These sweet seasonal treats are simple to make and absolutely delightful! Little bite-sized morsels of goodness, they have become such a favourite in my house. Enjoy!
Total time: 1 hour (most of this is spent with the recipe cooling in the freezer)
Active time: 20 minutes
Yields about 35 pieces
INGREDIENTS:
2 1/2 cups chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups unsweetened peanut butter (I prefer crunchy)
1 cup canned puréed pumpkin
1 cup icing sugar
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon coconut oil or vegan butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
INSTRUCTIONS:
Mix the peanut butter, puréed pumpkin, icing sugar, maple syrup, coconut oil (or vegan butter), vanilla extract and salt in a medium large mixing bowl.
Allow the mixture to harden in the freezer for about twenty minutes, then roll into bite-sized balls (approximately one tablespoon of the mixture for each) and place on a flat plate or lined baking tray. Freezing the mixture before this step makes it much easier to form the balls. I also find wearing latex gloves helps, though it is by no means necessary. I usually have some gloves in my kitchen for use when cutting hot peppers, and wearing them while making these I find they prevent the mixture from sticking to your hands.
Allow the formed balls to harden in the freezer for at least twenty minutes. The more frozen they are, the easier the next step will be.
When the balls are nearly ready to come out of the freezer, melt the chocolate using a double broiler or the following method: Bring to boil a couple of inches of water in a small pot. Set a heatproof bowl on the mouth of the pot, ensuring the water does not touch the bottom of the bowl. Reduce the heat and pour the chocolate chips into the bowl and stir as the chocolate melts. Remove from heat.
Using a spoon, dip the frozen peanut butter pumpkin balls into the melted chocolate one at a time and roll each ball to cover it in the melted chocolate. This part (for me, at least) isn’t very precise, but just do your best to cover most or the entire ball without mushing it into the chocolate. Place on a flat plate or baking tray and repeat. Once complete, place back into the freezer to harden the chocolate before serving or storing for later enjoyment.
I store these in the freezer and usually just let them thaw for a few minutes before eating.
Enjoy!