I haven’t celebrated All Hallow’s Eve in years (our driveway is about 1/4 mile from the road and it’s…very, very dark. With lots of spiders along the way. Kids just don’t venture down it!) But I know that Halloween is one of the world’s favorite holidays. For food-centric inspiration, check out Kathy Hester’s 25-recipe e-book, The Ghoulish Gourmet: A Bewitching Collection of Vegan Halloween Recipes. This is a really fun book with creative photos and yummy recipes to please everyone in the family.
Bean-based truffles are my go-to dessert. Infinite flavor varieties, ease and speed of prep, pretty darn healthy ingredients, and cute as bugs – Kel and I find that one or two post-meal is all we need to tame our sweet teeth. While my natural tendencies always veer towards chocolate, this maple-vanilla-coffee combination feels more attuned to the flavors of the season. (Note that I still sneak in some chocolate.) Instead of maple you could try using rum or rum extract here for another seasonally-appropriate flavor combination.
You may recall (if you have the memory of an elephant) that this recipe is based on my black bean Chocolate Orange Truffles. You’ll need vanilla paste, vanilla powder, espresso powder, and ground coffee for this recipe. You’ll also need oat flour (or oat fiber) – but I’m sure you know how to make your own by processing oats in a food processor until fine. One word of warning: do not use espresso powder instead of ground coffee for the coating! I made this error the first time I made these and while the truffles taste just as yummy, the espresso powder dissolves and becomes a sticky mess.
- 1 cup canned garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
- 12 Medjool dates, roughly chopped
- 2 Tbsp. pure maple syrup
- 1 Tbsp. vanilla paste
- 1/2 - 1 tsp. maple extract*
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1-2 Tbsp. oat flour
- 1 tsp. espresso powder
- 1 tsp. vanilla powder**
- 1/4 cup cacao nibs or vegan mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 Tbsp. finely ground coffee (do NOT use espresso powder!)
- 1/2 Tbsp. cacao powder
- In the bowl of a food processor, add the beans and pulse a few times to pulverize. Now add the dates, maple syrup, vanilla paste, the extracts and espresso powder. Process until smooth, stopping the machine to scrape down the sides a few times.
- Add oat flour and process again. Stop and scrape down the sides of the machine several times. Pour in the cacao nibs and pulse a few times to incorporate. If using chocolate chips, add them after you've scraped the mixture into a bowl, then stir them in.
- Scrape the mixture into a small bowl, then cover and chill in the refrigerator for a few hours or overnight.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the ground coffee and cacao powder. Scoop up about 1 tablespoon truffle dough, roll into a ball and then roll through the coffee/cacao powder mixture. Place in an air-tight container. Continue in this manner with the remaining dough. Keep truffles refrigerated.
- *taste the truffles first with the lesser amount of maple extract, then add more to taste. Maple extract is pretty powerful stuff.
- **if you don't have vanilla powder, just add more vanilla paste or extract.

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Hi,
This sounds like a great recipe. The directions call for oat flour, but it’s not listed in the ingredients. How much is needed?
Thanks!
Oh gosh, I hate when I do that! Thanks for pointing out that omission. You don’t need much, 1-2 tablespoons. Just to help firm up the truffles.
The perfect post dinner treat!! Bean treats have some of my favorite textures.
Looks like a cracking recipe thanks for posting! One question, I have maple syrup but not extract. Doubt I have easy access to it in Western Australia either! Is there a reasonable substitute? I assume syrup is ‘runnier’ and more potent than extract?
Thanks! Yes, syrup is runnier and is LESS potent than extract. But – I think these will be just as tasty without the extract. Hope you like them!
These are so beautiful! I love that these have both espresso and vanilla powder in them! I put espresso in my truffles too and the richness is so good. I love how healthy, but indulgent, these are!