These cute Pretzel Reindeer Bites make a fun and healthy Christmas treat, made with nuts, dates, and cocoa powder that’s low in sugar, serve as an easy snack for kids or guests during the holiday season.
After rolled up the chocolate flavoured balls into little reindeer heads, you can accessorize them with eyes, a pomegranate nose, and pretzel antlers for a tasty snack.
Time
- Prep time: 30 Minutes
- Total time: 30 Minutes
Key Ingredients Needed
For the reindeer heads
- 1 cup pitted dates soaked in boiling water for 5 minutes to soften. Use pitted Medjool dates or regular baking dates. Be sure to soak them for several minutes if they seem too hard to blend.
- 1 cup almonds unsalted
- 1 cup cashews unsalted
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon coconut oil add some moisture to the mixture and helps the bites to harden slightly after refrigerating. Use unrefined coconut oil for a subtle coconut flavour or sub in refined if you don’t like that coconut taste.
- 1-2 tablespoons water or more if necessary
To decorate
- Pretzels for antlers (can use gluten-free pretzels if necessary). For more realistic antlers, break the round pretzels in half rather than using the straight stick-like pretzels.
- Pomegranate arils for nose, you can also use goji berries or candy such as red smarties or m&ms if preferred.
- Candy eyeballs for eyes(or sub in puffed brown rice cereal)
Instructions/Step By Step Directions
Step 1: Soak the dates in boiling water for 5 minutes to soften.
Step 2: Combine the almonds, cashews, cocoa, cinnamon and salt in the food processor. Process until crumbly.
Step 3: Add the soaked dates, vanilla and coconut oil. Process until mixture is combined. If mixture still seems dry, add one tablespoon of water at a time until mixture adheres together, but isn’t overly sticky. Place in the fridge for about 10 minutes to harden up slightly.
Step 4: Meanwhile, break the pretzels into pieces that resemble antlers.
Step 5: Once the energy ball mixture has firmed up a bit, remove from the fridge and form into approximately sixteen 1-1/2 inch balls. Place the balls on a large plate.
Step 6: Carefully poke the pretzels into each side of the reindeers’ head. Next, stick on the candy eyes and the pomegranate aril underneath for the nose.
Step 7: Place balls in fridge to allow chocolate to harden slightly. Store in fridge for one week in air tight container or freezer for up to 3 months.
Notes/Tips
- If the energy ball mixture isn’t sticking together after processing it for several minutes, add 1-2 tablespoons of water to the mixture until it starts to adhere. It should be sticky enough to roll into balls.
- Place the energy ball mixture in the fridge for several minutes to firm up slightly so that it won’t be as sticky before rolling into balls.
- The pretzel antlers don’t have to be perfect, since it gives each reindeer character. I usually break a pretzel in half so that it resembles an antler that you can poke into the reindeers’ head. If one pretzel breaks in a weird place, just get another one and try again. This part can be a little tricky, but once you’ve done a few, you start to get the hang of it.
- For the eyes, you can use candy eyeballs, or I’ve also had success using puffed brown rice cereal or dark chocolate chips for a healthier option.
- Be careful when sticking the pomegranate arils on for the reindeer nose. If you squeeze it too hard, the aril may burst and the juice will squirt right back at you. If preferred, you can also use a goji berry or a red candy such as a smartie or m&m.
Nutrition Information
- Serving size: 16 reindeer bites
Amount Per Serving
- Calories: 128kcal
- Carbohydrates: 12g
- Protein: 4g
- Fat: 8g
- Saturated Fat: 1g
- Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g
- Monounsaturated Fat: 5g
- Trans Fat: 1g
- Sodium: 2mg
- Potassium: 204mg
- Fiber: 3g
- Sugar: 7g
- Vitamin A: 1IU
- Vitamin C: 1mg
- Calcium: 33mg
- Iron: 1mg
* All nutritional information provided is approximate/estimated and can vary depending on several factors such as the exact ingredients you use, so is not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietician for special diet advice.
* Nutritional values were obtained with automatic software using the amounts of products used. To get the most accurate representation of the nutritional values, you should calculate them with the actual ingredients used in your recipe. You are solely responsible for the nutritional information obtained to be accurate.