realized that Nutella wasn’t vegan. And slowly, it started to taste very unappetizing to my tastebuds. Over the years, I gave up my love of Nutella and replaced it with other fats, like almond butter or cashew butter. What was a Nutella lover to do?
Can’t buy it? Make it!
If you can’t buy it, then make it! Although there are now companies that sell vegan Nutella substitutions, at the time I transitioned to being vegan there really weren’t any options that tasted GOOD. Not even great, just GOOD. There was nothing I could find!
Back then, I remember trying to make my own Nutella. It was some sweetener, toasted hazelnuts, cacao powder, salt, and some coconut oil for a smooth and shiny finish. I don’t have any photos of this on the blog (yet) but watching your own homemade Nutella whip up in a food processor has got to be one of the most satisfying feelings!
Today though, I’m not here to talk to you just about the dripping hot mess of chocolate hazelnut spread that we call Nutella. Instead, we’re taking the idea and turning it into a raw cookie dough-like, snack bite form, made of simple ingredients!
One that you can easily pick up as a tea time snack, or pack in your lunch bag. There’s no raw flour, raw eggs or anything else in this no bake recipe that you need to worry about when eating traditional raw cookie dough.
You don’t need to make Nutella in advance for this either. Just toast the hazelnuts and blend it alllll up. Then roll into a bite-sized treat and stuff a hazelnut inside each one to satisfy those cookie dough cravings!
Why You’ll Love This Nutella Cookie Dough Balls Recipe
Easy & Healthy Snack: This recipe reminds me of making Nutella desserts when I was younger! The best part is that now we’re taking all the basic ingredients in Nutella and making it into a healthier option. It’s great for grabbing as a snack, packing on-the-go or serving at your next movie night!
Substitutions
Cacao Powder: Cacao is the raw, unprocessed form of cocoa powder. Cocoa is the bitter powder used in baking brownies and sweet treats! You can substitute cacao for cocoa, or find cacao at the health food store. I love Organic Traditions as my go-to cacao brand.
Dates: Dates are the best way to bind a recipe together with all natural sugar, especially when you’re trying to make healthy recipes that also taste good but keeping it to minimum refined sugar.
For best results, use Medjool dates here. They are the softest type of date and make for the most pliable dough without hard date chunks in it.
Hazelnuts: You can find raw hazelnuts at a health food or bulk food store, such as the Bulk Barn if you live in Canada. Alternatively, find them online on Amazon or an online store like PlantX.
Maple Syrup: Use another liquid sweetener or 100% pure maple syrup. I prefer Grade A syrup for energy bites, because it has the least molasses flavor versus a darker syrup with a lower grade.
Chocolate Chips: Check the ingredient label for regular chocolate chips (or mini chocolate chips) that do not contain dairy products, so they will be vegan.
Milk chocolate chips usually have milk in them unless they are certified vegan. Dark chocolate chips work the best in this recipe and they usually don’t contain added milk products.
To make it refined sugar free, check the natural aisle of the grocery store for chocolate that’s made using sugar alternatives. You can also use cacao nibs, which are a great option to substitute in as “raw” chocolate chips.
Nutella Cookie Dough Balls Recipe Notes
- Prefer white chocolate chips? Make it double chocolate by drizzling some vegan white melted chocolate over these snack balls!
More Easy Recipes You’ll Love
Nutella Peanut Butter Oat Snack Cups
Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies: Vegan butter caramelized to perfection, with brown sugar, all purpose flour and all the ingredients in traditional cookies elevate this recipe to the next level with a browned butter mixture!
Healthy Cookie Dough Cheesecake
If you make this Nutella Cookie Dough Balls Recipe, then leave a comment and star rating! Don’t forget to tag your photos @peanut_palate on Instagram. Enjoy!
Nutella Bites
Equipment
- Stovetop Pan
- Blender
Ingredients
- ½ cup soft Medjool dates pitted
- 3 tbsp cacao powder
- ¼ tsp vanilla extract
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 2 tbsp vegan dark chocolate chips melted
- ⅔ cup toasted hazelnuts
Instructions
- To toast the hazelnuts, turn the stove to medium-high and add them in.
- Continuously stir them around for just a couple minutes, until they are starting to brown. When you bite one, the flavor should taste toasted, very different from just a raw hazelnut. They toast fast so be careful.
- Once they are toasted, turn off the stove. Dump the hazelnuts into a towel and rub them together until the skins come off. This should just take a minute. Then take out the toasted hazelnuts and throw away the skins.
- Blend these hazelnuts together with the rest of the ingredients, but reserve 9 of them for later use.
- Once a dough forms in the blender (it should be sticking together very easily), turn off the blender and shape the dough into 9 balls, adding a hazelnut inside each before rolling it up (you can see the pictures above and how there is a hazelnut in the center).
- Enjoy!
Notes
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Storage
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to one week. They will become more fudgy/chewy in the fridge, or they’ll stay soft if you keep them at room temperature.
