Packed with protein, fiber and healthy fats, these oatmeal bites are the perfect quick and easy snack ready in under 20 minutes!
Why this dietitian loves this recipe:
These oatmeal bites are....
- the perfect balanced snack: made from oats, seeds, peanut butter and sweetened with the perfect amount of honey. These oatmeal bites the perfect grab-and-go snack for a busy day!
- so customizable! Add any mix-ins you want or switch up the ingredients to customize these to your personal preference.
- ready in 15 minutes! Made with only a few simple ingredients (that you probably already have in your cupboard, these come together in only 15 minutes!
- tasty! These oatmeal energy bites taste like my all-time favourite cookies! As much as I love a good oatmeal cookie, these are a great healthy alternative to snack on any time during the day!
Oatmeal bites: the perfect snack
Energy balls are one of my favourite go-to snacks. Yes energy bars are good too but these bites are so easy to make, require minimal ingredients and are so cute!
From lemon turmeric to birthday cake- I have a newfound love of taking my favourite desserts and turning them into bit sized balanced snacks. On their own, they make a filling snack.
They can also be crushed up as a perfect addition to your yogurt or oatmeal bowls!
Regardless of how you eat them, these oatmeal cookie energy bites taste just like your Grandma's oatmeal cookies.
Ingredients
- Oats
- Protein powder
- Flax seeds (ground)
- Chia seeds
- Peanut butter
- Honey
- Cinnamon
- Chocolate chips
Instructions
In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the ingredients, except the chocolate chips using a large wooden spoon.
Add chocolate chips and any other mix-ins of choice and stir well (you may have to use your hands at some point to really mix everything in).
Roll into about 22 equal sized energy balls and place in the fridge.
if your mix is too dry: add 1-2 tablespoon additional penaut butter or water
if your mix is to wet: add more oats
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 3 months!
Substitutions and Variations
Follow the substitutions below to customize these oatmeal bites to meet your needs:
Gluten free: use gluten free certified oats.
Vegan: use maple syrup instead of honey and use a vegan chocolate and protein option.
Dairy free: use dairy free chocolate and ensure you protein powder is dairy free.
Nut free: skip the peanut butter and use sunflower seed butter or ‘granola butter.
Get creative with the mix-ins:
You can use any nuts/ seeds you like in this recipe. If you don’t have one of the seed options feel free to add some additional oats or replace them with another nut or mix-in of your choice!
- Dried fruit would be an awesome addition as well!
- Chia seeds can be replaced with hemp seeds
- Flax seeds can be replaced with additional oats
- Protein powder can be replaced with additional oats + 1 teaspoon additional honey (for sweetness)
- Replace the honey with maple syrup or even 1-2 small mashed bananas for a ‘banana’ bread’ twist
Equipment
Storage
- These energy bites will store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 7 days!
- You can also easily freeze these in an airtight container for up to 3 months and just defrost in the fridge
Top tip!
Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty! I find using my hands to combine the ingredients together is the best way to ensure they ingredients stick and your balls will stay together!
Frequently asked questions
I use my favourite protein powder (Smooth Vanilla is the best!). However feel free to use any vanilla or unflavored protein powder. When I'm low on protein powder I have also used this collagen powder with great results! If you don't have any protein powder on hand feel free to substitute with oat flour or almond flour.
This is really up to you, certain protein powders can be a little harder on young tummies to digest but typically in such a small amount protein powders are safe for children to consume! They do make child specific protein supplement options or you can easily leave the protein out if that’s what makes you the most comfortable!
Yes you can! These are a great meal prep snack. Just keep them in the fridge in an airtight container until you are ready to snack on them!
Both of these do add different nutrients to the recipe (in addition to affecting the moisture levels of the mix) so I would highly suggest following the recipe as written for best results. However you can easily swap the flax seed for additional oats or oat flour and the chia seeds for some hemp seeds if that works best for you!
Grounding your flax seeds helps make them easier to digest so your body can access the nutrients a little easier than if you were to consume whole flax seeds! I recommend just adding them to your blender, processing until a powder forms and storing it in your fridge until you need to use them!
More energy ball recipes
PS. I love seeing my recipes in action! If you decide to make these lemon turmeric energy balls, don't forget to snap a photo and tag me on Instagram- @nourishedbynic or leave a comment and rating below letting me know how you liked it!
📖 Recipe
Oatmeal Cookie Energy Balls
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups oats rolled or minute oats
- ½ cup unflavored or vanilla protein powder *see recipe notes for substitutions
- ½ cup ground flax seeds
- ¼ cup chia seeds
- ½ tablespoon cinnamon
- ¾ cup natural peanut butter
- ⅓ cup honey
- large handful chocolate chips
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the ingredients (except chocolate chips) using a large wooden spoon. Once mixed, add chocolate chips and any other mix-ins of choice- and combine (you may have to use your hands at some point to really mix everything in).
- Place the bowl in the fridge for about 30 minutes ( optional- this will help the balls stick together better when you are rolling them).
- After you take it out of the fridge roll about 1 tbs sized balls by hand and place them on a cookie sheet.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 2 months!
Notes
If you find your mix is too dry- add an additional 1-2 tablespoon of peanut butter or water until you are able to roll the mix into balls
If you find your mix is too wet- add an additional 1-2 tablespoon of oats Protein powder can be replaced with an equal amount of additional oats + 1 teaspoon of added honey
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