Recipe for Health: Coconut Cashew Balls provide quick, nutritious snacking

I like to talk about snacking in my introductory nutrition classes. I start by asking the students to say the first thing they think of when I say the word "snack." Every time I have done this over the past few years, the majority of students respond with one word: "chips." As a nutritionist, this makes me cringe, but the educator in me sees this as the perfect teachable moment.

A snack is meant to be a bit of something nourishing, just enough to tide us over until the next time we can manage a balanced meal. Ideally, a snack would contain some balance, too: A little protein, some fiber, complex carbohydrates and a smattering of vitamins and minerals. While I must admit that I enjoy chips on occasion, they do not fit the bill as a snack with a quality nutritional punch.

Chips, with their significant fat and sodium content, are not good sources of vitamins and minerals, although potato chips do have a bit of vitamin C. With virtually no protein or fiber, chips may ease your hunger for a bit, but the satisfaction won't last long. As processed as chips are, they are quickly broken down in the stomach and small intestine, then absorbed, making it likely you'll be hungry again soon after eating them.

A better snack would have a little substance so it would "stick" with you longer, allowing you to make it to your next meal without going back for another helping. Today's recipe for Coconut Cashew Balls works well for this.

For a reasonable amount of calories, you get a couple of grams of protein and a gram of fiber in a small morsel that is easy to put together and delicious to eat. You'll even get a little calcium and iron from the tahini. Tahini is sesame butter, made by whirring or blending sesame seeds (often toasted first) into a creamy paste, much like peanut or almond butter. On its own, it's a little bitter, so it doesn't lend itself well to making a sandwich, a la peanut butter and jelly. Here, its bitterness is tempered by the sweetness of the dates and maple syrup, and it helps hold everything together. It also adds a significant amount of iron, thiamin, copper and manganese.

You can keep the balls in the refrigerator once they are made, as they will get too soft and gooey if you leave them out. Even better, set them, not touching one another, on a plate, and leave them in the freezer overnight. Place the frozen balls in a zip-top bag, and grab one when you need something between meals. They don't freeze rock-hard, so you can eat them straight out of the freezer.

I made these as directed here, but you could certainly adjust the sweetness if you like, decreasing the maple syrup a bit. You probably could substitute agave syrup, or leave out the coconut if it's something you dislike.

Megan Murphy is a Tennessee-licensed registered dietitian and associate professor of nutrition at Southwest Tennessee Community College. Call 901-277-3062, fax 901-529-2787, or email Meganmyrd@aol.com.

Coconut Cashew Balls

Ingredients
¾ cup raw cashews
6 Medjool dates, pitted
3 tablespoons maple syrup
3 tablespoons tahini
1/3 cup unsweetened coconut, shredded

Directions 
1 Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and blend until it all comes together.

2 Roll mixture into balls. You can eat them right away, or you can refrigerate or freeze them or any leftovers.

3 Makes 12 balls, about 1-inch in diameter.

Per ball: 105 calories, 7 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 10 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 2 g protein, 7 mg sodium.