Oatmeal Energy Bites are tasty, no-bake balls combining oats, ground nuts, dried fruit, nut butter, and honey...perfect as a portable breakfast-on-the-go, a protein-packed snack, or a no-guilt sweet treat!
1cupnutssuch as pecans, walnuts, cashews, almonds, etc.
1cupold-fashioned oats
½cupraisinsOR dried cranberries or cherries
2tablespoonschia seedsoptional
½teaspoonground cinnamon
⅛teaspoonground nutmeg
½cupall-natural peanut butter
¼cuphoney
1teaspoonpure vanilla extract
Instructions
In the bowl of a large food processor, pulse the nuts until finely ground (but stop before they start turning to nut butter!). Add the oats, raisins, chia seeds (if using), cinnamon, and nutmeg to the nuts; pulse five (1-second) pulses to combine. Add the peanut butter, honey, and vanilla to the mixture; pulse until all of the ingredients are well blended, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
Use a small cookie scoop or spoon to scoop mixture and roll into 1-inch balls (or whatever size you would like them). Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Notes
You may use dried cranberries or your favorite dried fruit instead of raisins, but if the pieces are large, dice them up first.
You may substitute your favorite nut butter (or nut-free butter) for the peanut butter.
If the mixture does not stick together when you pinch it together, you may stir in a tad more peanut butter. If it's too sticky, you may roll it into balls using slightly damp hands or refrigerate for 30 minutes before rolling.
After pulsing (or otherwise finely mincing) the nuts, you may combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl if you wish (instead of using a food processor). Mix all of the ingredients well until completely blended. Alternatively, you could use an electric stand mixer to make it quicker/easier to fully incorporate the peanut butter and honey into the other ingredients.