This Christmas cookie was introduced to me at a staff potluck 25 years ago. It’s probably one of the more classic goodies you will come across at any Christmas holiday get together. I’ve heard people call it Buckeye Balls as well, but I prefer Christmas Chestnuts. The original recipe has butter and loads of icing sugar, but I wanted to create a “healthier” version. With only 5 ingredients you can’t go wrong with this recipe and peanut butter and chocolate are a great marriage! So delicious and almost too easy to pop these babies into your mouth, you might want to double the recipe!
Prepare peanut butter chestnut:
Combine all peanut butter chestnut ingredients and place in refrigerator for 20 minutes.
Roll into 1 ½” balls and place on lined flat dish or lined baking sheet.
Place in freezer for 30 minutes. Re-roll to make smoother and place back in freezer for 2 hours.
Prepare chocolate glaze:
Microwave chocolate chips and peanut butter in microwave safe bowl until chocolate has melted. Stir until smooth. Place a toothpick into a ball and dip into the chocolate glaze. Put chestnut back on lined sheet with chocolate glaze portion facing down. Remove toothpick and repeat for the rest of the balls.
Refrigerate chestnuts until chocolate has set. Approximately 30 minutes.
DECEMBER COOKIE OF THE MONTH: CHRISTMAS CHESTNUTS
- Prep Time: 2 hrs and 20 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hrs and 20 minutes
- Yield: 12 balls 1x
- Category: dessert
- Method: refrigerate
- Cuisine: Canadian/American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This Christmas cookie was introduced to me at a staff potluck 25 years ago. It’s probably one of the more classic goodies you will come across at any Christmas holiday get together. I’ve heard people call it Buckeye Balls as well, but I prefer Christmas Chestnuts. The original recipe has butter and loads of icing sugar, but I wanted to create a “healthier” version. With only 5 ingredients you can’t go wrong with this recipe and peanut butter and chocolate are a great marriage! So delicious and almost too easy to pop these babies into your mouth, you might want to double the recipe!
Ingredients
Peanut butter chestnut:
- 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
- ¾ cup blanched almond flour
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon pure maple syrup
Chocolate glaze:
- ¼ cup non-dairy chocolate chips
- 1 teaspoon smooth peanut butter
Instructions
Prepare peanut butter chestnut:
- Combine all peanut butter chestnut ingredients and place in refrigerator for 20 minutes.
- Roll into 1 ½” balls and place on lined flat dish or lined baking sheet.
- Place in freezer for 30 minutes.
- Re-roll to make smoother and place back in freezer for 2 hours.
Prepare chocolate glaze:
- Microwave chocolate chips and peanut butter in microwave safe bowl until chocolate has melted.
- Stir until smooth.
- Place a toothpick into a ball and dip into the chocolate glaze.
- Put chestnut back on lined sheet with chocolate glaze portion facing down.
- Remove toothpick and repeat for the rest of the balls.
- Refrigerate chestnuts until chocolate has set. Approximately 30 minutes.
Keywords: vegan dessert, gluten-free dessert, healthy dessert, Christmas cookie, healthy Christmas dessert