If you want to make your own almond meal, pulse 1 heaping cup of raw unsalted almonds in the food processor until very crumbly and no large pieces remain. Remove from the food processor to continue the recipe. You can use blanched almonds, but I just use whole raw almonds.
In a food processor or blender, combine dates (it should be 8-9 dates) and milk and process until dates are in very small pieces.
Add in almond meal, vanilla bean paste (or extract), salt and cinnamon. Process until combined. Add in mini chocolate chips and incorporate them into the dough.
Refrigerate the dough for 10 minutes until it is a bit less sticky, and then roll the cookie dough into 16 half-tablespoon sized balls or 8 tablespoon sized cookies (just flatten the balls).