Low-Carb Date And Pistachio Bites Recipe

Date and pistachio bites are one of many delicious ways to use dates, a fruit considered to be nature's candy because of its high natural sweetness. But unlike snacking on a candy bar, with dates, you'll also consume fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Date bites can be made in many ways, and we combine them with pistachios to add extra richness, flavor, fiber, and healthy fats.

Recipe developer Michelle Bottalico has created a recipe for date and pistachio bites that can be made in about 30 minutes. Sticky and sweet dates, pistachios, and other ingredients such as almond flour and honey are blended into a paste in the food processor, and the mixture is perfect for forming easy-to-shape balls by hand. These bites are flavored with a mix of turmeric, a colorful superfood with anti-inflammatory properties, and lemon juice and zest for brightness. The raw pistachios are first toasted to bring out an extra special flavor. These bites are beautiful to look at too — as we roll them in cocoa powder, shredded coconut, or chopped pistachios for added flavor and visual appeal.

These naturally sweet treats are the perfect nutritious snack for when you need an energy boost. The bites are plant-based, contain no oil or refined sugar, and can even be modified slightly to be 100% whole foods. That said, we bet it's the delicious, sweet, bright, and rich taste that will encourage you to make this snack again and again.

For this recipe, you will need whole pitted dates. You can pit the dates yourself by slicing into them with a sharp knife and removing the pit if pitted dates aren't available. You'll also need raw, unshelled pistachios because the recipe calls for toasting them yourself. If you can't find them, sub unsalted roasted pistachios so the bites aren't too salty. The other ingredients you'll use are almond flour, honey, turmeric, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, black pepper, unsweetened coconut flakes, and unsweetened cocoa powder.

Place the dates in a heat-proof bowl and pour hot water over them. Let them soak for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat a dry skillet over medium (don't use a non-stick pan).

Place the pistachios in the pan to toast, stirring or shaking the pan frequently for even browning, for 6-8 minutes until fragrant.

Transfer the pistachios to a food processor and process them until finely chopped. Measure out 1 ½ tablespoons of pistachios and set aside. Remove the rest of the pistachios from the food processor and set aside.

Drain the dates and process them in the food processor until they form a paste.

Add the almond flour, honey, turmeric, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, and pepper and process until combined, scraping the sides as needed.

Return the pistachios (except for those reserved for topping) to the food processor and pulse until just evenly distributed.

Form 16 balls using about 1 tablespoon of the mixture for each.

Place the reserved pistachios, coconut flakes, and cocoa powder in three separate small bowls.

Roll 4 of the balls in the pistachios, 4 in the coconut flakes, and 4 in the cocoa powder until evenly coated. Leave the remaining 4 plain.

Refrigerate for about 30 minutes until firm before serving. Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for 3 months.

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There are many ways to customize homemade date bites. You can make a very simple and quick version with only two ingredients: dates and pistachios. Blend the two ingredients together in equal parts in a food processor until you have a sticky mixture you can form into balls. A three-ingredient version can be made by adding oats: use 1 part dates to ½ part nuts and ½ part rolled oats, and blend in the same way. No matter which version you use, you can chop the pistachios by hand instead of blending them for a chunkier version. Instead of pistachios, you could use walnuts, Brazil nuts, cashews, or your favorite nuts.

This is a great recipe to customize according to what's available. Consider adding ingredients like coconut flakes, dark chocolate chips or a chopped dark chocolate bar, chia seeds, sunflower seeds, cocoa powder, maple syrup, and nut butter. You can adjust the consistency by adding more dry ingredients like oats or more wet ingredients like dates, honey, and nut butter until you reach an ideal consistency for forming balls.

Instead of turmeric and lemon for flavor, spices like cardamom and cinnamon could be used, or add vanilla extract for more flavor, or matcha powder for a caffeine boost. Leave the salt out if you're on a low-sodium diet. Finally, drizzle the balls with melted chocolate or dip them in chocolate for a luxurious touch.

We love the flavor of natural raw nuts, but roasting or toasting brings out their nutty flavor and aroma and creates a depth of flavor raw nuts can't offer. It also makes them crunchier, and your kitchen will smell amazing.

One way to roast nuts is in the oven. Spread the nuts in a single, uncrowded layer on a baking sheet and roast in the oven preheated to 350 F. This can take from 5 to 15 minutes, depending on what kind of nut you're roasting and whether they're whole or cut into pieces. Check them, tossing occasionally for even roasting, and remove them from the oven when they have a darker color and a pleasant nutty aroma. Don't leave them too long as they'll get bitter if they burn.

You can also toast nuts in a dry stovetop skillet (avoid non-stick pans for this) on medium heat, like we've done in this recipe. Shake the pan frequently for even toasting. It will take between 5 and 10 minutes, so watch carefully for the color and aroma to change before taking it off the heat. Finally, you can cook them in the microwave on high for one minute at a time, stirring each time, until fragrant, but we recommend one of the two above methods if possible because this isn't really roasting.

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