We took the best parts of the pie, added protein and then drizzled them with chocolate in these irresistible No-Bake Pecan Pie Truffles
A holiday favorite made healthier and portable
These Pecan Pie Truffles may be a healthy twist on a holiday favorite but they’re anything but average. The fact that you can make these in under 15 minutes (read: put them in your belly) and they have chocolate drizzled all over them…do you need any more convincing than that?
How about the fact that the average slice of pecan pie weighs in at over 500 calories with 65g of carbohydrate and more than 30g of sugar – from processed white SUGAR and corn syrup.
These Pecan Pie Truffles have the taste you love but with far less sugar (and sugar from dates, at that) and carbs and we’ve added our collagen peptides to the mix to give them a bit of protein for staying power and nutritional righteousness.
But you’ll never know they’re healthy and neither will your friends, family or guests (you are sharing, right!?) That can be our little secret.
It really couldn’t be any easier than tossing the pecans, dates, collagen peptides, vanilla and sea salt in the food processor and letting ‘er rip. No fussing with pie crusts or baking necessary. And in just 15 minutes you’ll be totally blissing out with these easy, no-bake holiday-pie-becomes-portable Pecan Pie Truffles.
Crunchy pecans…caramel-y dates…dark chocolate. It’s coming.
Process the date and nut mixture until it resembles coarse sand. You’ll know it’s right when you can pinch a bit between your fingers and it sticks together. If it doesn’t stick together, either add a few drops of water or another date to the processor and give it another whirl.
Now get rolling. I use about heaping tablespoon per truffle – which usually gives me 12 pieces.
Did I mention that I can’t stand pecan pie? Even when I could eat eggs I couldn’t get over the grossly sweet and goopy filling – how could anyone do such a thing to a perfectly good handful of pecans, I thought.
But I loooooove these. They taste like pecan pie without being sickeningly sweet or goopy. Ugh, I just can’t do goopy. Ask Stacie. She knows about my aversion to goopiness.
Now that you have 12 perfect balls of pecan pie truffle loveliness, let’s take it one step further and drizzle it all with chocolate. I used Enjoy Life! Semi-sweet mini-chips because they’re dairy-free, soy-free and gluten-free. Yeah!
Feel free to drizzle or dunk, whichever suits your mood. And when you’re done, sprinkle them with a few chopped pecans and a sprinkle of pink Himalayan salt if you’d like.
There you have it, a healthy pecan pie fix in just 15 minutes and they’re great for parties, cookie exchanges and for gifting to friends this holiday season.
Pecan Pie Truffles
We took the best parts of pecan pie then added protein and drizzled them with dark chocolate for a decadent yet healthy treat.
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw pecans
- ⅓ cup collagen peptides (omit for vegan/use 1–2 fewer dates if omitting this)
- 12 medjool dates, pitted
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla
- ⅛ tsp. salt
- 2 Tbsp. dairy-free chocolate chips
- ¼ tsp. coconut oil
- Extra sea salt and/or chopped pecans for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Place pecans, collagen peptides, dates, vanilla and sea salt in the bowl of a food processor. Process until mixture resembles coarse sand and sticks together when pinched between two fingers. If mixture is too dry, add a few drop of water and process again. If mixture is too sticky, add a little extra collagen or a few more pecans and process again.
- Roll nut mixture into 12 balls (about 1 tablespoon of mixture each). Place on a plate.
- Melt chocolate chips and coconut oil in a small bowl in the microwave (or set over a pan over simmering water to simulate a double boiler) – 5-10 seconds at a time, stirring in between, until glossy and smooth.
- Use a spoon to drizzle each truffle with melted chocolate. Sprinkle with additional sea salt and chopped pecans, if desired.
- Allow chocolate to harden before storing in a lidded container on the counter up to 3 days. May also be refrigerated or frozen for longer storage.
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Notes
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Nutrition Information
- Serving Size: 1 Truffle
- Calories: 146
- Fat: 7g
- Sodium: 50mg
- Carbohydrate: 20g
- (Fiber: 2g
- Sugar: 17g)
- Protein: 4g
Dietary
Products used in this recipe
What’s your favorite pie? Do you have a pie that you DON’T like? Tell us about it in the comments below – we’d love to know which are your faves and which ones you pass on.
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I made this today minus the chocolate, but used it is a filling for a Jicama tortilla (Trader Joe’s brand). Made it into a mini dessert Quesadilla, warmed up in the skillet. It was fabulous!Thank you!!!
That’s a great idea – sounds delicious!