If you have a sweet tooth like myself, you might find yourself EVERY DAY rummaging around the kitchen for a little something-something. Alas, this Healthy Energy Balls recipe is a perfectly portioned treat that you and the whole family can enjoy every day. They’re the guilt-free snack that drives that sweet craving away just perfectly.
Better yet, you’re likely to have all of these ingredients already in your pantry so you don’t even have to go source any obscure ingredients – you have to be happy about that!
A snack you can freeze!
Keep these ball snacks handy in the freezer to whip out for popping in a school lunch box, snacks on the run or to sneakily nibble on with a cup of coffee in the silence of the car waiting for school pickup. You have to grab those sweet, quiet moments when you can mamas.
NOTE: This healthy energy balls recipe DOES contain nuts. Please note that they’re not appropriate for lunch boxes if your child attends a school with a nut-ban policy.
Healthy Energy Balls recipe
Ingredients
- 15 pitted dried dates
- 10 dried apricots
- 1 cup almonds
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons cocoa or cacao
- ¼ cup desiccated coconut
- extra desiccated coconut for rolling
NOTE: If the dates you’re using aren’t particularly soft (or they’re from a packet that has been exposed to air in the pantry), you can soak them in a bowl of boiling water for 5 minutes to soften up and then pat dry with a paper towel.
Method
- Place the pitted dates, apricots and almonds in a food processor and blitz them until well combined (you may need to scrape the side of the bowl once or twice – dates are sticky!).
- Transfer the fruit and nut mixture to a large mixing bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients (coconut oil, honey, cocoa and coconut) and mix through well. TIP: If you don’t mind a closer texture, you can leave the blitzed mixture in the food processor and add these ingredients in with a few pulses.
- Using clean and damp hands, roll into walnut-sized (3cm) balls. If your mixture is too sticky, pop it in the fridge for 10 minutes to firm up a little before trying to roll again.
- Place the extra coconut in a shallow bowl. Roll the rolled energy balls around in the coconut until they’re covered.
- Pop the coconut covered energy balls on a tray and put them in the fridge for two to three hours to set.
- Keep these healthy energy balls in an airtight container in the fridge for a week. Or freeze them to eat later, YUM!
This Healthy Energy Balls recipe is an original recipe from our sister site Mum’s Pantry.
More lunch box inspo just for you!
Now that you’ve got a healthy energy balls recipe in your pocket, if it’s more little snack-bits you’re looking for, be sure to check out our previous recipe posts. We have super easy three-ingredient no-bake apricot balls to devour, not to forget these lunch box snacks the kids will love: nut-free superfood balls and as for the rest of the lunch box, we have 7 yummy lunch-box ideas to spruce up your kids’ school day lunches.
Don’t forget to shake things up a little bit – repetitive lunch boxes are boring lunch boxes for kids! If you can make and freeze a stash of little snack items to have in rotation, it’s a real time and sanity saver for everyone.
As if the kids would dare to bring home anything but an empty lunch-box when you’ve sent them off with these delicious goodies!
