As much as I try to prep for a day away from the office or home, there are times when life gets hectic and I don't have a good snack to eat while I'm out. I'm fortunate that we have a number of good health and nutrition stores that sell protein bars and snacks, but that can get a bit cost prohibitive if you're not careful.
So, what I have been doing is making my own when I am doing my weekly meal preparation. These yummy Energy Balls take less than 15 minutes to whiz together and last in your fridge for up to a week. You can roll this mixture into balls or press into a pan and cut into bars - either way it's a great source of energy and protein at a reasonable cost, and the best thing is that you control what goes in to it.
You can make this recipe nut free by only using seeds - you may have to add a little more dates and/or coconut oil to make the mixture stick together.
Here are some of the ingredients and the associated brands that I used to make this recipe.
Delish Raw-mazing Energy Balls
- 2 cups nuts/seeds of choice - cashews, almonds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, hemp, chia
- 1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
- 1 -- 2 cups rolled oats
- 2 cups medjool dates (soaked and pitted)
- 2 tbsps coconut oil
- 2 pinches himalayan or celtic sea salt
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tbsp cacao powder
Place nuts/seeds in food processor and process until crumbly. Add coconut and dates, coconut oil, salt, maple syrup and cacoa powder and mix until it becomes a sticky, but uniform batter.
At this point, you can either scoop mixture and form into balls, or press evenly into 10 x 13 bar pan, lined with parchment paper.
Place balls/bars into freezer for at least an hour to set.
Store the bars/balls in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a week (I guarantee you that they won't last that long!)
