Vegan Lemon Coconut Truffles

I had a white chocolate lemon truffle this weekend during the Masterworks Concert held in Harrison City. They served desserts prepared by the wife and other relatives of Dennis, the president of the Board of Directors of this Choir. They were mouthwatering including the white chocolate lemon truffle I just mentioned.  Here are some pictures from the concert.

I did not have white chocolate but I had fresh lemon so I researched the web to see if there is an ingredient I can substitute for the white chocolate.  I thought of coconut butter which I have used previously in the past, here and here.  Lo and behold I found this website with a recipe for lemon coconut truffle.  It entailed both coconut oil and coconut butter.  The latter is expensive so I decided to use my favorite ingredient, sweet potatoes which I have used before in some dessert recipes, here and here. So instead of using a half cup of coconut butter, I only used 1 tablespoon and used half a cup mashed sweet potatoes to give the truffle body. I still used coconut oil and also used a lot more sweetened coconut flakes than the original recipe.

This truffle has a tart lemony taste that is pleasing and enticing.  The texture is soft but has body to it. It could be one of the desserts you can have these coming holidays.

Vegan Lemon Coconut Truffles

• 1 1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes
• 1/2 cup cooked and mashed sweet potatoes
• 1/2 cup coconut oil
• 1 tbsp coconut butter, melted
• 3 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla
• juice and zest of one lemon
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips or dried fruits like raisins or cranberries or nuts (optional)

Mix all the ingredients in a medium bowl.  Cool in the refrigerator.

Roll into balls.