Cocoa-orange Cereal and Nut Clusters
3¼ cups crunchy whole-grain corn cereal (such as Puffins)
½ cup powdered sugar, plus additional for dusting
½ cup chopped pecans
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tablespoons frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1½ tablespoons light corn syrup
Place the cereal in a large zip-close plastic bag. Press out all of the air and close the bag. With a rolling pin or the bottom of a heavy pan, crush the cereal into fine crumbs.
In a large bowl, combine the crushed cereal, sugar, pecans and cocoa. Stir thoroughly. Add the orange juice concentrate and corn syrup, then stir until all ingredients are well moistened and the mixture holds together when squeezed into a ball.
Moistening your hands with cold water as needed, then form the mixture into 24 small balls. Roll the balls in additional powdered sugar to coat.
Serves 24.
Nutrition values per serving: 51 calories (18 calories from fat), 2 g fat (0 saturated), 9 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 1 g protein, 0 cholesterol, 35 mg sodium.
Associated Press