It’s no secret I am nuts for nuts. Peanuts, almonds, cashews, pistachios, you name it…I eat them. Clearly nuts make a pretty frequent appearance in my recipes in their various forms. But I realize that not everyone is as fortunate to be able to or has the desire to eat nuts. Having a nut allergy must suck not only for the obvious reason that you can’t eat them, but also because obnoxious people like me eat them and talk about them incessantly. I don’t blame you for hating me!
Many people with nut allergies and intolerances opt to replace recipes with nuts with their closely related cousin, seeds. I am also a big lover of seeds believe it or not. In fact pumpkin seed butter may be up there as my favourite nut/seed butter (behind PB & pistachio butter of course). I’ll be honest, I was not blown away by sunflower butter the first time I tried it. Note to self, don’t try making it with salted sunflower seeds. It will taste well…salty. I did however start experimenting and found I came to enjoy it with a bit of added cinnamon and vanilla extract. If you are interested in making your own I usually add 2 cups of sunflower seeds, 1 tsp of cinnamon and 1 tsp of vanilla extract to a food processor and within 5 mins have sunflower seed butter. For this recipe feel free to make your own or use store-bought. If you are making your own, no need to add the additional cinnamon and vanilla extract the recipe calls for.
Since I was in an experimenting mood I thought I would make another interesting substitution. Instead of using cocoa as I normally would I replaced it with unsweetened carob powder. I tried carob chips (similar to chocolate chips) for the first time a few years back in Israel. I immediately loved them. They taste like chocolate with a bit more of an earthy, almost caramel flavour. Carob is part of the legume family that comes from the carob tree. In addition to its awesome taste, carob packs a serious nutritional punch:
-Good source of fibre
-Contains many B vitamins, vitamin A, and many minerals including calcium, magnesium and potassium
-compared to chocolate it is 1/3 less calories and 17x less fat
-It does not contain caffeine
-In chip or bar form less sugar is added because carob is naturally sweeter
Clearly this stuff is pretty awesome. But if you’re more of the chocolate type feel free to just use cocoa powder. I hope this is a recipe that everyone can enjoy!
Sunflower Butter Carob Bites
Prep Time: 15 mins
Keywords: no-bake dessert snack sugar-free nut-free gluten-free dairy-free carob
Ingredients (Yields: 12 balls)
- For the sunflower seed butter center:
- 1/2 cup unsalted sunflower seed butter
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 2 T coconut flour
- 2 T apple sauce
- 6 drops liquid stevia
- For the carob coating:
- 1/2 cup unsweetened carob powder
- 4 T melted coconut oil
- 6-10 drops liquid stevia
Instructions
1. Mix together all ingredients of the sunflower seed butter center and roll into balls. Set aside
2. Combine carob powder, coconut oil and stevia.
3. Drop balls into carob mixture and coat.
4. Remove from mixture and place on a parchment-lined plate or sheet.
5. Place balls in freezer to set for at least 20 mins.
6. Keep in fridge or freezer.
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Do you have a nut allergy? How do you manage? Have you ever tried carob?
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98 Comments
Charlotte @ Commitness to Fitness
September 4, 2013 at 2:31 pmYUM! I want these right now! ive never even heard of sunflower seed butter before, but now im so intrigued- i want to make it! how do you always know about the coolest stuff??
Davida @TheHealthyMaven
September 5, 2013 at 3:09 amI actually go to health food stores for inspiration..I’m a total freak!
Amy @ Long Drive Journey
September 4, 2013 at 1:38 pmI can’t imagine what this would taste like, but I really love that you posted a nut free recipe! I’m allergic to peanuts, and I always try to figure out how I can substitute the (or peanut butter) in some of the delicious recipes I see around the blogosphere.
Where would one find carob powder?
Davida @TheHealthyMaven
September 5, 2013 at 3:08 amI get it at the bulk barn in Toronto but my guess is that Whole Foods or a health food store would likely carry it. Sunflower seed butter is actually an awesome replacement for peanuts in recipes! Trader Joe’s has great sunflower seed butter.
Shashi Charles
September 4, 2013 at 1:28 pmFortunately I am not allergic to nuts -but- looking at these carob bites is driving me nuts!
They lick – I mean look great!
I am curious now to try sunflower seed butter – thank you for introducing me to a new possibility!
Shashi @ http://runninsrilankan.com
Davida @TheHealthyMaven
September 5, 2013 at 3:07 amAnytime! I love new foodie finds 🙂
kellyrunsforfood.com
September 4, 2013 at 12:18 pmOoh I’ve never tried carob and honestly didn’t really know anything about it. These look really good!
Davida @TheHealthyMaven
September 5, 2013 at 3:07 amIt’s kind of unusual but I love the taste. Would love to hear your thoughts if you try it out!
Sarah @ Feeeding the Brain and Body
September 4, 2013 at 11:46 amI have seen carob powder around but haven’t tried it yet. I love nuts too, and love using them in baking. Pumpkin seed butter is incredible!!
Davida @TheHealthyMaven
September 5, 2013 at 3:06 amSo good right??? Glad there is another PSB lover!
Ang @ Nutty for Life
September 4, 2013 at 11:37 amI’ve wanted to try carob for a long time, but I can never find carob chips in my store. Where do you get them?!
Davida @TheHealthyMaven
September 5, 2013 at 3:06 amI get carob powder (and carob chips) at the Bulk Barn in Toronto but my guess is that Whole Foods or health food stores likely carry it.
Amanda @ .running with spoons.
September 4, 2013 at 11:19 amLol I don’t hate you 😛 Having a nut allergy is kind of a pain in the butt, but it’s not as bad as everyone makes it out to be – you learn to cope. A lot of the time that means making things from scratch, but it does make you a lot more conscious of what you put in your body, so it’s not all bad. That and the world seems to be becoming a lot more allergy-friendly, so there are plenty of tasty alternatives out there 🙂
Davida @TheHealthyMaven
September 5, 2013 at 3:05 amGlad you don’t hate me 🙂 I’m going to try to jump on the allergy-friendly bandwagon. Not fair that some people can’t enjoy a good recipe! Sunflower seed butter is definitely a great alternative that I plan to use more often.
Megan (The Lyons' Share)
September 4, 2013 at 11:19 am2 delicious recipes in a row?!? What did we do to get so lucky? :). These sound awesome (going on the list for this weekend!), and you have me intrigued by pumpkin seed butter … do you buy it or make it?
Davida @TheHealthyMaven
September 5, 2013 at 3:04 amAhhh I completely forgot to send you the pumpkin seed butter recipe and the pistachio butter!
Pumpkin Seed Butter: https://www.thehealthymaven.com/2013/03/pumpkin-seed-butter-two-ways.html
and once you’ve made those take the maple pumpkin seed butter recipe and make these, they are glorious!!! https://www.thehealthymaven.com/2013/05/maple-pumpkin-seed-butter-cups.html
Pistachio butter: https://www.thehealthymaven.com/2013/02/lets-talk-nut-butters.html
Enjoy lady!
Madison
September 4, 2013 at 11:12 amI do not have a nut allergy–but am allergic to avocado (it’s a recent allergy that started on my honeymoon). I love this recipe though and haven’t tried carob–so this is my chance. 🙂
Davida @TheHealthyMaven
September 5, 2013 at 3:02 amOh no!!! That’s a rough allergy to have. And to develop later in life is so strange! I’m curious to hear what you think of carob!
Jessie
September 4, 2013 at 11:10 amI’ve been meaning to purchase some Sunflower Butter for.. oh wow, months now. After seeing this simple recipe, I really need to write it down so I don’t forget anymore, Ha Ha!
Davida @TheHealthyMaven
September 5, 2013 at 3:02 amDo it! OR if you have a food processor make your own 🙂
gottaeatgreen.com
September 4, 2013 at 10:40 amMmmm these look so tasty!! Love how simple the recipe is too. I don’t have a nut allergy but my sister’s bf does, so we always have to be careful about what we make when he comes for dinner.
Davida @TheHealthyMaven
September 5, 2013 at 3:01 amMy friend at work is allergic to everything but she can eat these so I brought some to her!
Chelsea @ Chelsea's Healthy Kitchen
September 4, 2013 at 10:33 amI love you for making this nut allergy-friendly recipe! It looks awesome! 😀
Sometimes I feel like it sucks having a nut allergy, especially since I started blogging and I see so many great products and recipes using nuts. Also I’m restricted from eating so many foods out, like desserts at restaurants, Dairy Queen, etc. But I think I’ve learned to cope pretty well. Having soy nut butter and sunflower seed butter is a life saver! Also I’m super thankful to not be allergic to almonds, so I can have almond butter too. And I’ve just learned to make a lot of things from scratch (like granola bars, granola, etc).
Davida @TheHealthyMaven
September 5, 2013 at 3:01 amThat must be such a challenge! It’s hard to know when eating out exactly what has been contaminated with what. You have an awesome attitude about it though! Now that I’ve jumped on the seed bandwagon expect many more nut-friendly recipes to come 🙂