Raspberry chocolate balls are a delicious treat to enjoy with a cup of hot unsweetened black coffee. A staple in the Swedish fika tradition, basic Swedish chocolate balls are a special kind of praline made with butter and oats. This version is coated in dark chocolate and features freeze-dried raspberries. Coarser than chocolate truffles and less sophisticated than raw date balls, these chocolate raspberry balls are the perfect treat when you have few ingredients at hand ad little time, but still want to bring a little gift when visiting someone for coffee.
It took me over 4 years spent in Sweden to make my first batch of chocolate balls. Better known as chokladbollar, chocolate balls are a big deal in Sweden. The very basic recipes do not even feature proper chocolate, but cocoa powder. The key ingredients are butter (or margarine) whipped with sugar, and rolled oats. Mix all of that with some cocoa of course, for the chocolate flavour and color, and you have your chokladbollar. The Swedes like their pastry nice, so even the most basic chocolate balls will have a finishing touch. The most common is rolling the balls in shaved coconut, or coating them in chocolate and nib sugar (the one that commonly tops kanelbullar, the Swedish cinnamon buns).
Since I am a snob who made her first batch of truffes au chocolat at age 10 reading the recipe on my French schoolbook, you can imagine my slight disappointment when I had my first chokladboll in Sweden. I was expecting something smooth, yet I bit into a crunchy coarse filling. I blame it on my different expectations, but I was not impressed by the Swedish praline. I tried again some time later, knowing what to expect, and something put me off again. It was made with margarine, I’d dare to say not the best one you can find. With a growing number of vegans around, the choice of plant-based alternatives to butter has grown. Some vegan butter is actually really good in taste. Some kinds of margarine work better as baking ingredient, instead. I guess I had just been a snob – once again – and was not impressed.
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I was determined not to give up. I am a foodie, I appreciate all foods, and I always felt like I was disappointing my Swedish friends any time I’d say I don’t like chocolate balls. The incredulous look in their eyes, how could I not love chocolate balls? Everybody seem to love them in Sweden. Everybody grew up eating tons of them. Chocolate balls are so easy to make they’ve probably been one of the first recipes any Swede has ever faced in their lives. I started to seriously question myself. Why don’t I seem to appreciate chokladbollar as much as I should? I like sweets, after all. What’s wrong with me?
Fast forward to a couple of years later, when I started my summer job at the cozy dairy and café Murboannas. We sell chocolate balls there, of course. One day I was asked to make a batch. With real butter. Salted butter, the good stuff. You see, ever since I moved to Sweden I developed a serious thing for salted butter. In cakes it works wonders. I even love it in frostings, its slight salty flavour is the perfect balance to the sweetness that normally comes with frostings. As you’d expect, while I was rolling the balls at work I popped one in my mouth. And I swear I heard the angels sing. (It was probably the cows mooing outside in the meadow, but it’s not important.)
So that was the thing. I accept that the Swedish chocolate balls do not have a smooth texture. But the thing that really won me over was the flavour of the butter. I am not trying to convince anyone that with margarine they’re not good. I’m sure that if you have a good plant-based butter you can make vegan chokladbollar that are to die for. But butter is one of my favourite flavours and to me it was butter what really made a huge difference. And so my chocolate ball adventure began.
Raspberry chocolate balls
Ingredients
- 75 g salted butter
- 70 g granulated sugar
- 130 g rolled oats
- 25 g dark chocolate
- 1 tbsp coffee
- 1 1/2 tbsp cocoa powder
- 2 tbsp freeze-dried raspberries
For the coating
- 50 g dark chocolate
- 1 tbsp freeze-dried raspberries
Instructions
- Cream the butter and the sugar with an electric mixer until nicely combined and fluffy.
- Grate the chocolate and combine it with the rolled oats, cocoa powder, coffee and raspberries. Stir and add to the butter mixture.
- Start the mixer again at low speed and mix until combined. Set the mixer aside and roll the chocolate balls between the palm of your hands. This amount should yield 8 balls weighing between 35-40 g each.
- Melt the remaining chocolate on a double boiler or in the microwave and let sit until it's cool enough to handle. Spread the chocolate over each ball gently coating all the surface. Place each ball on a piece of parchment paper. Sprinkle some freeze-dried raspberries on the top before the chocolate hardens.
Notes
Wow. So Delicious they all look. Mouthwatering.
Thank you!!!
I’m in chocolate heaven right now! These are simply scrumptious! You have me cracking up about the cows and the angels..lol 🙂 Such a beautiful presentation and a perfect Valentine’s Day treat!
Lol haha glad I made you smile 😀 And yesss perfect Valentine’s Day gift, now that it’s in season!
Wow I would be absolutely ecstatic if a friend brought these with them on a coffee date! I’m having a friend over for coffee tomorrow morning, I’m going to have to make these beauties for her! There really isn’t a better combination than chocolate and raspberry!
I agree with you, chocolate and raspberry is such a perfect flavour combination. I hope you had a great coffee date, I love meeting up with friends over coffee!
They look very addicting! Its good they can be kept in the fridge so you can have one (or two) when needed!
Two! Definitely two 😉 They’re so good you can’t just have one. You need to have two 😀
I love how simple and easy this recipe is. Perfect snack during the day with oats in it. Love the combination of raspberry and chocolate. Can’t wait to try.
Dark chocolate and raspberries are truly a match made in heaven!
These balls so adorable! I love that you added rolled oats into the mix! They’re the perfect guilt-free sweet treat!
I guess they are a little bit guilty because of the high butter content. But hey, it’s dessert, you can sneak in a few more calories in your dessert! 😀
I have the biggest craving for chocolate and I just don’t have the time to make a cake. I love that these are bite size because then I won’t feel as guilty for sneaking one or two at a time! Perfect for Valentine’s Day!
They are great “cake replacemnt bites” and take such a short time to make compared to a proper full on cake. Plus – exactly – the smaller serving size than the average slice of cake. If you can only have one and not cheat 😀
These look fantastic! I also agree about the butter, it tastes so much better. Margarine is actually the one ingredient that I completely ban in my home. There are alot of vegan butter alternatives that I would try, but good butter makes these sing for me!
Yeah if you don’t have a milk intolerance, then butter is the way. It really makes a world of difference in flavour to me.
You can’t go wrong with truffles for Valentines Day. I never seen them with a raspberry flavor before. Good deal!
Thank you! I’m with you, these balls are a great Valentine’s day gift!
WOW!!The chocolate balls look amazing and sound just as good. The photos are drool worthy – love the little bit of red on top. I’m pinning this recipe ASAP I’ve been invited over for dinner and I thought these would make a nice hostess gift – placed in a pretty box.
They are great gifts! Hand them over to your hostess with a bottle of Prosecco and you’ll be loved 😀
I love the combination of raspberry and chocolate. These little chocolate balls sound so good, perfect for Valentine’s Day.
Yes they make a great Valentine’s day gift!
I love how easy these are, great little project for the kids and I could eve throw some Swedish culture into the mix and make it an all round learning experience! I am with you on using butter though, I cannot stomach anything with margarine!!
Yeah these balls are totally kid friendly. And it’s always cool to learn something new about a foreign country!