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These crispy rice date balls are delicious no-bake cookies. I mixed up a batch of these deliciously simple Rice Krispie Date Balls as a gift for my favorite hairstylist, replacing the eggs with 1/4 cup of margarine, to make them vegan friendly.
These rice krispies date balls date back to my childhood when my best friend’s mom would make them every year for Christmas. She rolled her no bake cookies in coconut, but I opted to stir it in with the cereal since I was short on time.
Either way, you are rewarded with delicious quick and easy no bake date cookies that can satisfy your sweet tooth without blowing your calorie or WW Points bank!
How Many Calories and WW Points in these No Bake Rice Krispie Date Balls?
According to my calculations, each bite-sized date ball has about 57 calories.
To see your WW Points for this recipe, track it in the WW App!
(You must be logged into WW on a smartphone or tablet.)
4 SmartPoints (Green plan)
4 SmartPoints (Blue plan)
4 SmartPoints (Purple plan)
2 PointsPlus (Old plan)
How to Make Rice Krispies Date Balls
Step 1: Gather and prepare all ingredients. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper and set aside.
Step 2: In a large cold skillet, combine the brown sugar, dates, and eggs. Cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture becomes a thick paste. (Note: If the mixture boils longer than 3 minutes, it may turn hard/crumbly and become difficult to work with.)
Step 3: Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla, cereal, and coconut until well combined.
Step 4: Let mixture cool slightly, then when cool enough to handle, squeeze and shape the mixture into 1-inch balls. (You have to actually squeeze them and then shape them into balls. If they are really dry, try moistening your hands with water as you shape them. They don’t have to be perfectly round.) I have also been successful using a cookie scoop to shape them into balls.
Step 5: Place on a lined baking sheet (affiliate link) and refrigerate until chilled. Chill at least 1 hour before serving.
Step 6: Store leftover date balls in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Recipe Notes
If you are a fan of nuts, you could always stir in 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, just adjust the Points value accordingly.
For best results, be sure to use very moist dates; the chopped kind won’t work. I prefer the taste and texture of the larger Medjool dates.
Be sure to use medium low heat. If you cook the mixture on high heat, you’ll scramble the eggs, so make sure you watch it and stir constantly.
DO NOT let the date/sugar mixture boil longer than 3 minutes or it may turn hard/crumbly and be hard to work with.
To “save” your mixture if it over-boils and becomes crumbly, try stirring in a couple teaspoons of very hot water to reconstitute the mixture.
You have to actually squeeze them and then shape them into balls. If they are really dry, try moistening your hands with water as you shape them. They don’t have to be perfectly round.
Popular Rice Krispie Date Balls Recipe Variations
- Coconut Coated Rice Krispie Date Balls: Instead of stirring coconut into the mixture, place it in a shallow dish and roll the Rice Krispie date balls in the coconut to coat them.
- Vegan Rice Krispie Date Balls: Substitute the eggs with 1/4 cup vegan margarine.
- Rice Krispie Date Cookie bars: If rolling them into balls is too much work, press the mixture into a greased casserole dish (affiliate link) like a batch of rice krispie treats. Then sprinkle the top with coconut and pressed it lightly into the mixture. Allow to cool completely and then cut into bars. Much easier and just as tasty!
- Nutty Crispy Rice Date Balls: Substitute a portion of the crisp rice cereal with chopped nuts (pecans, walnuts, pistachios, etc.)
- Festive: Add 1/4 chopped dried cranberries or cherries to the date mixture during the last few minutes of cooking for a holiday spark.
- Rice Krispie Date Snowballs – Instead of rolling in coconut, roll the balls in confectioner’s sugar for a snowball effect.
If you’ve made Rice Krispie Date Balls, please give the recipe a star rating below and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. And stay in touch on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates.
Rice Krispie Date Balls Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup finely chopped pitted dates (don’t use already chopped dates)
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 cups Rice Krispies cereal
- 1 cup sweetened coconut flakes
Instructions
- Line a cookie sheet with wax paper.
- In a large cold skillet, combine the brown sugar, dates, and eggs. Cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture becomes a thick paste. (Note: If the mixture boils longer than 3 minutes, it may turn hard/crumbly and become difficult to work with.)
- Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla, cereal, and coconut until well combined.
- Let cool slightly, then when cool enough to handle, squeeze and shape the mixture into 1-inch balls. (You have to actually squeeze them and then shape them into balls. If they are really dry, try moistening your hands with water as you shape them. They don’t have to be perfectly round. )
- Place on a lined baking sheet (affiliate link) and refrigerate until chilled. Chill at least 1 hour before serving.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Notes
(Must be logged into WW on a smartphone or tablet.) 4 SmartPoints (Green plan) 4 SmartPoints (Blue plan) 4 SmartPoints (Purple plan) 2 PointsPlus (Old plan) Rice Krispie Date Balls Recipe Variations:
- Coconut Coated Rice Krispie Date Balls: Instead of stirring coconut into the mixture, place it in a shallow dish and roll the Rice Krispie date balls in the coconut to coat them.
- Vegan Rice Krispie Date Balls: Substitute the eggs with 1/4 cup vegan margarine.
- Rice Krispie Date Cookie bars: If rolling them into balls is too much work, press the mixture into a greased casserole dish like a batch of rice krispie treats. Then sprinkle the top with coconut and pressed it lightly into the mixture. Allow to cool completely and then cut into bars. Much easier and just as tasty!
- Nutty Crispy Rice Date Balls: Substitute a portion of the crisp rice cereal with chopped nuts (pecans, walnuts, pistachios, etc.)
- Festive: Add 1/4 chopped dried cranberries to the date mixture during the last few minutes of cooking for a holiday spark.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Source: This recipe for Rice Krispie Date Balls is adapted from No Bake Cookies: More than 150 Fun, Easy and Delicious Recipes for Cookies, Bars, and Other Cool Treats Made Without Baking (affiliate link) by Camilla Saulsbury – one of my favorite cookbook authors.
This is my mother’s recipe! I couldn’t believe it! I love them.
My mother made these as well but rolled them in toasted coconut and made them into a longer roll shape (not round) and called them porcupines! They’ve been a tradition in our Nova Scotia Canada family for 60+ years.
My mom made these at Christmas and the entire family loves them- especially rolled in coconut.
Soooo good! We always called them Sugar Plums when I was a kid. We rolled them in green and red sugar.
how far ahead can I make these and do I need to keep them in the refrigerator or in a tin box?
Hi Charlotte, These can be made at least several days ahead. I prefer to store them in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Hope this helps. ~Martha
These worked out really well for us. I always use disposable gloves to roll cookies and baked items and we found it came together very easily and we didn’t get our hands all messy.
I substituted the eggs for a vegan egg replacer and bought vegan rice crispies so this was a hit for us.
I have found in the past, that letting them setup 9and cool) longer helps with the sticking together problem. Another couple of tips that I use are to butter my hands (helps keep the ingredients sticking to themselves instead of me) and to crush it lightly together like making a snowball from too-dry snow.
Mine wouldn’t roll either. Came back on here hoping there was a solution. Guess I’ll throw the mixture out.
You have to actually squeeze them and then shape them into balls. If they are really dry, try moistening your hands with water as you shape them. They don’t have to be perfectly round. ~Martha
I could not get them to roll! They just would not stick together
Hi Bev, that’s strange. The only thing I can think of is that your dates were drier than the kind I use. ~Martha
Can these be made ahead and frozen?
Hi Judy,
I haven’t tried, but I really don’t think so. I’m afraid the freezing and defrosting would make them soggy. ~Martha
You have to actually squeeze them and then shape them into balls. Don’t try to roll them because they will fall apart. They don’t have to be perfectly round.
Thanks, Shelley! ~Martha
I have found in the past, that letting them setup 9and cool) longer helps with the sticking together problem. Another couple of tips that I use are to butter my hands (helps keep the ingredients sticking to themselves instead of me) and to crush it lightly together like making a snowball from too-dry snow.
Just curious as to how the vegan option with margarine substitutes eggs which are usually a binder?
I have made this recipe for years following several recipes. In this case, the egg adds some richness, and the yoke adds some fat for flavor distribution and mouthfeel. The binding comes from a combination of the sugar, “stickiness” of the cocked down dates, and the absorption properties of the puffed rice cereal.
I keep looking at variations for ideas on how to mix it up some each year. My favorite change to lower the sugar by 1/4 cup and add chopped dried cranberries for the last 3-5 minutes of the cooking process. Adds a holiday spark to an otherwise very dark sweet treat.