Place a piece of parchment paper on a plate or small cookie sheet and set aside.
If you want your cacao date bites coated in nuts or coconut: chop the nuts first in the food processor, or pull out the shredded coconut, and transfer to the small mixing bowl. Set aside.
Place the pitted dates into a small food processor (I use the small 4.5 cup bowl of my Cuisinart).
Sift the cacao powder into the bowl of the food processor.
Add a pinch of salt.
Run the food processor on high until the mixture comes together into a ball - this may take a couple minutes!
Once you have a sticky ball, pinch off bite-sized pieces (1/2 oz makes a good bite size) and roll into balls.
Roll the balls in the bowl of chopped nuts or coconut and set on the parchment lined plate/cookie sheet.
You can eat these right away, but I prefer them after they harden up for a few hours in the fridge.
Store in the fridge for firm consistency, or at room temperature if preferred, for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
Nutrition is calculated to include chopped walnuts rolled on the outside of the bites.These firm up and dry out some after a few days in the fridge - I prefer them with this drier consistency rather than chewy like when they are fresh, so my personal recommendation would be to let them sit for a couple days in the fridge before really partaking. Test them out for yourself and see what you prefer!