Recently I did a poll on Instagram asking what types of recipes you actually make- it was a simple question but that that I needed to know. You see, I had an inkling that despite there being a huge array of recipes on the internet that are all things decadent, sparkly, shiny, chocolatey, fancy etc what we really make time and again is classic favourites. You know, muffins, banana bread, oat cookies and the like?
Was my inkling correct?
You bet it was. Nestled appropriately between the classic baking comforts of said muffins, banana breads and cookies was the humble bliss ball. We like images of extreme decadence but mostly we like to make easy, wholesome and staple. Thats what you like and that’s absolutely what I like.
Naturally, thus was born these truely easy, truely wholesome and truely delicious raspberry coconut bliss balls.
What I love about these raspberry coconut bliss balls
- They are made of 8 whole food ingredients (plus salt), most of which you should already have in your pantry or fridge.
- They are naturally lower in sugars (low carb) and higher in fats. I love carbs, but I eat plenty of them already so having snacks that are high fat and high protein are a win.
- They are easy enough to get your kids to make (with supervision! We are using a food processor). It is true, my 6 year old whips these up and feels proud as punch doing so.
- They can be nut free, and hence lunch box friendly.
- They store well in the fridge, lasting up to a week in an airtight container.
- They are free from dates and cacao. Don’t get me wrong, I’m the first to sign up to both of those ingredients BUT it is nice to have no-bake snacks made without them.
- Finally, they taste great! They are light, mildly sweet, lemony, nutty, coconuty and just perfect for a snack with too much decadence.
Lets take a look at the ingredients you will need
- Chia seeds. Chia are the perfect addition to ball recipe without dates as they act as a binder. They are quite necessary in helping the balls hold together, so substitute at your own risk!
- Shredded coconut or you could use flaked coconut (but ensure you go off the weight measurement). With coconut the product you buy matters! Try to find a shredded coconut that is moist and delicious, and avoid desiccated coconut (it won’t give great results). I buy mine here and its great.
- Cashews, macadamia or rolled oats. More are made with cashews (raw or roasted is fine, just choose unsalted), but both macadamia and rolled oats would make a great substitution. For lunchbox friendly balls skip the nuts and choose rolled oats.
- Coconut flour. Despited being only a small amount, coconut flour is really important in these Raspberry coconut bliss balls for soaking up all the water from the raspberries. Omitting the coconut flour will change these bliss balls from firm and moist too soft and a bit soggy.
- Salt
- Raspberries. Fresh or frozen (yet defrosted) both work well.
- Lemon zest and lemon juice
- Coconut butter. Coconut butter or coconut manna is one of my favourite ingredients for adding fats but sometimes an ingredients not everybody has. You can read this post here for how to make your own coconut butter, or if in. pinch you can substitute for melted coconut oil.
- Honey or maple syrup. Just tablespoon for added sweetness. Optional but recommended.
Frequently asked questions
Can I substitute for other berries?
I have not tried any other versions yet, but blackberries and blueberries should work a treat.
I do not have any coconut butter. What can I use instead?
You can first try to make your own following the steps in this post, or if you prefer you can substitute for melted coconut oil. While nut butters could be used in place of the texture of the coconut butter their strong flavour will take over the delicate lemon, coconut and raspberry flavour of these bliss balls so I would recommend avoid using those.
I do not have a food processor, can I still make these?
A food processor is fairly essential for these balls, however you could blend the raspberries and shredded coconut together (in a blender or mini blender) then mix all the ingredients together in a bowl. The recipe won’t turn out completely smooth and uniform but your Raspberry coconut bliss balls will still taste great. Let me know if you give that a go.
Are these raspberry coconut bliss balls lunch-box friendly?
Depending on your school rules you may need to avoid some or all nuts. For best practice you should omit the cashews and replace with rolled oats. Rolled oats have less fat and moisture than nuts, so add in an 2-3 tablespoon of extra liquid (coconut butter or honey) for best results.
If you are after more no bake vegan snack, you might like to try:
- Vegan banoffee bars ,GF and no bake.
- No bake cherry coconut bounty bars
- Super seed chocolate bliss balls with Reishi
- Low carb vegan bliss balls
- No bake vegan brownies with almond butter frosting
I hope you enjoy these Raspberry coconut bliss balls as much as we do! They are so perfect as the ultimate healthy snacks, and and just SO easy to make. If you try them we would love for you to leave a review, its so helpful for us and others.
Print
Raspberry coconut bliss balls
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 15 1x
- Category: Snacks
- Method: No Bake
- Cuisine: Australian
- Diet: Vegan
Description
These Raspberry coconut bliss balls are made with 8 whole food ingredients that you should already have in your pantry and freezer. No dates, no cacao and a nut free option too.
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp chia seeds
- 180g (2 cups) shredded coconut
- 120g (1 cup) unsalted raw or roasted cashews (* see notes)
- 1 Tbsp coconut flour
- Pinch salt
- 1–2 Tbsp lemon zest
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 125g (1 cup) raspberries, fresh OR frozen and defrosted
- 60g (Scant 1/4 cup) coconut butter
- 1 Tbsp honey or pure maple syrup
Instructions
- Firstly ensure your berries are defrosted if using frozen berries.
- In colder climates coconut butter will need to be softened. The best way to do this is to 1/2 fill a small saucepan with hot (almost boiling) water. Ensure the lid of your coconut butter is firmly secured to the glass jar and then sit the jar into the hot water. Apply a weight on top of the lid if needed- if the jar is a bit empty it may try to fall over without being weighted. Stand until coconut butter has reached a liquid consistency.
- Add chia seeds, coconut, cashews, coconut flour, salt and lemon zest in your food processor for approximately 30s to 1 minute. The mixture should be very fine by now, and the nuts may have just started to release some oils. In my high powered food processor this takes 30 seconds, but others may take more time (up to 2 minutes).
- Add lemon juice, raspberries, melted coconut butter and honey/maple syrup and process again for 30 seconds or until well incorporated. You may like to taste the mixture and add additional sweetener (honey or maple syrup) or lemon zest if desired.
- Transfer the mixture to a bowl. I love using a rubber spatula here to really scrape down the food processor and get every last bit of mixture out. Set in the fridge for 30 minutes to arm up a little.
- Finally, with damp hands, roll into balls. I measure out a heaped tablespoon of mixture for my balls, and this makes 15. You can make larger or smaller ones if you like.
If making the rolled oat version
Follow the steps as written above, simply exchanging nuts for 80g rolled oats. As oats have less fat and moisture than nuts you will need to add 2-3 Tbsp extra liquid (coconut butter OR honey) in step 4.
Storage
Store in an airtight container in the fridge (up to 5 days) or freezer (up to 3 months if the container is sealed well)
Notes
- Cashews can be exchanged for macadamia nuts or rolled oats for a nut free option. To substitute in the rolled oats add only 80g of oats plus an extra 2-3 Tbsp liquid (coconut butter OR honey/maple syrup).
Keywords: Bliss balls, no bake, snacks, lunch box friendly, vegan friendly, gluten free recipes
Could you use coconut oil instead of coconut butter? Thanks
Yes, you sure can.
Made these using blueberries are they’re delicious. Love having a date free bliss ball recipe.
★★★★★
Yum, must try blueberries next time!
Hi. What is the bright colored powder on the outside?
Hi Marlene,
It is freeze dried yumberry powder but any freeze dried powder works. I didn’t include it isn the recipe as the bright colour only lasts for a few hours and then it absorbs liquid from the ball and doesn’t look as pretty! I will upload the blogpost with that info.