[Liz]

An Italian recipe---so you know its delish. Homemade almond and date balls coated in melted chocolate, covered in shredded coconut.
An irresistible confection---hard chocolate shell with a soft, sweet center. Healthwise, a nice addition to an unrefined sugar regimen.

Chocolate Date Confections

ING 200 g almonds 2 tb unsweet cocoa pinch of salt
tsp vanilla bean scrapings 125 g dates 100 g chocolate Shredded coconut

METHOD Blender almonds to a fine flour; mix with cocoa, salt and vanilla bean scrapings.
Blender the dates, and rub them into the dry ing to form a firm dough (a very sticky process)

FINAL Roll into bite-sized balls (an even stickier process). Set on parchment in fridge an hour.

COATING Dip each sphere in dark chocolate melted in bain; roll in shredded coconut.
Let cool; harden in the fridge before serving.

[Liz]

Nice mouthful for company.

MINI BLUE CHEESE TARTLETS

ING 12 mini tart shells;3 cup broccoli, snipped
1⁄ 3 cup sour cream plus 2 tbsp, 5 tb blue cheese crumbles 3 tb sliced almonds

DIRECTIONS Bake tart shells as per pkg, do not overbrown. Cool.

FILLING mix sour cream & blue cheese. Stir in snipped broccoli. Do-ahead ---- fridge til 18 min before serving, Or bake now.
Place tsp filling in each shell, almond slices on top. Bake 375 deg 15 min; filling is heated thru, has risen a bit; almonds are golden.