(aka Quick and Healthy Snack Bites)

~ These delicious no-bake Peanut Butter Energy Balls are loaded with nutrition to keep you powered up and energized – filled with lots of whole grains, fiber and protein! They’re quick and easy to make, and freezable, too. A healthy snack your family will love, and you’ll feel absolutely terrific about giving them! ~

(Originally published as Quick and Healthy Snack Bites on April 18, 2013. Updated photos, text and tips.)

This Recipe Is:   •  Ready in 30 Minutes or Less  •  Freezable  •  Make Ahead  •  Vegetarian  •

These scrumptious energy balls are truly The Ball That Started It All!

They were the very first recipe we ever shared here at Two Healthy Kitchens, and they embody everything we believe in … all in one tiny, perfect bite. They’re:

• So quick and easy (no baking, no cooking!)
• Healthy
• Absolutely, addictively delicious

We originally named all our energy balls “snack bites,” but I realized most of you guys out there think of them as energy balls, or even energy bites … so I’ve renamed them.

And, I’ve added handy tips I’ve learned through all my years of making literally hundreds upon hundreds of these yummy balls. You might notice I’ve upgraded the photos for you a bit, too. It made me kinda sad to ditch those very first photos, but you know … progress.

A Healthy Snack That’s Now Even Healthier!

Oh! And I’ve dramatically slashed the honey, even beyond the already-lower-sugar recipe we originally posted back in 2013.

My family honestly likes these energy bites even better now, because they’re not so … well … sweet. And, of course, less sugar is always a win!

But don’t worry … for those of you who’ve been making those original “Quick and Healthy Snack Bites” for years … you can still make ’em the same way you always did.

But trust me. Try cutting back the honey a bit, and I bet you won’t even notice!

Why We All Need Energy Balls in Our Lives (The Backstory)

I first started this website back in 2013, with my very best friend and business partner, Gretchen. We knew that this one, simple energy ball recipe was the perfect, yummy little hero to help us kick off our brand-new site. Here’s how it happened (cue the time warp) …

Once upon a time, in a land not-so-far-away, there were two beautiful princesses (sorry, got carried away there) … we were chatting about our kids’ hectic schedules, and we came to a realization:

Hands-down, the weak link in our families’ otherwise nutritious lives was the grab-and-go snack!

We’d always tried to be really diligent about providing super-healthy meals, but somehow the wheels totally fell off at snack time.

Oh sure, we had the best intentions. But, as the kids came home from school and the whirlwind of homework and afternoon activities began, we often found ourselves reaching for those convenient (and maybe not-so-healthy) snacks.

And, talking with friends, we realized that most other families were facing the exact same challenges. Healthy snacks were somehow just hard to achieve in the midst of busy family schedules.

We knew there had to be a better way!

We scoured cookbooks and the Internet looking for fun and healthy ideas. We tested, tasted, re-tested, re-tasted … you get the idea.

And finally we found a winner! (aaaaahhhhhhh – picture a choir of angels singing here)

Actually, we found lots of winners (some were even hiding in our own recipe collections!), and we could’t wait to tell you all about them as we launched this site!

This Peanut Butter Energy Ball recipe, however, quickly found its way into our hearts (and our tummies, again … and again …)! We just knew that this HAD to be our first recipe post. It truly does feature every single thing we stand for here at THK – it’s so tasty, so nutritious, so quick, and so easy!

We adapted our recipe from Maggie at Smashed Peas and Carrots, and you can find her original recipe here. While we absolutely loved her version, we wondered if we could amp up the nutrition without losing any of the flavor … ’cause that’s just how we roll.

We concocted about 8 or 10 different variations (yeah, we were eating A LOT of these, long before we ever shared them with all of you!) until we settled on the perfect balance. In our version, we:

√ Swapped in wheat germ for some of the flax, which allowed us to keep a decent amount of the beneficial omega-3 fatty acids, while reducing the calories and total fat a bit, and increasing the Vitamin E and folic acid a smidge.

√ We also reduced the chocolate chips, which meant less sugar.

√ And we used crunchy peanut butter for, well, some added crunch.

Our families fell in love with them. We stocked our freezers with healthy snack bags full of grab-and-go energy balls. They really even developed somewhat of a legendary, cult-following amongst our early readers.

Thank you, tiny Peanut Butter Energy Balls. You truly were the perfect way to kick off our site!

And with this little refresh … brand-new pics, a few tried-and-true tips and tricks … the beloved snack bites are ready to keep right on snackin’ with new readers (and of course, with all our original, reader-friends, too)!

Here’s all you’ve gotta do to give them a try …

How to Make Your Peanut Butter Energy Balls

Step #1

Begin by adding your ingredients (except, hold off on the chocolate chips – for now) into a medium bowl.

Mix it all together until it’s really well combined. (And, yeah … this is probably a good time for a little taste test. Mmmmmmmm …)

Step #2

Next stop … the chocolate chips!

Yeah, this is where it gets REALLY good. I mean … chocolate chips and peanut butter??? Yes, please!

Mix ’em right on in there, so you’ll get little bits of chocolate in every bite. (And now’s another great taste test opportunity. Just sayin’ 😉 )

Step #3

See how easy this is? You’re practically done already. (The hardest part is the taste testing, right?!?!)

Now all that’s left to do is shape your yummy, healthy snack mixture into one-inch balls. (Unless you’ve already eaten it all straight from the bowl. Which I would totally understand.)

Pro Tip: You can’t just lightly roll this between your hands like cookie dough. You actually have to press it together firmly to get it to stick.

Although it’s ok if your energy bites sit out at room temperature for a while, we recommend storing them in the fridge (particularly if you’re using natural peanut butter that should be refrigerated), or stashing them in the freezer. Which brings me to:

Make-Ahead Tips

• Your Peanut Butter Energy Balls will keep beautifully in the fridge for several days.

• But, I actually like to store mine in the freezer, where they’ll easily last for 3 months or more (although I’m not sure mine have ever made it quite that long before being chowed).

• To make healthy snacking as easy as possible on busy days, it helps to pre-package two or three energy balls per zippered snack baggie. Then, gather up all those individual baggies and store them together in one, big, gallon-sized freezer bag.

When the munchies strike, a healthy snack is as easy as opening the freezer. See ya later, store-bought junk snacks!

Big Batch Tips

So, if I’ve talked you into freezing these, then the next obvious step is to make a BIG batch while you’re at it. Stock the freezer … meal prep snack prep for the win!

In fact, I almost always make a quadruple batch, any time I’m making energy balls.

I’ve found a couple tricks to help:

Trick #1

If you’re making a giant batch of Peanut Butter Energy Balls, it helps to mix all the dry ingredients together first (the oats, coconut, flax and wheat germ). Then add the wet ingredients … and then finally the chocolate chips.

Although it’s no problem to thoroughly incorporate the dry and wet ingredients together in a normal, 1x recipe situation … when you’ve got a ginormous mixing bowl goin’ on, it’s much easier to get the dry ingredients mixed together before adding the sticky peanut butter and honey.

Trick #2

The one downside to making such huge batches is that it takes a little while to shape sooooo many energy balls. (Even though, later, you’ll be so glad you did!) It seemed like, whenever I did this, I kept running out of time before I had to scurry off to the next meeting or soccer pick-up.

Turns out, this is actually no problem!

I quickly figured out that I could simply throw some plastic wrap over whatever energy ball mixture was left, un-balled in my mixing bowl. I shove the bowl in the fridge, and finish shaping the balls a day or two later, whenever I have a couple more free moments.

Working in big batches saves so much time, and this energy ball recipe is super flexible to accommodate however much time you happen to have!

You can feel good about handing these over to your kids (if you don’t eat them all yourself!) for a quick snack as you dash out the door.

With all the whole grains, fiber and protein packed into these little gems, you can be sure this snack will stick to their ribs and give them the power they need!

Our families are even content to have these tasty nuggets of joy for dessert!

So hey … after you make this recipe, you’ll probably be looking for more great energy ball ideas. Gotcha covered, friend …

Even More Energy Balls You’ll LOVE

Since my family (and our readers) fell sooooo in love with the whole energy bite concept, over the years, I’ve created lots of other deeeee-licious no-bake energy bite recipes, too. Lots of addictive flavors, but they’re all designed to be easy, and healthy, too … just like these first Peanut Butter Energy Balls.

Scroll through ALL the yummy flavors in our Energy Ball Recipes collection, or go ahead and just click on through to the one that you wanna try next …

• “Cookie Dough” Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Energy Balls
• Granola Energy Balls
• “Almond Joy” Almond Butter Energy Balls
• “Peanut Butter Cup” Chocolate Peanut Butter Energy Balls
• Walnut Oatmeal Energy Balls
• Peanut Butter and Jelly Energy Balls
• Tropical Date Energy Balls with Chia Seeds