Cathy Katin-Grazzini
Cathy’s Kitchen Prescription LLC
www.cathyskitchenprescription.com
Little Sweethearts
Unlike the typical candies we woo our loved ones with, these delectable little sweethearts are actually good for your sweetie’s heart. They are made with 5 simple ingredients: nutty roasted buckwheat, raw cacao, dates, and dehydrated raspberries and blueberries. These wonderful ingredients are very low in fat, and high in fiber, and antioxidant polyphenols. My sweetheart loves my sweethearts because they’re delicious. I love them because they are simple, pretty, and take no time at all.
Prep time: 30 minutes to roast buckwheat groats + 20 minutes
Makes 20 to 30 sweethearts, depending on size
1¼ cup raw organic buckwheat groats, freshly roasted
1 cup dense date paste from 1½ cups dates, any variety
¼ to 1/3 cup organic cacao, or to taste
1/3 cup organic dehydrated raspberries, crushed
1/3 cup organic dehydrated blueberries, crushed
To roast the buckwheat groats, bake in a preheated 300°F oven for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to brown evenly.
To make a dense date paste, just cover the dates with water and microwave for 2 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes, then using a high-speed blender, puré the dates with only as much of its soaking water as required to create a very smooth, dense paste.
Crush each type of berry separately. using either a small mortar and pestle or a coffee grinder.
In a small bowl, mix the roasted groats with the date paste. The mixture should be dense and hold together well. Stir in the cacao to taste. If you like variety, instead of planning to top them all off with one or the other crushed berries, transfer a few tablespoons of the mixture to a separate bowl and stir in 2 teaspoons of the raspberry powder to lend color and flavor. Refrigerate both mixtures for a minimum of 15 minutes to firm up before shaping them.
Because these sweethearts are intensely flavored, make them small and bitesized. Use small heart and flower-shaped cutters, filling them from halfway or more, packing the mixture down firmly with a small spoon. Then push them up carefully from the bottom to free them from the mold. Alter the sizes and shapes as you like, until you have used up both mixtures.
Set the little sweethearts on a tray lined with wax paper or parchment. Spoon the raspberry powder into a small strainer and with a spoon push the powder through to dust the top of a third of the sweethearts. Repeat with the blueberry powder. Leave the raspberry-flavored mixture undusted on top to reveal its crunchy buckwheat filling.
Refrigerate until use and serve chilled. Little sweethearts will keep in the fridge for two weeks. They freeze well and can be kept frozen for 3 months.
