toasted coconut date rolls

my new found love of dates is not slowing. i like them stuffed with nuts, with goat cheese, wrapped in bacon, and stuffed in my face. in any combination or order, thank you. i realized i needed a new way to eat them. i eat plenty of bacon with my sweet potatoes to eat it with dates all the time too. so i searched. and came across Natural Delights and their date rolls. i hear you can purchase them in many place, and maybe i've seen them before...but i can't remember it. so i made my own.

look, i know dates looks ugly like texas sized cockroaches. and as you roll your candies, they will like something unappetizing. it's worth it, okay?

toasted coconut date roll recipe

10-12 dates, pitted

2 oz toasted coconut flakes (you won't use them all for this sized batch)

special equipment: food processor (or blender masquerading as a food processor - anything with a pulse function.)

it's alright if you don't have the same coconut flakes i used. i used them because i love them and i have them on hand. they're very crispy, so they added a nice texture. you could use crushed nuts of any kind instead (i think pistachios would be really good here) or coconut flakes that have been pulsed a couple of time to make them finely chopped. 

i simply took these and pulsed them a couple of times. i had enough for two to three batches, though i only made one batch tonight.

once you've pulsed your coconut flakes, toss your pitted dates into your food processor and pulse them a few times. six to eight pulses should do you just fine.

take about a teaspoon of the dates in your dampened palms and roll them around into little balls or logs, then roll them thoroughly in your coating.

i used ten medjool dates for this and made thirteen candies. (it would have been fourteen, but i dropped one. mushi loved it.)

i apologize for the atrocious nighttime-iphone photos, but these are fabulous. it's one of those foods where the sum of the whole is much better than even the individual components. this is a very common dessert and snack in the middle east, and for good reason. these date rolls are so simple to make that i can't wait to make up a bunch of the date paste and just roll it in all sorts of things. sesame seeds, various nuts, etc. they're chewy, sweet, and very good! they also will be a perfect, filling snack to take to places like the beach or disneyland. they are high energy, easy to make and transport, and safe to have at room temperature. (plus also they won't melt.)

speaking of disneyland, this girl and her husband are coming soon for a week or so of good time, including a two-day trip to disneyland!

my bestie is adorable. she doesn't know i'm posting this awesome photo for the world to see. (and by world, i mean the maybe six people that read this blog.)

skyler's lunch clockwise from radishes: radishes and carrots; smashed sweet potatoes, leftover southern style greens, leftover fajita grilled chicken; whole wheat fig bar; avocado dip; salsa; plain greek yogurt with raspberry jam

and the new knowledge that i'm graduating with my bachelor's degree in psychology...with honors! magna cum laude right here, baby!

(this is the honors cords i will wear at commencement with my regalia. i keep being told it looks purple in this photo, but they are crimson and gold and the cats keep trying to eat the tassels.)