These super nutritious little bites of sesame sweetness remind me of the halva I used to devour as a child. They’re easy to make, vegan, dairy-free and of course, gluten-free. Don’t let all those labels scare you though, more than anything else, they’re just plain old delicious.
Sesame Truffles
Ingredients
- ½ cup cashews, raw
- ¼ cup tahini (I used roasted though raw will probably work just as well)
- ¼ cup agave nectar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup sesame seeds (I used raw though you could toast them for a stronger flavor)
Instructions
- Place cashews in food processor and pulse until the texture of coarse sand
- Add tahini, agave and vanilla and pulse until smooth
- Transfer mixture from food processor to a bowl and refrigerate 2 hours
- Roll into 1-inch balls and coat with sesame seeds
- Serve
Equipment
Several readers have commented that they will be making truffles or one of my other candy recipes as presents for the holidays this year. Adding a personal touch to your gifts by making things from scratch not only saves money, it offers the recipient something from the heart.
When I was a child I made cookies and candy for family friends, packed the treats in take out containers that I bought at the local Chinese restaurant and tied them with colorful ribbon on the handle. I had so much fun doing this every year.
What gifts are you thinking of making for the holidays?
Foodeater says
These sound absolutely divine… and so easy! I’m absolutely going to make these, thanks :)
Cakespy says
mm, these look delicious! I have been obsessed with sesame seeds lately so I might need to give these a try.
As for baking, still not sure. Since I have family spread far and wide, hopefully things that will ship well!
elana says
VeggieGirl -Thanks for your comment; your holiday baking sounds fabulous.
Chrissy -You are very welcome!
cdecocina -Thanks for your comment.
Hannah -That sounds like some great holiday fun!
Trish -Thanks, let me know how you like them :-)
Jessica -In terms of the nut soaking issue, I do soak/dehydrate whenever I have the time. I like the taste of the soaked/dehydrated nuts and I agree with the theory that they have more live enzymes in them that are more bioavailable when this process in undertaken. However, I’m not at all dogmatic about this issue. Sometimes I toast nuts in the oven at 350° as I really like the flavor of roasted nuts. I approach every recipe differently depending on my mood, the time of day and the weather –so in answer to your question, no, I don’t soak nuts for every recipe. Love your stocking stuffer ideas!
yaelian -Thanks and I hope you enjoy them.
yaelian says
Elana, just the ingredients that I love to use! And since they remind of halva, which I love, I will so make these!!
Jessica says
Hi Elana – This recipe got me thinking. A few months ago I bought Ani Phyo’s raw foods cookbook. In it she mentions that she always soaks nuts and seeds before using b/c it helps them become more digestible and makes their nutrients more available to us. I know you recommend soaking in your cashew milk recipe (which is now a staple of my fridge) – I wonder if you do the same with all your recipes and what you think about this issue.
As for gift-making…last year I broke the chain of evil (I’m exaggerating) and made my stocking stuffers instead of buying them for my in-laws. The women got a jar of salt scrub and the guys got bookmarks.
I haven’t decided what to do this year – I’d love to hear more readers’ ideas. Thanks.
Trish says
These look and sound deliscious, I think I need to try them!
Hannah says
Beautiful picture! I’m going to make candies and wrap them in beautiful bags, add some dessert wine and put it all in a beautiful basket with some of my favorite dessert recipes. I can’t wait to get started.
cdecocina says
Nice photographs, this must be delicious. A different way to make truffles.
I will try some of your recipes for sure, I´ve been diving in you blog and I find some of them really interesting.
Congratulations for your blog
chrissy says
Elana,
Its funny you posted this… I was thinking last night about your truffle series and I was toying with the idea of cooking the almond butter/agave mixture down a little more (from the turtle recipe) and scooping and forming it into small balls with a cashew or hazelnut in the middle and coating them in chocolate and more chopped nuts. These all sound GREAT and I am thinking of making an assortment for Thanksgiving to give the dessert selection a little healthy twist! Thanks for all the recipes and the ideas!
VeggieGirl says
INCREDIBLE truffles!!
For the holidays, I’ll be baking my “famous” gluten-free pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, and homemade cranberry sauce :-)