Almond Joy Babies

There was a time a couple of years ago when I was eating candy bars nearly every day. I was pregnant and I made the mistake of taking my doctor too literally when he said that I needed to gain more weight. I used that as permission to give in to my sweet tooth and started eating sweets like crazy! I started to put on weight for sure, but I don’t think any of it went to my son! He was still small when he was born and I was much bigger. I also found myself battling a full-blown candy bar addiction!

I still love chocolate and desserts (my sweet tooth may be genetic…), but these days I try to eat home-made treats that are healthier. I love the combination of coconut and chocolate, and I made this recipe as a good replacement for store-bought Almond Joy (or Mounds) candy bars.

Baby Almond Joy

Baby Almond Joy (or Mounds) 

You can make these nut free by skipping the almonds; or you can try some other nuts like pecans or cashews! These are very rich, so I recommend making these small.

Makes 1-2 dozen (depending on the size you choose to make these)

1 cup shredded coconut (unsweetened) (or 2 cups coconut chips processed in food processor)

1/4 cup honey (raw, unfiltered)*

2 Tablespoons coconut cream* or coconut oil

1 Tablespoon coconut flour

3/4 cup chocolate chips (or 6 ounces chocolate)

1. In a medium bowl, mix together the shredded coconut, honey, coconut cream, and coconut flour. You may need to use your hands to knead the mixture together until well blended.You can also warm this in the microwave for a little bit to make it easier to mix.
2. If the mixture is stiff, roll into 1/2 to 1 inch balls. If your mixture is not very stiff yet, chill until you can roll it into balls. If you are making Almond Joy, press an almond into the top of each ball. Chill these until set firm.
3. Put the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and microwave until melted, stirring chocolate every 30 seconds. Dip the coconut balls into the chocolate and let the chocolate set. Enjoy!

* I use raw, unfiltered honey which is very thick. If you are using honey that is less thick, try using less at first to see how well it sticks together. You may have to increase the coconut flour if needed to make them stick together.

* Coconut cream is the solid part of a can of regular (not lite) coconut milk

Mounds Baby - nut free

FYI: These are not low calorie! You can lighten up this recipe by just drizzling the chocolate over the coconut balls instead of dipping them, and by making the coconut balls smaller.