Everyone’s favorite Fudge Babies, one of my most popular recipes of all time, are back once again!
Oil Free
Flourless
Vegan
Just 5 Ingredients… and NO Baking Required!
These secretly vegan and healthy chocolate fudge balls, with just a few wholesome ingredients and no added sugar, are easy to make, completely delicious… and totally addictive!
Don’t say I didn’t warn you!!!!!
Readers also love this Banana Ice Cream
This has been one of my most popular recipes with readers over the years, and for good reason.
If you’ve never heard of Fudge Babies, they’re basically raw and paleo chocolate truffles made without any added sugars, oil, or processed ingredients, and they’re pretty much impossible to stop eating.
The recipe is one of the easiest healthy desserts you’ll ever try.
Fudge Babies will always have a special place in my heart because, long before the Chickpea Cookie Dough Dip or the Black Bean Brownies came onto the scene, this was actually the first one of my recipes to ever go viral!
Fudge Babies come in all sorts of different flavors, such as Thin Mint, German Chocolate, and Chocolate Peanut Butter.
You can roll them into balls, cut out shapes with cookie cutters, or even form them into bars to make your own homemade Larabars, for a healthy snack any time you’re craving chocolate.
You can also roll them in coconut flour if you want to make your own homemade Larabar Bites.
And because they don’t need to be refrigerated, they’re great for any of the following:
Packing in a lunchbox
Making a batch to give as a gift
Shipping to family or friends
Taking as a healthy on-the-go snack
So why highlight the Fudge Babies again now?
Well first of all, the recipe is way too good to be lost in the archives.
If you have just 5 minutes, I highly recommend making a batch.
They are ridiculously fun to make and even more fun to eat.
Especially with Valentine’s Day around the corner, chocolate Fudge Babies are the perfect recipe, because they are both heart healthy and sinfully decadent and chocolatey at the same time.
But even more importantly: On February 21st, at noon EST, I’ll be making these fudge babies live in the studio at the USA Today Headquarters!
**Edit: Above is the live footage from the USA Today Headquarters broadcast
I included a few flavor variations below, but the sky really is the limit.
Have fun coming up with your own Fudge Baby flavors by adding ingredients such as chia seeds, almond extract, shredded coconut, instant coffee, or anything else you think sounds good.
I’d love to see your variations, so please feel free to post a photo of your results in the comment section below, or tag me on Instagram @ChocolateCoveredKatie.
Fudge Babies – The Famous Recipe!
Ingredients
- 1 cup walnuts or nuts of choice – Or here’s a Nut-Free Version
- 1 1/3 cup pitted dates
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 3-4 tbsp cocoa or cacao powder
- optional just over 1/8 tsp salt
- optional mini chocolate chips
- optional add-ins such as chia seeds or shredded coconut
Instructions
- *If your dates are super hard, just soak them in boiling water for a half hour. Most regular grocery stores carry dates; just be sure to buy them pitted. I usually add the salt, but it’s your choice! Blend all ingredients in a food processor (or halve the recipe and use a single serve blender or mini chopper). When doing a full recipe, I’ve found that a food processor works much better than a blender because everything processes more evenly and the results are not a sticky mess. Roll into balls – I find it’s easiest to transfer the dough to a ziploc and smush it into one big ball, then break off pieces and roll into smaller balls. Feel free to dip in melted chocolate or roll in cocoa powder or shredded coconut or coconut flour. You can also form bars or even roll out the dough and cut shapes with cookie cutters! View Nutrition Facts Variations: Hot Chocolate Fudge Babies: 1/4 cup raw cashews or walnuts, loosely packed 2/3 cup pitted dates, 1 tbsp Dutch cocoa powder, pinch salt Coconut Cookie Fudge Babies: loosely packed 2/3 cup pitted dates, 1 1/2 tbsp coconut butter, pinch salt Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge Babies: 1/4 cup roasted peanuts (with salt), loosely packed 2/3 cup pitted dates, 1 tbsp cocoa, 1/8 tsp pure vanilla extract And here’s a Cookie Dough Version!
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I made fudge babies today, and ended up adding another 2/3 cup dates, not for sweet but for sticky. I also drizzles in some agave. If you ended up with drier dates, is that what would you have done? Or do you have another ingredient suggestion?
Also, once it was sticking together enough, I added a handful of oats and some mini chocolate chips, and it tastes a lot like the dough to a cookie recipe my mom made a lot for double chocolate oatmeal cookies. Much better than I expected!
I’ve never had the problem of drier dates… I cannot recommend the sunmaid ones highly enough! They are super-sticky! 🙂
If you absolutely can’t find anything stickier, maybe try soaking the dates a little, before blending?
I just have to share a funny story. My 9 year old son is a budding chef. He is pretty serious about it, too. I have made your fudge babies in the past and he loves them. Well, yesterday, he was determined that we would make them once again. So we pulled out the food processor and pulsed away. While he was rolling them into balls, I was on your blog reading out the different flavors you have come up with. He is in the kitchen just about drooling. Finally he says, “Who is this girl? I want to marry her! How old is she, anyhow?” I told him that I believe you are in your 20s. “Oh,” he says, “Well, I like her recipes.”
Thanks so much for sharing your creations. I am defrosting chickpeas as we speak to try out the chocolate chip cookie dough dip.
Ok, I think that is the cutest story I’ve ever heard!!!
Maybe someday I can hire him to cook for me! I love thinking up recipes, and I love eating them (of course!), but the actual cooking process isn’t my favorite part. I’m too impatient, wanting to eat all the ingredients. (And by “ingredients” I mean “chocolate chips.”)
I just made the Fudge Babies and they are AMAZING!!!!! Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe!
You are so welcome! Thank YOU for trying them! 🙂
Just made these with sunflower seeds as I have an allergy/sensitivity to tree nuts. They turned out great! One question: do you use roasted nuts or raw? And, if roasted, are they roasted with salt or without. Thanks!
I usually use raw nuts. So they’re unsalted. But I bet salted nuts might give them a good flavor, now that you mention it!
i made these tonight and they were abs delicious and just sweet enough to curb my sweettooth. i made the flax seed ones too but hated them (i hate flax seed so go figure). I made the larabar cashews too and while they’re a bit too sweet for every day snacking (what i wanted them for) they are delicious as dessert for me!!!
great recipes, keep them coming!
So happy you liked them, Jen!! 🙂
We made the fudge babies and they are so yummy. We added coffee granules to them for a little twist. Thanks for the recipe.
Made these today! Made your chocolate cake batter milkshake yesterday & having pumpkin bread in a bowl tomorrow for breakfast! Can’t wait!!! Thanks for all these yummies! My first grade daughter loved the fudgies & I want to make her a milkshake tomorrow! 🙂
Aww, you are so welcome! 🙂
I wanted something chocolate-y but not sweet. I had dates and cocoa. Still as delicious as I remembered. Why has it been months since I last made these?
Omg.. I made these last night and they were gone by early afternoon today!! SOOO YUMMY! I would totally take one of these over a chocolate bar. Or maybe 3 of them. I can’t stop!!!
I blogged about them too! http://curlyeats.blogspot.com/2011/10/fudge-babies.html
Thanks for the awesome recipe!! I’m going to try a new kind soon!
Aww, so glad you liked them! 🙂
Do you have any nutritional info on these? Do they have the protein and fiber in them that a normal clif bar would have??
I’ve so far only done nutritional info for the Samoas fudge baby version: https://lett-trim.today/2011/04/11/girl-scout-samoas-in-larabar-form/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
I’ve so far only done nutritional info for the Samoas fudge baby version: https://lett-trim.today/2011/04/11/girl-scout-samoas-in-larabar-form/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> But I’d think all versions would be similar.