1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 heaping cup soft medjool dates, pitted (about 17 – 20 medium sized dates)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 to 2 tablespoons coconut milk OR any liquid sweetener, like honey, agave, or maple syrup if you want your brownie bites to be sweeter. I used coconut milk and thought the brownie bites were perfectly sweet.
2/3 cups shredded unsweetened coconut
Pulse coconut in food processor for 30 seconds to a minute to form coconut crumbs. Remove from food processor and set aside.
Place pitted dates in a bowl of warm water for a minute to soften them up.
Add unsweetened cocoa powder and walnuts to food processor, blend until walnuts become fine crumbs, but do not over process or you will get some kind of chocolate walnut butter.
Drain dates and place in the food processor with the cocoa walnut crumbs. Add vanilla. Process until mixture starts to combine. It may not fully combine until liquid is added. Add coconut milk or liquid sweetener (if desired) half a tablespoon at a time. Pulse. You will know the consistency is right when the dough combines into a ball in the middle of the food processor.
If dough is too runny add a tablespoon or more cocoa powder to bring it back to a dough like state.
Transfer dough to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Cold dough is much easier to work with. I left my dough in the fridge over night. You could put it in the freezer if you need to speed the process up.
Once dough is cold, put coconut crumbs from earlier into a shallow bowl. Scoop heaping tablespoons of dough and roll them between hands to form balls. Roll balls in coconut crumbs, pressing the crumbs gently into the ball. Continue until all dough is gone. You can moisten your hands with water if the dough begins to stick to your palms as you roll.
Keep chilled, they taste best that way. Bites will keep in fridge for quite some time, and freeze well also.