Swedish Chocolate Balls {Chokladbollar}
Swedish chocolate balls are an easy no-bake cookie that combines rolled oats, rich cocoa, and strong coffee for a delicious treat. This quick dessert is perfect for easy holiday prep or anytime you want something sweet without heating up the kitchen.
There's the cutest little Swedish Christmas market that pops up near our home each December. I took my girls to stroll the NC SWEA Julmarknad and we had so much fun bringing home a few traditional Swedish holiday treats.
We were all obsessed over the classic Swedish chocolate balls, also known as "chokladbollar," that are rolled in a traditional finely grated coconut.
These bite-sized chewy no-bake cookies have a strong chocolate-coffee flavor and are kept chilled in the fridge which makes them extra yummy when served with a hot coffee, tea, or mulled wine at a holiday party.
I've made them several times since Christmas, they'll be in our cookie rotation all year long since I won't even need to heat up the kitchen to make them in the summer!
Why This is the Best Recipe
- No Bake Cookies: You can whip these up in minutes without turning on the oven. Just mix, roll, and chill!
- Pantry-Friendly Ingredients: Everything in this recipe can be kept ready to grab in your kitchen, making it a quick option when a craving hits.
- Make-Ahead Dessert: These little bites get even better as they chill, so they’re great to prep the night before a party or to keep on hand during the holidays.
Ingredients
Keep these simple ingredients in your pantry and you'll be ready to roll the cookies in no time:
- Butter: I used unsalted butter for this recipe so I could control the salt added to the dish. If you use salted butter, you'll want to reduce or omit the added salt.
- Superfine Sugar: This specialty sugar can be found at most major grocery stores, it comes in a tall plastic spouted container. If you can't find it, see the recipe card below for a handy substitution. Use some for this recipe and you can use the rest on a batch of my easy Irish shortbread cookies!
- Strong Coffee or Espresso: I used a Starbucks dark roast instant coffee powder. Cafe Bustelo makes an instant espresso powder that would work great, too.
- Desiccated Coconut: This ingredient makes a big difference and gives the chocolate balls a more authentic Swedish look and texture. Be sure to see my notes below.
- Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- Rolled Oats
- Vanilla
- Salt
Unsweetened Coconut vs. Desiccated Coconut
The coconut coating on the chocolate balls from the Swedish Christmas market immediately caught my eye because it looked completely different from the coconut I normally use in our kitchen.
After some research, I realized the recipe calls for desiccated coconut rather than the more commonly used unsweetened coconut flakes found at most US grocery stores.
I took this picture of the two kinds of coconut side by side so you can see the difference in both size and texture:
American unsweeteend coconut flakes, on the left, are longer, thicker, and chewier.
Desiccated coconut, on the right, has a much smaller grain and is dryer and crispier. It will absorb some moisture from the cookie dough but makes a perfect coating for the smaller sized chocolate balls, giving them an almost snowy coated look that is so cute for the holidays.
I was able to order a large bag of desiccated coconut here (for the same price as the same quantity of regular coconut) that will easily make several batches of these chocolate balls.
It's a fun and simple way to upgrade your cookie tray for the holiday season, giving these treats an eye-catching look your foodie friends will surely notice.
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Prep the Cookie Dough
In a medium mixing bowl, combine the softened butter, sugar, and vanilla. Use a spatula to mix until creamy and well blended.
Prepare the instant coffee according to the directions on the package.
In a separate small bowl, stir together the cocoa powder and brewed coffee until it forms a thick, rich paste.
Add the cocoa-coffee mixture into the butter mixture and stir thoroughly to combine.
Stir in the rolled oats and a pinch of salt. Mix until the oats are evenly distributed.
NOTE: If you just brewed the coffee before adding it to the cocoa, the warmth of the mixture will really soften, if not completely melt, the butter in the dough. This makes it easy to stir the dough together but makes rolling the cookie balls a little more challenging.
You can pause now and chill the cookie dough for 30 minutes which will make the cookie balls much easier to roll or keep going and use my little time-saving hack.
Roll the Cookie Balls
I was in a time crunch when prepping these cookie balls and didn't have time to chill the dough before rolling the balls. The warm coffee made the dough very soft.
I used a small spoon to scoop ping-pong ball sized portions of dough and gently dropped them into a shallow bowl of desiccated coconut.
Once I had a few balls dropped into the bowl, I used my clean fingers to scoop and pinch some coconut over the top of each portion and then gently patted each ball into a round shape.
As I patted them into balls, I rolled them in the coconut. This kept the sticky chocolatey surface away from my fingers and the coconut coating made them easier to pat into shape.
Chill the Cookies
Transfer the coconut covered chocolate balls to a clean plate and chill them in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before serving.
This helps the cookie balls to firm up and hold their shape but the chocolate mixture tastes even better cold, in our opinion!
Make Ahead Tips
These chocolate balls store beautifully! Keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week or freeze them for up to 2 months.
You can even prep the mixture a day in advance, chill them in the fridge, then roll and coat on the day you want to serve them.
Serving Suggestions
I made these coconut-coated chocolate balls as a sweet treat to add to a snack board with fresh fruit and a bowl of my easy fruit dip for my daughter's after-prom party at a friend's house. According to her, they were a huge hit and the snack board came home empty.
You could enjoy them as a special treat for an afternoon tea party or coffee chat with a friend. They'd make an excellent prep ahead Christmas cookie for the holiday season but they are right at home for a special brunch, especially with that strong coffee flavor in every bite.
More Cookie Recipes
Looking for more easy cookie recipes? Here are a few of my favorites:
📖 Recipe
Swedish Chocolate Balls
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- 1/3 cup superfine sugar see notes for substitution
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 1/2 tablespoons strong coffee or espresso brewed
- 1 cup rolled oats consider pulsing in food processor
- Pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup desiccated coconut see notes
Instructions
- Add the softened butter, sugar, and vanilla to a medium sized mixing bowl and use a spatula to work them in together until well incorporated.
- In a separate small bowl, stir together the coffee and cocoa powder until it forms a thick paste. Scrape it into the butter mixture and stir them together well.
- Add the oats and salt. Mix everything together until the oats are well incorporated.
- Place the coconut into a shallow dish. Use a spoon to scoop a ping pong ball sized portion of dough. Drop it into the dish of coconut. Gently pat it into a ball shape and turn it to coat in the coconut. Transfer the coated cookies to a clean dish. Repeat as needed to finish the cookie balls. You should get about 18 small cookie balls.
- Refrigerate the chocolate balls for 30 minutes so they firm up. They are delicious served cold but will keep on a platter for a couple hours during a special event or tea time.
Recipe Notes
Superfine Sugar Substitute:
If you cannot find superfine sugar at your grocery store, you can substitute regular sugar in the same amount. However, you'll want to use a mixer to cream the butter and sugar together a little longer so that the ingredients can incorporate properly.Desiccated Coconut:
This fine grated coconut is what gives this recipe an authentic Swedish look and taste. For a full explanation, see the post above for reference photo and notes on where you can easily find it.Save This Recipe to Your Recipe Box
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