Chocolate Peanut Butter Bliss Balls
Chocolate peanut butter bliss balls are healthy little energy bites, and a great grab-and-go snack for busy days. They take just 15 minutes to make, and are filled with protein and fibre to keep you going all day long. Not to mention they’re absolutely delicious!
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What are peanut butter bliss balls?
These are fudgy little peanut butter energy balls made from a base of dates and nuts. They’re a super healthy snack which are just perfect for lunchboxes, pre-workout energy or snacking on the go, and even as a healthy dessert.
This easy bliss balls recipe uses a mixture of whole food ingredients and is naturally sweetened, making it free from processed sugar, eggs, dairy and gluten.
Which ingredients should I use?
- Dates- The base ingredient of these bliss balls is dates, which gives them their sweetness and fudgy consistency. Most people swear by using medjool dates for their protein balls, as they are fresh and give a better sticky consistency.
I actually prefer to use dried and pitted dates. They are far cheaper and can be bought in big bags which keep in the cupboard for ages. Make sure you soak them for half an hour in hot water beforehand, which makes them lovely and moist for this recipe.
- Peanut butter- To keep these super healthy, I would recommend using a natural peanut butter which is 100% nuts without any sugar, salt, or palm oil. This is better for you, and better for the environment. You can use either smooth or chunky for this recipe, whichever you prefer!
- Oats- I’ve added some oats as they make the vegan peanut butter balls slightly more cakey, whilst still being really healthy. You can use rolled oats or quick oats. If you are celiac or intolerant, then just make sure that your oats are certified gluten free.
- Sunflower seeds- I blended the oats with some sunflower seeds at the beginning of the recipe. These add extra body and protein to the balls.
- Cacao/cocoa powder- Cocoa powder helps with binding, and adds a lovely chocolatey flavour. Make sure it’s pure cocoa or cacao powder with no added sugar.
- Vanilla extract and sea salt (optional)- These just add a really nice contrasting sweet and saltiness to the bliss balls. You can leave them out if you like; they’re completely optional.
What makes bliss balls so great?
I love peanut butter bliss balls, as they satisfy my sweet tooth, tasting really indulgent without the added sugar and processed ingredients. I mean, peanut butter and chocolate is a match made in heaven. The mixture of dates, oats and seeds gives them a cakey texture which makes them feel a little bit naughty!
Not only are they free from the bad stuff, they’re also full of the good stuff. They contain plenty of natural protein and healthy fats from the peanut butter and seeds, and tonnes of fibre from the dates and oats.
Bliss balls give you really long lasting energy, keeping you full for longer so that you don’t reach for unhealthy snacks.
They use easy store cupboard ingredients which can be bought in large quantities and be kept for a long time. This keeps the cost down, and means you always have the ingredients on hand to whip up a batch.
Finally, they’re so quick to make, coming together in less than 10 minutes!
How to make this recipe
This is a super easy bliss ball recipe, with the food processor doing most of the work for you!
Firstly, add the oats and the sunflower seeds to your food processor. Pulse until the oats have turned to flour, and the seeds are in large crumbs.
Then, add the dates, peanut butter, cocoa powder, and vanilla and sea salt if you’re using them.
Whizz the ingredients again until a dough begins to form, adding a drop of water at a time if it isn’t coming together. You’ll see that it will form a crummy texture first, before coming together around the blade.
Scoop the dough out of the blender. Using your hands, roll the dough into 15 balls, roughly 30g each (about the size of a golf ball). These are no bake peanut butter balls, so no cooking required!
If you’d like to make them extra tasty and a little more attractive, pulse 25g of toasted peanuts in the food processor bowl until they turn to crumbs. Mix the crumbs with 5g cocoa powder and a pinch of salt, then roll the balls in the mixture to finish.
Best equipment to make peanut butter bliss balls
The only specialist equipment required to make these balls is a food processor or high powered blender. I recently got myself a Ninja 3-in-1, which comes with a food processor, blender, and personal blender.
These balls were the first thing I made using the food processor, and I was amazed at how quickly and easily they came together- I would definitely recommend this thing!
FAQs
Peanut butter bliss balls will keep in the fridge for 7 days, as long as they’re kept in an airtight container. This makes the perfect amount for two people for a week, otherwise you can keep them in the freezer.
Store them in the freezer for up to 3 months in an airtight container. This is a great way to store them, as you can take them out to thaw on the counter for 10 minutes, one at a time. If you’re really desperate for a snack, just warm one between your hands and dig in!
Yes! See a list of my suggested ingredient substitutes and additions below:
Nut butters- If you fancy mixing it up, you can swap in an equal quantity of a different nut butter in place of peanut butter. I love cashew butter and almond butter, but if you have a nut allergy, you could also use sunflower or pumpkin seed butter.
Seeds- I used a small quantity of sunflower seeds in this recipe. If you don’t have sunflower seeds in, you could swap these for pumpkin seeds or some of the softer nuts. Walnuts, pecans and cashews would work great, but harder nuts such as almonds may not break down as easily.
Protein- Make these into peanut butter protein balls by adding a scoop of your favourite protein powder into the mix. If the mixture is looking a little dry, just add a teaspoon or two of water to help with binding.
Enjoy snacking as much as I do?
You might like these recipes:
- Healthy cashew coconut snack bars
- Vegan chocolate oatmeal cookies
- Miso roasted chickpeas
- Peanut butter banana bars
- Homemade carrot and broad bean hummus
- Crispy roasted butter beans
Pin it!
Chocolate Peanut Butter Bliss Balls
Ingredients
- 50 g oats (½ cup)
- 50 g sunflower seeds (⅓ cup)
- 200 g pitted dates* (~1.5 cups)
- 125 g peanut butter (½ cup)
- 3.5 tbsp cacao powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract optional
- pinch sea salt optional
To coat
- 25 g crushed peanuts
- 5 g cacao powder
- pinch sea salt
Instructions
- Add the oats and the sunflower seeds to your food processor. Pulse until the oats have turned to flour, and the seeds are in large crumbs.
- Add the dates, peanut butter, cocoa powder, and vanilla and sea salt if you’re using them.
- Process the ingredients again until a dough begins to form, adding a drop of water at a time if it isn’t coming together. It will form a crumbly texture first, before coming together around the blade.
- Scoop the dough out of the blender. Using your hands, roll the dough into 15 balls, roughly 30g each (about the size of a golf ball).
- To coat, mix together the crushed peanuts, cacao powder and sea salt, then roll the balls in the mixture to finish.
Notes
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