Chocolate Covered Lime Coconut Bites

I know I don’t make a lot of desserts, it’s just that I’m not a huge dessert person.
Don’t get me wrong, I can put away a big bowl of fudgy cocoa ice-cream and enjoy a rich and dense chocolate brownie, but I don’t make a lot of desserts simply because I prefer salty over sweet.
I’d rather have an extra-large helping of coconut eggplant curry or another hasselback potato, than have a dessert on most nights.

But I know lots of you out there have that sweet tooth, and heck, I enjoy a sweet treat just as much as the next guy.
It’s just not something I find myself dreaming up while I’m in the shower or out for a walk.

Then there’s this other thing: for me dessert means chocolate — preferably dark and with fleur de sel.
In fact, on most nights a piece of dark chocolate is my daily indulgence (and my dessert too.)
And I don’t have to feel bad about it, because dark chocolate is super healthy — good for the body as it is for the soul.
It might not be like downing a plateful of veggies, but there’s some serious goodness going on, am I right?

Last night I decided the time was ripe to make a new dessert for the blog. I got a little creative and made these Chocolate Covered Lime Coconut Bites.
Can I just say something here?
These are MAJOR!
First off, they’re different from the Choc Covered Coconut Bites I usually make. No coconut oil (or other fat) is used and they’re also baked.
Egg whites act as glue to hold the bites together and I also added lime — because I personally think lime is amazing, I just love the freshness that the lime brings along.
It works so well with both the coconut and the chocolate.

Coconut filling covered in dark chocolate with a hint of lime. Let me tell you, nothing beats this combo!

Chocolate Covered Lime Coconut Bites                                                                   Print this recipe!
Adapted from JamieMagazine

Ingredients
Makes about 30 bites

¼ cup / 1.8 oz / 50 gr raw coconut palm sugar*
3 large egg whites
2 ½ cups / 7 oz / 200 gr shredded coconut (I used Bob’s Red Mill)
½ cup / 2.1 oz / 60 gr almond flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill)

1 ½ teaspoons honey
Zest of 3 limes
8.8 oz / 250 gr dark chocolate (I used Dagoba)

* If you don't care about the paleo thing you can use regular brown sugar

Directions

In a large bowl combine shredded coconut, sugar, egg whites, almond flour, honey, and the zest of one lime. Mix until well combined.
Place bowl in the refrigerator for 1 hour,
Preheat oven to 340°F (170°C) and place a rack in the middle. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Scoop about one tablespoon of coconut mixture and with dampened hands and rolling it into a ball.
If you want to create a quenelle shape, you’ll need two spoons of the same size. The size of the spoon will determine the size of your quenelle.
With a spoon in each hand, scoop a generous amount of coconut mixture into one spoon. Gently press the bowl of the second spoon against the coconut mixture, scooping the contents from the first spoon into the second.
Transfer the coconut mixture back to the first spoon in the same manner. This begins to create a smooth, rounded surface where the coconut mixture molded to the spoon.
Keep scooping back and forth until you have a nice, smooth oval shape.
Place coconut bites on the lined baking sheet and bake in the oven for 10 minutes, until golden at the edges but still soft in the middle.
Let cool completely on a rack.
Place chopped chocolate in a medium size heatproof bowl. Place the bowl over a pot of barely simmering water, making sure that the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the boiling water. Stir with a wooden spoon until chocolate is completely melted. Use pot holders to remove the bowl from over the boiling water. Let mixture sit for a few minutes.
Using a spoon, roll coconut bites in the melted chocolate (one at a time), until completely covered. Scoop the ball out with a fork and let the extra chocolate drip off.
Gently return the chocolate cover balls to the lined baking sheet, sprinkle with remaining lime zest and some shredded coconut, and refrigerate until chocolate has hardened.

Nutrition facts

One coconut bite yields 93 calories, 6 grams of fat, 6 grams of carbs, and 2 grams of protein.