These chocolate peanut butter energy balls are one of my family’s favourite portable snacks. They are sweet enough to feel like a treat, but pack a solid nutritional punch.
These balls are about as easy as it gets to pull together. Five simple ingredients. One bowl. No baking. Wham, bam, thank you Mama!
Why spend $3 per ball when you can make a batch for less than this in 15 minutes?
Ingredients
Makes 10-12 balls
- 2/3 cup, peanut butter (no sugar, no salt)
- 1/4 cup, maple syrup
- 2 tbsp, cocoa powder (unsweetened)
- 1 tsp, vanilla extract
- 1 cup, rolled or quick oats
Instructions
- Scoop the peanut butter in a medium bowl. Be sure to get some of the oil as you do! Lick the spoon 🙂
- Add the cocoa powder, maple syrup, and vanilla, then mix well.
- Add the oats. Mix well again, until everything holds together.
- Scoop 1-2 generous tablespoons per ball. Massage into a ball, then place into a storage container.
- Store in fridge (1 week) or freezer.
Variations
- Add a touch of salt for extra pizazz
- For a smoother texture, blend the oats first.
- Nutrition boosts: For more omega-3 fatty acids, add 1/4 cup of crushed walnuts or substitute 1/3 cup of oats with hemp hearts
- Nut alternatives: Any nut butter (almond, cashew) or seed butter (sunflower, pumpkin) will work; though a hint more sweetness might be in order
Nutrition
Nutritional data should only be viewed as rough estimates. % Daily Values vary with age, weight, and other factors.
Credit
Photo and recipe (adapted) from Fit Foodie Finds. Our supernanny, Paula, and I teamed up to tweak it for our family.
