Ice-Cream and Giggles

I made these truffles to take to my boyfriend's house for Christmas lunch so that there was a dessert available to me (super important), and they were a hit among the non-vegans. Though these are rich, if you are a chocoholic like me, you can eat three in a row! It was inspired by a cooking show my parents were watching on SBS (I have forgotten the name), though these truffles feature a fig, date, pistachio and "butter" filling, a smooth dark chocolate coating, and can be either finished off with toasted almonds or sea salt flakes. Plus, with the chocolate coating, these babies can stay fresh in your fridge for weeks, if they can last that long!

Makes 18-24 truffles.

Prep: 30 minutes, Cooling: 1 hour. Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes.

You will need:

170 g dried figs
170 g medjool dates, pitted
80 g shelled pistachios
40 g lite vegan margarine
1/4 tsp salt
150-200 g 70% dark vegan chocolate (e.g. Lindt)
40 g chopped blanched almonds
2 tsp sea salt flakes

Method:

1. In a food processor, blitz the pistachios until a meal is formed, then add the figs, dates, margarine and salt. Blitz until combined then roll into balls, placing them on a tray lined with baking paper.
2. Toast your almonds, by placing them in a non-stick fry-pan on low heat, using a wooden spoon to turn them over and cook them. You will smell them when they are ready, and they will start to take on a brown-ish colour. Place almonds in a bowl and set aside.
3. Melt your vegan chocolate. Then, place each truffle on a fork, dip in the chocolate, and let the chocolate drizzle away. Place on the baking paper, and top with either almonds or sea salt flakes. Repeat. Place truffles in the fridge for around an hour to set.

Rocky-road used to be one of my favourite treats as a kid: decadent chocolate, fluffy marshmallows and crunchy nuts... It is been on my to-do-list to make a vegan rocky-road ice-cream for quite some time, though I found it extremely difficult to find vegan marshmallows. However, (for Sydney-siders), I did find Freedom strawberry marshmallows at Vegan's Choice Grocery Store in Newtown (which is attached to the cafe Green Gourmet), though I really want to try Dandies marshmallows, but every online site is always sold out! 

Serves 2, approx 25 minutes prep and 30 minutes freezing time.

You will need:

For the ice-cream:

2 frozen bananas
2 tbsp cocoa powder

For the Rocky Road:

3 tbsp cocoa powder
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 cup marshmallows (divided)
1/4 cup chopped nuts (I used almonds)
1 tbsp coconut flakes/shredded coconut

1. Combine bananas and cocoa powder in a food processor until smooth. Place in a bowl in the freezer.
2. For the rocky road: melt the coconut oil in the microwave, and mix in cocoa powder and maple syrup. Get a small (teeny tiny) tray lined with baking paper and pour in half of the chocolate. Layer half of the marshmallows into the chocolate, add nuts and coconut. Pour the rest of the chocolate on top to cover everything, and place in the freezer for at least half an hour.
3. Once the rocky road has set, cut into small squares (you might not need all of it). Chop up the remaining 1/4 cup marshmallows.


4. Mix the rocky road in with the ice-cream, and serve!