No Bake Sweet and Salty Energy Bites satisfy my chocolate-y, pretzel-y, peanut butter-y cravings – made with only healthy ingredients. A must-have for snack time. Enjoy with a drink like my Homemade Almond Milk, or dip them in Homemade chocolate whipped cream.
As much as I love peanut butter chocolate chip granola bars, I’m currently in love with something round and mini.
More specifically, something round and mini that tastes like peanut butter and chocolate and pretzels all rolled up together in a cute little ball that can be devoured in two bites.
I like to call them sweet salty energy bites, and oh by the way, did I mention that they’re healthy?
Healthy is a given around this space I call a REAL FOOD BLOG, but when you’re talking about chocolate and pretzels and even peanut butter, it warrants making the distinction.
You know as well as I do that there are PLENTY of chocolate-y, pretzel-y, peanut butter-y goodies out there that are NOT healthy, and I don’t want anyone reading this thinking we gorge ourselves on said not-healthy-goodies all day every day (because Sundays are just ONE day and it’s the weekend so it doesn’t really count anyway, right?).
But these sweet salty energy bites are very healthy. So let’s make a bunch and snack on these instead, okay?
No Bake Energy Bites
Not only are these energy bites deliciously healthy, but they are also:
- Quick and Easy
- Makes a great snack and perfect for school lunches
- Freezer friendly
- Gluten-free friendly
Ingredients for Sweet and Salty Energy Bites
Wet Ingredients
- Coconut Oil. One of my favorite ingredients of all time thanks to its healthy profile. The fact that it’s solid at room temperature is worth noting too, which means these bites stay round and mini even after they’ve been in a lunch box all day.
- Honey. Honey goes so well with everything else. It also plays a supporting role of ‘energy bite glue.’
- Peanut Butter. My preferred nut butter since it’s what I usually have on hand, but you can easily use any other nut or seed butter (almond butter or sunflower seed butter, for example)… Sweet and salt energy bites don’t discriminate.
Dry ingredients
- Oats. Whatever kind you have will work (quick oats, rolled oats, old fashioned oats, gluten free oats) because we’re going to whiz them up in the blender first anyway (I use a Blendtec like this one.)
- Coconut. Start with shredded coconut, if only to make your life easier, because you are going to whiz these too. Unsweetened coconut is preferred since we’re adding honey, but if you only have sweetened in the pantry, go for it.
- Flax. An amazing super healthy super food that packs protein, fiber and healthy fat into these tiny protein balls of goodness (my favorite brand). When your eyes are closed and you’re savoring the salty and sweet moment of bliss, only to pop your eyes open to wonder how in the world something so good could possibly be so good for you, remember the ground flaxseed.
- Pretzels. Use whatever you have because (shocker) we’re using the blender. My Blendtec and I are BESTBUDS and anytime I can use it to make cooking (a.k.a. my life) easier, I’m all over it.
- Chocolate. Entirely optional here, but it kicks the sweet up a notch and a must-do if you’re feeling indulgent. Use mini-chips IN the energy bites themselves or dunk the finished energy bites in chocolate. Either way, it’s chocolate. You can’t go wrong.
Psst! Want another great option? Try finishing this recipe with a pinch of finishing salt! I love Ava Jane’s Kitchen because it doesn’t have microplastics (gross, right?) and it’s SO GOOD! Plus, you can get a bag for just 1¢!! Just add a pinch to each energy bite for extra flavor! (Get your penny bag of salt on this page.)
Is there gluten in no bake energy balls?
If you are looking to make these energy balls gluten free, you’ll just need to be sure that you are using certified gluten free oats, and gluten free pretzels (you can find gluten free foods at Aldi).
How do you make no-bake energy bites?
Now here comes the magic. You can either mash it all up in a medium bowl with a spoon OR use your stand mixer (I personally like to use my stand mixer.). In either case, I also like to use a cookie scoop for cute, uniform-sized energy bites!
- In a stand mixer (or a bowl), combine the coconut oil, honey and peanut butter until they are well combined and the mixture is smooth.
- Using a blender (or food processor), measure out 1/2 cup of pretzels. Pulse until they are half crumbly and half small pieces, about 5-6 rounds.
- Without rinsing out the blender, add the oats, shredded coconut and flaxseed. Pulse about 5-6 rounds.
- Using the paddle attachment, turn the mixer on low and mix all the ingredients together until they are well combined and sticky.
- Using a cookie scoop, scoop out balls onto a cookie sheet. Freeze for 30 minutes.
Note: Store in the fridge or freezer, although the freezer is preferred if you’ll be packing these in lunches.
More Recipes for Healthy Snacking
- Homemade Fruit Leather & Fruit Rollups
- No Bake Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola Bars
- Homemade Lunchables
- 5 Minute Chocolate Hummus
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Hummus
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Sweet salty energy bites that satisfy chocolate, pretzel and peanut butter cravings, yet are made with only healthy ingredients. A must-have for snack time.
- Prep Time: 45 mins
- Cook Time: 0 mins
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 30–35 bites 1x
- Category: Snacks
- Method: Blender
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- ¼ cup coconut oil
- ¼ cup honey
- ½ cup peanut butter (watch the ingredients)
- 1 cup oats
- 1 cup shredded coconut
- ½ cup milled flaxseed
- 1 cup pretzels
Instructions
- In a stand mixer (or a bowl), combine the coconut oil, honey and peanut butter until they are well combined and the mixture is smooth.
- In a blender (or food processor), measure out 1/2 cup of pretzels. Pulse until they are half crumbly and half small pieces, about 5-6 rounds. You basically don’t want large chunks of pretzel, but you don’t want teeny tiny crumbs either. Using the markings on the outside of the blender (or a measuring cup), measure out 1/2 cup of crushed pretzels. Repeat this process with more pretzels if you don’t quite reach 1/2 cup. Add the pretzels to the bowl with Team Wet.
- Without rinsing out the blender, add the oats, shredded coconut and flaxseed. Pulse until the oats and coconut are crumbled together in small pieces, about 5-6 rounds. Pour Team Dry into the stand mixer.
- Using the paddle attachment, turn the mixer on low and mix all the ingredients together until they are well combined and sticky.
- Using a cookie scoop, scoop out balls onto a cookie sheet. When the cookie sheet is full, pick up each ball with your hands, squish the contents together and shape into a ball. Place the ball back onto the cookie sheet and freeze for 30 minutes.
- Store in the fridge or freezer, although the freezer is preferred if you’ll be packing these in lunches.
Notes
For an extra indulgent treat (and to make the balls prettier), dip them in chocolate and roll in extra crushed pretzels.
Have you ever thrown in some protein powder to boost the protein? If so (or not) can you recommend how?
I haven’t Barb, because most protein powders are highly processed and contain unhealthy ingredients. 🙁
Please add this on to my prior suggestion for May 16, 2021.
I chill the mixture in the freezer for 10-15 minutes. Makes it a lot easier to work with.
If I coated these in chocolate, you think they’d ship in a tin or mason jar ok for the holidays?
★★★★★
Hmmm… maybe? I would think the chocolate would act like a protective barrier from “melting” or changing in shape. Typically mail isn’t climate controlled when you ship, and with the seasons getting cooler, it would work to your advantage. I’d say make a batch, cover a few and let them sit room temp overnight and see what happens. If they don’t change shape, I’d ship!
Thanks for responding! One more question, do you typically dip them in the chocolate after the freezing for 30 min? Or just before you pop them in…I’ve never made a ‘healthy’ version of no bake sweets ha! So I’m not sure how dipping them in the chocolate before freezing would work with the honey/coconut oil so easily liquified by heat…what do you do? Thanks so much!
You’re welcome! I’d freeze first, then dip in chocolate. I think they’d be easier to handle too. 🙂
Delicious! I put rough chopped dark chocolate chips in them. Would’ve used mini dark chips if I could find them. My small scoop died last year making 240 cookies for World Thinking Day for Girl Scouts, so I pressed the mixture in mini cupcake tins. And yes, like you, I like the scoop for making them all the same! Put the pans in the freezer for 5-10 min and they popped out easily. Do you think they would hold together at room temperature if they were baked for a bit? I didn’t want my flax seed or oatmeal as a powder, so I barely pulsed in the blender and I think I’ll skip that step next time. I like the texture they lend whole. Thanks for sharing. It’s a keeper.
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Thanks Patty! I’m not sure if they’d hold together at room temp if they were baked… It’s worth a shot! I’m sorry to hear about your small scoop. Truly, it’s a loss for the kitchen! 🙁
Hi Tiffany
Okay, so here’s the scoop. I purchased the prunes because I couldn’t find dates and when I got back home to make the energy bites I decided to make the recipe exactly as is first and I will now have to find another use for the dried prunes. These were so good that I can’t imagine changing one thing about them.
So good with just the right flavors.
Thanks for sharing!
★★★★★
You’re very welcome Susan!! (and I’m glad you gave it a shot before subbing 😉 )
Hi Tiffany,
These look yummy. If I were to replace the jar peanut butter with powder peanut butter,
which would save me a ton on fat calories, what other wet ingredient could I add to keep the
moisture content about equal.
Thanks so much and I can’t wait to try these.
Susan
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Hi Susan! Since you’re taking oil out, you’d have to add oil in. In baking, you can add oil, applesauce and maybe even dates for fat/moisture content, so I’d start there for sure. Applesauce won’t help keep them in ball-shape, but coconut oil and dates will!
Great ideas, I didn’t even think about using dates. I was leaning toward using applesauce until I read your note about not keeping them in the ball shape so I think I will experiment with the dates.
I will let you know how they turn out. Thanks again.
You’re very welcome!
I’ve never had pretzels before or seen them in a store (I’m obviously not in the US) and amazon charges an arm and a leg to ship here (think $50 for a single small item). Do you have a recipe for them that you like or is it too hard to make from scratch?
Soft pretzels are easy to make from scratch, but I’ve never tried hard ones before. You can substitute with something else – think coarse flour-texture, that’s a bit salty… like crackers. That should work!
Hi! These sound amazing, but I am allergic to cocount and cannot use the oil. I will try rice krispies to sub for the shredded coconut but do you have any suggestions for an oil substitute? Thanks!
You can try subbing a nut butter Anne, but you’ll have to play with the measurements. Coconut oil is the glue, and it hardens when it gets cold. Start with a small amount, mix REALLY well, and then add more as necessary to get the right texture. Good luck!
hi there! do you happen to know what the 21 day fix portions are on this? i want to make them but not sure how i’d measure them out…
thanks in advance!
Hi Letha! Unfortunately, I don’t. I’ve never heard of the 21 day fix before!
Hi Tiffany!
Question, is “whole ground flaxseed meal” the same or similar to milled? It’s all I can find at my store.
Thanks!
Yes Lori – it’s the same!
Thanks so much!
Hi! I made these today and used 1 cup of almond flour instead of the ground oats and they turned out really good! Thank you for such a nice recipe!
★★★★★
You’re so welcome Bess! Great idea on subbing the almond flour too. 🙂
Can you replace milled flax seed with regular flax seeds?
You can Shannon, but you might lose a bit of the binding factor. I haven’t tried this myself, so please let us know if you do this and how it turns out!
Hello! Is there something else I can replace for the flax seeds? Only because I couldn’t find at the store unfortunately and would like to make these today!
Hi Lori! You can substitute finely ground nuts, wheat germ, wheat bran or if you’re really in a pinch, ground up oats. You want a texture that’s similar to milled flax!
I used whole flax instead of mulled flax seed because that’s all I had. And yes. They were hard to bind into balls :/
I’m going to dip them in chocolate to maybe help with that – we will see! 🙂
Great recipe! Hubs can’t wait to try them!
I think dipping in chocolate will fix anything. 😉
These sound really good, and I’m going to try the recipe as soon as I finish this question. Do you know how many calories and how much protein are in each ball? Thanks, Sam
I don’t Sam, but you can use Calorie King to figure it out pretty quick. Enjoy the energy bites!
Ooo, this sounds reeaallly good! I have tried no-bake cookies before, but too much sugar. Think I’m gonna try this one!
I think you’ll like these Robyn – they’re just sweet enough to hit the spot without feeling like you ate a sugar bomb!
I made these energy balls a few days ago, they are sooo good; I skipped the coconut flakes because I didn’t have them on hand, I added dried cranberries and a few chocolate chips
Ooh – that sounds like a great combination Andreea! So glad you liked them!
Tiffany, my mom in law made chocolate balls for Christmas for years, but she used confectionary sugar, crunchy peanut butter, butter, coconut, vanilla, rice krispies and of course, dipped them in chocolate. Can’t wait to try your recipe! I’m happy to have a healthy substitute for all the sugar which made up nearly half the dry ingredients.
I think I’ve had those before Ruthie! They are good, but as you alluded to, they’re very sweet! I hope you enjoy these energy bites!
Can you give the measurement of the flax seed? It says 1/2. Thanks!
Oops! That’s 1/2 cup. I’ll fix that. Thanks Sarah!
YAY!!! I was hoping you would post this recipe after reading about it in your prep day post. Looks delicious!!
Thanks Heidi!!
I made these today with nutella instead of peanut butter (my kids aren’t big fans of PB). They are delicious! Didn’t use any extra chocolate since the nutella is sweet already. Had some for after school snacks and kids have requested more for desert after dinner! Thanks for the recipe.
Ooh, what a great substitution Karin! Thank you for the inspiration, and so glad your kids liked them!!
You’re welcome!
I love the flavor of coconut; however, I despise the texture of shredded coconut. If I were to leave that out of the recipe, should I replace it with something else? If so, any suggestions? Thanks!
Hi Sarah – you’ll definitely need something dry, so I’m thinking hemp seeds (but don’t put them in the blender), sunflower seeds, crushed cereal, crushed crackers, chopped nuts, dried fruit… you could sub just about anything. Coconut is mild in flavor and adds a hint of sweet, so keep that in mind when you sub (ex: using dried cranberries would dramatically change the flavor). Also remember that this coconut is so tiny, it’s more like size of chia seeds than shredded coconut. Just in case you’re okay with teeny tiny coconut. 🙂
I was going to ask the same thing! I’m not a coconut fan at all – there’s just something about the texture for me – so thanks for the other suggestions!