These little chocolate spiders look spooky, but bite into one and you’ll find a surprise: a gooey raspberry jam centre. They’re no-bake, made with a simple date, almond butter and cocoa base, dipped in chocolate and finished with piped legs and googly eyes.
They’re perfect for a Halloween party, a fun kitchen project with the kids, or just a sweet treat to keep in the fridge. They take a little patience with the piping, but they’re easy to make, and they always get a reaction!
Happy cooking, Tara x
If you make these, tag me on Instagram @aveganvisit. I’d love to see your spiders!
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A few quick tips
Use squidgy dates. If yours are dry, soak them in hot water for 10 minutes and drain well.
Nut-free? Swap the almond butter for sunflower seed butter and check that your other ingredients (particularly the chocolate) are nut free.
Want a quick snack? If you’re not fussed about these being a spooky treat, just coat the balls in dark chocolate and leave it at that – they’re seriously delicious, so there’s no need to have them only on Halloween!
Storage. Keep the spiders in the fridge, with room for their legs, for up to 5 days.
Make ahead. The jam-filled balls keep in the freezer for up to a month before coating, so you can get this bit done early.
No-Bake Chocolate Spiders with a Gooey Raspberry Jam Centre
Ingredients
Spider bodies
- 250 g pitted medjool dates (or another soft, squidgy variety)
- 150 g almond butter (smooth and spreadable (or sunflower seed butter))
- 30 g cocoa powder (4 tbsp)
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1-3 tsp water
Filling
- 75 g raspberry jam
Coating and decoration
- 400 g vegan dark chocolate (or vegan milk chocolate)
- 1 tbsp coconut oil (or vegetable oil)
- 50 g vegan white chocolate
Instructions
Make the spider bodies
- Line a tray that fits in your freezer with parchment paper.
- Blend the dates and almond butter in a food processor until they form a paste.
- Add the cocoa, vanilla, salt and 1 tsp water. Blend for about 2 minutes, until the mixture comes together into a ball. Add a little more water if it struggles.Note: How much water you need depends on how squidgy your dates are and how spreadable your nut butter is.
Fill the spiders with jam
- Take 1 heaped tsp of the date mixture and roll it into a ball. Press your little finger or the end of a teaspoon into it to make a small 'cup'.
- Fill the 'cup' with about ½ tsp of jam.
- Flatten a small piece of the date mixture into a flat disc and place it over the jam-filled ‘cup’ to seal it. Gently roll the whole thing between your palms into a smooth round or oval, then place it on the lined tray.
- Repeat with the rest of the mixture, which should make around 24 balls in total (it doesn't need to be exact). Then freeze the balls for 30 minutes.
Coat in chocolate
- Bring a small saucepan of water to a gentle simmer. Set a heatproof bowl on top, making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water.
- Melt the dark chocolate in the bowl, stirring occasionally. Stir in the coconut oil until it melts, then lift the bowl off the saucepan and set aside.
- Rest one of the chilled jam-filled balls on top of a fork and dip it into the chocolate. Lift it out and let the excess chocolate drip off. Place it on a cooling rack set over a tray to catch any chocolate drips.
- Chill the chocolate-coated balls for 30 minutes, or until the chocolate has set.Note: Keep the leftover melted dark chocolate somewhere warm so it does not set - you’ll need this.
Add legs and eyes
- Once the chocolate-coated balls have set, spoon the leftover melted dark chocolate into a piping bag fitted with a fine nozzle.
- On a parchment-lined tray, pipe 24 small circles, 1 per spider, each with 8 legs (4 on each side).
- Place a chocolate-coated ball gently onto each circle of melted chocolate while the chocolate is still wet, so they fuse as they set. Chill these while you melt the white chocolate for the eyes.
- Melt the white chocolate in a bowl set over the saucepan of simmering water.
- Let the melted white chocolate cool for about 10 minutes, until it’s still melted but cool to the touch, then spoon it into a piping bag fitted with a fine nozzle.
- Pipe two white chocolate eyes onto each spider.
- To add the pupils, use a toothpick or the piping bag to dot a little dark chocolate onto the centre of the white chocolate eyes.Note: If the chocolate is too runny to pipe, give it another 10 minutes or so to cool at room temperature - it thickens as it cools, which makes piping a little easier.
- Chill the spiders until fully set, then carefully peel the spiders off the parchment. Store them carefully in the fridge in a single layer.
Nutrition
Tara
Hi, I’m Tara. I share comforting vegan recipes with a healthy twist – nourishing, approachable and designed for real life. I’m so pleased you’re here!
