On a recent trip to LA, Mr H and I were blown away by how much our lovely friends across the pond seem to adore peanut butter. Talk about a ‘special relationship’, pretty much every candy bar in existence over there counts our beloved PB among it’s ingredients. Now of course most of these are also filled with all sorts of unpronounceable nasties, so we steered clear of them, but we wholeheartedly indulged in the healthy alternatives we found.

So on our return to our relatively peanut butter-less homeland (sob) I got straight to work in my little test kitchen and created what we believe are the yummiest snacks I’ve ever tasted. They are perfect for on the go snacking, or for a little after dinner treat! And with only four ingredients they really are super easy to make.

Makes 15-20 golden balls of delicious, depending on size 

Ingredients

• 200g peanuts
• 1/2 tsp Himalayan sea salt
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups dates

Roast the peanuts on a baking tray at 180 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Once cooled, pop them in a food processor with the salt and vanilla and whizz until smooth (NB don’t worry if it’s not Ryan Gosling smooth, as a little crunchiness will only add to the flavour!)

Spoon the PB into a bowl and put the dates in your food processor to blend. Whizz up until they are all lovely and sticky and form a thick paste.

Then, in a bowl, combine the dates with the PB and mix it all up good. With your hands, roll the mixture into balls and store in the fridge.

Love, Mrs H xx