Festive Spiced Almond + Orange Energy Balls (makes approx 18)

Ingredients:

300g pitted dates

135g almonds

1tbsp carob powder

juice 1/2 small orange

1tbsp orange zest

3 cardamom pods

Heat the oven to around 160 degrees C, whizz up the almonds in a blender until blitzed into chunks around 1/4 - 1/2 almonds size (you still want a bit of texture to the energy balls). Roast the almonds until browned slightly and you can smell the aroma. Leave to cool.

Deseed the cardamom pods and grind the seeds in a pestle +mortar (you can also use 1/2 teaspoon of ground cardamom - the seeds are more potent).

Put the dates in a blender until they almost come together in a ball, then add all other ingredients, saving a few almonds to grind up for dusting the outside.

Whizz until well mixed then divide and roll into balls around 30g. You can whizz up the rest of the almonds until in a powder and roll the balls in to give them a snowy look.