My husband has a sweet tooth - mostly for chocolate, but sweet is where it's at for him. When we started eating "raw" I didn't really see a lot of dessert or sweet treat type recipes. I've since found quite a few and they are really, really good. This one is perfect for the holidays and any parties you may have. After making them, put in plastic bag or appropriate sized freezer dish and put in freezer until time to serve. We adapted this recipe from RawVolutions' famous "Cinnamon Girls", but tweaked it to where it suited us a little better. Although in most raw food recipes it is recommended to soak the nuts overnight, we didn't in this recipe because I think the texture of the raw nuts soaked would be too wet and soft. Some day I'll try it with them soaked since they are better for you that way.

"Raw" Cinnamon Nut Balls

This recipe can make up to 15 balls depending on the size you prefer. I recommend a smaller size that is about one bite, maybe two bites for each one. This recipe can easily be made vegan by substituting the honey for the agave nectar.

2 cups of raw nuts (you can use walnuts, pecans, or almonds - a mixture of all three)

1/4 to 1/2 tsp cinnamon (go easy here because it's easy to overdo it)

1 cup raisins or we used Trader Joe's "Golden Berry Blend" that has dried raisins, cranberries and blueberries

1/4 cup raw honey

1/4 cup agave nectar

2 tbsp of olive oil

1/2 tsp vanilla or almond extract (no it's not raw, but used in a lot of raw recipes)

Grind the nuts in a food processor, add the cinnamon and dried fruit (raisins) until mixed well. Mix the honey, agave nectar, olive oil and extract together in a separate bowl. After this is thoroughly combined, add to nut mixture until a dough-like consistency - meaning to the point you can make into a ball that sticks together. You can eat these now or you can freeze them for later. We've found that if frozen they stick together better and taste better after the mixture has had time to sit.

They look quite attractive on a serving dish. The protein from the nuts and the agave nectar and raw honey, although sweet, do not spike blood sugar levels, which for those of us with any insulin resistance is important.

Let me know if you try these and how they worked for you. Did you like them or not so much?

Thanks for listening!