Apple & oats energy balls, aka Apple ladoos, a delicious treat made of fresh apples, oats and nuts , sweetened with dates. These energy balls are easy to make and a great snack on the go.
Have you ever felt this dilema of how to name your local food in English? I know there is no need to do it, but being a food blogger, if you have mixed audience, how to make your post reach them? Some tension.
These apple ladoos are a great dessert for any festival and they make a great edible gift during festivites. You can make them as balls or press them down on a flat plate and cut them into bars. They make a great snack anytime. Not only they satiate your sweet tooth, it is guilt-free too.
With fall season and fresh apples everywhere, these energy balls are perfect reason to try. These cute balls make a great after school snack for kids or a mid-morning snack for adults. Since they are shaped into ping-pong size balls, these energy balls are portion-controlled.
How to make it
First we need to dry roast oats and dessicated coconut separtely and keep aside. Once cool, grind them to a fine powder. These two add volume to the energy balls.
Process the dates to a smooth paste. I have used a soft variety of dates in this recipe, if using mejdool or other variety, do soak the dates in water to soften them which will make it easier while processing them .
Grate the apples and cook it in butter, add ground date paste, spices and saute until the liquid is completely absorbed. Tothis add the oats and coconut mixture, add nuts and when it comes together as a mass, take it off stove. Shape them into balls or squares and store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.
The Ingredients
- Apples, i have used royal gala apples
- Dates, i have used soft iranian/persian dates for the ladoos, these don’t need any soaking, just pit and process them to smooth paste.
- Oats and dessicated coconut, i have used rolled oats, these 2 ingredients add volume to the energy balls.
- Spices, cinnamon, nutmeg, candied ginger are used to flavor the ladoos. You can also use cardamom, cloves and saffron, it is a personal choice.
- Fat, both butter and ghee are used in the recipe, if vegan, go for vegan butter/ghee.
- Nuts, roughly chopped mixed nuts are added as the crunchy element in these energy balls. If allergic to nuts, feel free to omit them.
Apple & Oats Energy balls/Ladoos, No Sugar dessert
Equipment
- Food processor/blender
Ingredients
- 3 nos Royal gala apples
- 12-15 nos dates, i have used soft iranian/persian dates pitted
- ¼ cup rolled oats quick cooking can also be used
- ¼ cup dessicated coconut + 1 tbsp for coating the balls
- ¼ cup mixed nuts ( Cashews & almonds) roasted
- 1 tsp cinnamon powder
- 1 tsp candied ginger
- ¼ tsp nutmeg powder
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp ghee
Instructions
- Wash the apples well, Grate them fine. Take the dates, remove the seeds, grind them to a smooth paste. I used a soft variety, so didn't soak the dates. If using mejdool or any other variety, soak in warm water for 15-20 minutes, drain and then grind it to paste
- Heat a wide pan, dry roast the oats and dessicated coconut separately. Take care not to burn them, it will spoil the taste of the energy balls.
- Once roasted, let both the ingredients coolwell. Take them in a mixer, add candied ginger to it and grind them allto a fine powder
- In the same pan, in which you dry roasted oatsand coconut, add butter and heat. Once the butter melts, add the shreddedapples and cinnamon powder. Saute it well for 10-12 minutes in a simmer flame.The apples should get soft well and change color
- To the apples, add the dates paste and saute well for another 8-10 minutes. Both apples and dates should blend well and come together to a sticky paste.
- Now to this add ground oats and coconut powder. This powder adds volume to the mixture and makes sure they come together as a mass, which will be easy to shape.
- Now add 2 tbsp of ghee to this and saute. Once it comes together as a mass, without sticking to the pan, remove it from the stove
- Add chopped nuts to this and mix well. Let the mixture come to touchable warm.
- Once warm, shape them into ping-pong sized balls, and roll each ball with dessicated coconut.
Notes
- I have used soft iranian/persian dates for the recipe, which doesnt need any soaking and can be ground directly to fine paste.
- If using mejdool or any stiff variety, soak them in water for atleast 30minutes, drain and then grind to paste.
- I have used rolled oats for the ladoos, you can also use quick cooking oats
- Spices used are of personal choice.
These delicious and flavorsome apple ladoos make a great edible gift to friends and families. Sweetened with dates they also make a great guilt-free snack for the calorie-conscious.
Some ladoo recipes to try
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Note : An old post, published on20th November, 2017 updated with new content.
An amazing and healthy dessert.
Hi Priya, m loving these…. I make dates laddus very often mixing them here n there… a great healthy snack.
Fantastic laddos Priya, just love this..though the process seem long as with so many roasting, I am sure the end result was worth all the efforts!
Never thought of making laddoos with apple, am in love with this cuties.
Great clicks and I couldn't take my eyes off the screen. Very healthy and guilt free munch.
lovely, lovely, lovely ! I can see a LOT of sangeeta Khanna inspired recipes on ur blog (if you get my drift 🙂 ) and these are amazing laddoos too ! bookmarked as soon as I saw it on my FB feed.
Apple, oats, cinnamon and dates all are my favorite ingredients. Love these truffles.
I loved how you started the post and finally ended up calling these as truffle… hehe… I love that these laddoos are so guilt free and healthy… delicious post!
Ladoo ! :)) I call you my Ladoo Guru and Apples in these are a super super ingredient . Very unique . Bookmarking right away .
dates are a great natural way of adding sweetness
Bookmarking! Love them.