Description
Sugar plums dance with festive charm in this classic holiday confection. Spiced nuts, dried fruits, and honey combine to create a sweet treat that delights winter celebrations.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup (150 g / 5.3 oz) dried plums (prunes), chopped
- 1 cup (150 g / 5.3 oz) dried apricots, chopped
- ½ cup (75 g / 2.6 oz) almonds, finely chopped
- ½ cup (75 g / 2.6 oz) walnuts or pecans, finely chopped
- ¼ cup (50 g / 1.8 oz) granulated sugar (for coating)
- ¼ cup (60 ml / 2 fl oz) honey
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
Instructions
- Preparation: Pulverize dried plums, apricots, almonds, and walnuts in a food processor until achieving a fine, uniform consistency. Alternatively, finely chop ingredients with a sharp knife if a food processor is unavailable.
- Flavor Infusion: In a mixing bowl, combine the chopped mixture with honey, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Blend thoroughly until the ingredients form a cohesive, sticky mixture that holds together perfectly.
- Shaping and Coating: Gently roll the mixture into compact spheres approximately one inch in diameter. Delicately roll each sphere in granulated sugar, ensuring complete and uniform coverage for a sparkling, crystalline finish.
- Chilling and Serving: Transfer the sugar-coated spheres to a serving plate or storage container. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to solidify the treats and enhance their textural complexity, allowing the flavors to meld and intensify before serving or storing.
Notes
- Pulse Precisely: Avoid over-processing ingredients to maintain a chunky, textured consistency that prevents the mixture from becoming a dense paste.
- Balance Sweetness: Adjust honey quantity based on the natural sweetness of dried fruits to control overall sugar content and create a balanced flavor profile.
- Control Moisture: Ensure mixture isn’t too wet or dry when forming spheres; perfect consistency allows easy rolling without crumbling or sticking to hands.
- Customize Coating: Experiment with alternative coatings like finely ground coconut, crushed nuts, or powdered sugar for different flavor and texture variations.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Desserts, Snacks
- Method: Blending
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 13
- Calories: 130
- Sugar: 13 g
- Sodium: 1 mg
- Fat: 5 g
- Saturated Fat: 0.5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4.5 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 25 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg