We had eight people coming for dinner the day after we returned from a four-day getaway, and I really wasn't feeling like cooking. My husband said he would cook, and I planned to make a dessert, but I wasn't in the mood for cake or pie baking, either. I suggested we have a simple fruit salad for dessert, and my husband agreed. I just couldn't let it go, though. I always make dessert, and I needed a little something that would add a touch of fun to the fruit, without being too taxing. Not that fruit isn't fun and special, but you know what I mean.
I got out my Oh She Glows Cookbook to look for a recipe, and found one for homemade yolos. I didn't know what a Yolo was, but the recipe described a chocolate-covered caramel candy, and that was good enough for me. I never ate much candy growing up because, before I became enlightened, I didn't like chocolate, didn't like coconut, and didn't like nuts in things, which pretty much eliminated everything. The one thing I did like, though, was caramel. I would eat anything with caramel — even if it was covered in chocolate.
I made the yolos and they were GREAT! They tasted just like caramel, and everyone at the dinner loved them, especially the two kids. I found the recipe online for you so you can make them, too, in case you don't own Angela's cookbook. On Angela Lidden's blog, she calls the candies Rolos instead of Yolos. (I do know what Rolos are.) In the cookbook, the quantity of dates is one cup, the coconut oil is 1/2 teaspoon, and the quantity of balls is 20, but everything else is the same. I didn't use the chia seeds or the toothpicks.
I'm going to give you a few suggestions for making yours come out better looking than mine. Maybe. I'm not very good at getting the coating smooth. Maybe you are better at it than I.
1. When you first freeze the date mixture, use a shallow bowl so all of the mix chills. Mine was packed into a small bowl and the date mixture in the center didn't get cold enough to make it easy to handle. 2. Make sure your date balls are perfectly smooth and round so the chocolate goes on smoothly. 3. Keep the melted chocolate warm over hot water so the chocolate stays thin enough to coat the balls easily. 4. Enjoy!
The recipe can be found on the Oh She Glows Blog. It is vegan and gluten-free. And fabulous!
