Julie Van Rosendaal/The Globe and Mail
December is the month of holiday baking, when we trot out recipes that haven’t seen the light of day since last winter: shortbread, gingerbread, mince tarts. If baking isn’t your jam, you’re strapped for time in a season of obligations or you’re full of sugar cookies and need something more nutrient-dense but still celebratory, holiday no-bake-ing is an option.
Sugarplums, fruit and nut confections popularized by Clement Clarke Moore’s 19th-century poem A Visit from St. Nicholas, can be made in the food processor in a few minutes, rolled into balls and be ready to go. They’re the ultimate cupboard-cleaner: Rummage through your pantry for dried or candied fruit, nuts, seeds, oats, nut or seed butter, cocoa and preserves – anything from honey to marmalade to mincemeat, aiming for a combination of sticky, dry and gooey ingredients to create a moist mixture you can roll into a ball.
Are your children writing letters to Santa? Share them with our North Pole bureau
Add any flavours you like – cinnamon, ginger, orange or lemon zest, extracts such as vanilla or almond. These are perfect to make with young kids – just toss ingredients into the food processor, press the button and roll into balls.
Bonus: Sugarplums won’t go stale as quickly as many baked goods do and they won’t break or crumble, which makes them more transportable.
Sugarplums
Start with some dried fruit and go from there, blitzing any combination of ingredients that will wind up moist enough to roll into a ball. No need to measure.
- A handful or two of dried fruit, such as dates, figs (stems trimmed), apricots, raisins or cherries
- A smaller handful of nuts and/or seeds (salted or not)
- A shake of coconut, if you have (and like) it
- A big spoonful of peanut or almond butter or tahini
- A drizzle (or another big spoonful) of honey or maple or golden syrup, or sticky sweet preserves such as jam, marmalade or mincemeat
- A smaller spoonful of cocoa
- A bit of grated orange zest (optional)
- 1/4 tsp almond or vanilla extract (optional)
- A shake of cinnamon (optional)
- Coarse sugar, shredded coconut or cocoa, for rolling
Combine everything in the bowl of a food processor, chopping any larger dried fruit into smaller pieces first, and pulse until well blended and you have a mixture that is moist and sticky enough to hold its shape, but not so sticky it makes a mess of your hands. If it’s too sticky, add some dry ingredients, such as cocoa, dry oats, cereal or dry cookies. If the mixture is too dry, add something moist, such as a drizzle of honey or a bit more nut butter.
Place some coarse sugar or cocoa into a shallow dish. Roll the fruit and nut mixture into roughly one-inch balls and roll in sugar or cocoa to coat. Place on a serving plate or in individual paper cups. Store covered at room temperature.
Makes as many as you like.