it's not christmas........without having some peanut butter balls to celebrate. i made an impromptu batch last night. most pb ball recipes take quite a bit of. time i didn't have, but pb balls are what i needed. i have made these every year as far back as grade school. my best friends mom would wait til as many helping hands would be around as possible since the recipe made so much dough. this would resulting in hours of ball rolling and a chocolate dipping extravaganza. i am not alone in my love for pb balls. they just so happen to be one of chris' faves too. here is the quick easy recipe i used...
1-16 oz. jar of smuckers natural peanut butter with honey, creamy
1 cup of powdered sugar
3-4 tablespoons of ground flax seed......you can't even taste it, so go ahead. everyone needs more fiber this year with all the sugar slammin' we're doing.
2 T of soy butter (earth balance), room temperature
1/2 bag of dark chocolate
1 T of vegetable shortening
optional: small raw salt crystal and cayenne powder
-combine first four ingredients with your hands.
-form into balls....i like mine about the size of a nickel but 3 dimension...not flat :O)
at this size it will make about 60 pb balls.
-melt chocolate and shortening together in microwave for 20 seconds, stirring in between, until smooth.
dip pb. balls in chocolate coating completely using a toothpick to submerge and then place on wax paper to cool. some people recommend refrigerating the pb balls for a couple hours before dipping.....but if you don't have the time, no worries, go ahead and dip away. i did and it worked out fine. sprinkle some with a few salt crystals and cayenne powder if you wish. the salt adds such a nice texture and the cayenne is really delicious. refrigerate til the chocolate sets up. pull off wax paper and store in a container in the fridge. eat up. enjoy christmas :O)