Raw desserts skip the oven entirely — the "cooking" is a food processor, and the binder holding everything together is usually dates, not sugar and eggs.
Why dates are the binder, not just an add-in
Blended dates turn into a sticky paste that holds cacao powder and ground almonds together without flour, butter, or baking. Medjool works best for this — soft enough to blend smooth straight from the pack. Deglet Noor is firmer and drier, so it usually needs 10-15 minutes in warm water before it blends the same way.
The basic ratio
A standard batch: one cup pitted dates, one cup raw almonds, three tablespoons raw cacao powder, a pinch of salt. Blend the almonds first into a coarse meal, add the dates and cacao, then pulse until the mixture clumps when pressed between two fingers. Roll into balls, or press flat into a tray and cut into squares.
Too dry and crumbly means more dates. Too wet and sticky means more almonds.
Storage and what changes it
These keep in a sealed container in the fridge for about two weeks, longer in the freezer, since there's no dairy or egg in the mix to spoil. Rolling the balls in extra cacao powder or shredded coconut before storing stops them sticking to each other.
For the dates themselves, our Medjool price guide covers what a kilogram costs by grade, and the Malaysian and imported kurma guide is useful if almonds and cacao are easier to source locally than a specific date variety.