Chocolate quinoa rum balls

I have a heap of bits and pieces in my food cupboard that I would normally use to make cakes or biscuits. Alas in my current apartment there is no oven. So I decided to make an adult version of rum balls. If you have a decent blender then you can certainly blend the mix to reduce the need to pre-soak the dates-I won't have a blender until I move to Berlin. The rum is of course optional and can be replaced by water, although it makes a quick snack into a lovely adult dessert for a dinner party.

Ingredients

• 12 dried dates, seeds removed
• 1/2 cup quinoa (if grain free you could use flaxseeds and linseeds)
• 1 cup water (to cook quinoa)
• 1/4 cup almond meal
• 1/4 cup coconut flakes (or coconut sugar)
• 2 tablespoons cacao powder
• 1 tablespoon plant oil (I used coconut oil but any would work ok)
• 2 tablespoons rum 

Instructions

1. Soak dates in hot water over night. Drain.
2. Dice dates in small pieces (scissors work really well) and place in a mixing bowl
3. Dry fry quinoa until it changes colour (about 2-3 minutes)
4. Add water and cook quinoa on a low temperature for 5 minutes, will be softer but still have a little bite.
5. Drain and add to the dates. 
6. Add the almond meal, cacao powder, olive and rum and stir well until all ingredients are well combined. 
7. Place mix in the fridge for an hour to make it easier to roll.
8. Take about a tablespoon of the mix and roll into balls.
9. Roll the balls in coconut flakes and store in a sealed container in the fridge or serve.