Now this is a wonderful winter treat. Gooey and decadent, while still feeling relatively good for you. This is a fig newton for grownups. This is a chewy ball of wonderful in the middle of this cold season. And we owe it all to Molly Wizenberg of Orangette. If you have not spent any time on her blog, you are missing out. As a fellow Seattleite, it is always fun to see what she is making. She gives great inspiration for what you should me making, whatever time of year it is, and is also often sharing recipes from various cookbooks she owns.

A few years back now, she released her first cookbook, A Homemade Life. It is a lovely collection of personal stories and recipes that she has discovered through her life. It is a nice read and the recipes all look great. This came from her cookbook. These balls were easy to put together, looked great, and tasted better. (And you can make all kinds of fun ball jokes while making them- or maybe that is just me.) Perfect if you want to make snacks for a party, or if you are wanting to make little treats to give to friends. I have to tell you that it was very hard to pick photos for this post, because these little chocolate fruit nut treats are very photogenic.  Give them a try.

Chocolate-Dipped Fruit-Nut Balls
From “A Homemade Life” by Molly Wizenberg- edited by me. 

1 cup walnuts
½ lb dried cherries
½ lb dried  figs
½ lb dried apricots
½ lb dried pitted prunes
2 Tbs Cointreau
Powdered sugar, for dredging
8 ounces good-quality semi-sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

Place the walnuts in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, and process them to chop finely. Remove the walnuts to a large mixing bowl.

Fill the processor with the dried fruit. (You might have to do it in batches, based on how large the processor is.) Pulse the machine to chop the fruit finely. You don’t want to turn the fruit into a gummy purée, but you do want it to be chopped finely enough that there are no pieces larger than a pea. Remove the fruit to the bowl with the walnuts, and stir them to mix. Add 2 Tbs liqueur, and stir to combine. (The original recipe says to add one TB and then if it isn’t the right consistency, to add another, but why wouldn’t you just add all the liqueur you can really?) Pinch off a smallish wad of the fruit-nut mixture: when you roll it between your palms, does it hold together in a tight ball? If not, add a bit more liqueur until it does.

Pour about ½ cup of powdered sugar into a small bowl; you can add more later, if needed. Pinching off little mounds of the fruit-nut mixture, shape them into 1-inch balls with your hands, roll each ball lightly in powdered sugar to coat, and place them on a baking sheet. (You will probably need to wash your hands a number of times in this process. After each dozen or so, your hands will get too gooey to keep rolling them easily.) Let the balls stand at room temperature, uncovered, for 24 hours.

Line a second baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat, and keep it close at hand. In the top of a double boiler set over barely simmering water, melt the chocolate, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Remove it from the heat. Dip the top of each ball into the chocolate and shake lightly so that the chocolate slides down the sides a little; you may want to do this over the sink, wasteful though it may be, rather than over the bowl of chocolate—otherwise your melted chocolate may be contaminated by sprinkles of powdered sugar. Place the balls on the lined baking sheet, and place them in the refrigerator until the chocolate has hardened. Tuck each ball into a small candy or cupcake cup, and store them in an airtight container, chilled, for up to 2 weeks.

Enjoy!

Photographs by Jessica Yager