Bittersweet Chokladboll

Do you know chokladboll? This is a Swedish word meaning “chocolate ball”. We are talking about a very popular dessert in Sweden, although it is thought that the recipe originated in Denmark. Let's find out more about this delicious tradition…

By Alessandra Ivaldi / 17.06.2026

The appearance of chokladboll, balls covered in cocoa and coconut flakes, immediately attracts the attention of those with a sweet tooth. The ingredients behind this dish are oatmeal, sugar, cocoa, butter and coffee. This last ingredient gives a slightly bitter aftertaste to chokladboll. You can also add cream to make the dough softer. By combining these ingredients and compacting them with your hands, you will form a treat slightly smaller than a golf ball, which does not need to be cooked. Once the right shape is achieved, chokladboll are covered in dark chocolate and then sprinkled with coconut flakes or sprinkles of sugar. The desserts thus obtained can be eaten immediately, or cooled in the refrigerator to give them a more compact appearance.

There are many sweets similar to chokladboll in the world, but they do have some variations in the recipe, linked to the availability of certain ingredients in different countries. They are extremely simple dishes to prepare at home and for this very reason they are so popular. Chokladboll are found everywhere in Sweden: in supermarkets, bakeries, but of course also in the homes of ordinary citizens. Kids love chokladboll, which are a real must-have at parties. They are also particularly appreciated during the time of fika, one of the most important social rituals in Swedish tradition, a true institution.

Fika consists of a mid-morning or mid-afternoon break that can be spent in the company of friends, colleagues or family, at work, in the cafeteria or at home. During fika it is traditional to drink a cup of coffee, tea or hot chocolate and eat something sweet, such as a chokladboll. There is even a specific word to indicate the desserts eaten during fika, namely fikabröd. An integral part of the ritual is small talk and socializing. It is also forbidden to perform fika in a hurry. You must sit and take all the time necessary to “celebrate” this important moment and enjoy the calm and company of other people.

Boxes of chokladboll from different brands

As already mentioned, it seems that chokladboll were invented in Denmark during the Second World War, when due to food rationing, each family could have limited quantities of wheat flour. This prompted many to look for possible substitutes for this ingredient. In this context, in 1943 the Danish newspaper Nationaltidende published a booklet for housewives entitled Opfindsomhed i en krisetid (in English “Wit in Time of Crisis”). Among the various tips offered was the recipe for a dessert called havregrynskugle (“oatmeal balls”), something very similar to modern chokladboll. Some time later, a similar recipe appeared in a Swedish magazine, marking the beginning of the chokladboll trend in Sweden. This trend has become so popular, that the Swedes have even instituted a chokladbollens dag (“chokladboll day”), which falls on May 11th.

Despite their popularity, chokladboll have also gone through “dark” periods in more recent times. In fact, it must be known that their name has not always been chokladboll. They were originally called negerboll, the translation of which is easy to understand. However, this name has been declared politically incorrect and Swedes have needed to find another term to refer to one of their favorite sweets. In 2006 the word chokladboll was finally added to the glossary of the Svenska Akademiens ordlista, the official dictionary of the Swedish Academy.