Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bites

By now you guys know I have a bit of an obsession with nut butters. Don't worry I'm not turning the blog into a nut butter recipe archive. Although...no don't worry, I'm just kidding.

I realize I've been posting quite a few snack recipes lately. That's because I love to make quick and easy snacks that have lots of functional nutrition for the body. Homemade grab-and-go snacks are my favourite kind. I promise I'll get back to posting more meal recipes. But for now I've got one more delicious one to share with you.

These chocolate chip oatmeal bites are full of peanut butter flavour and healthy fats to keep you feeling satiated. If you're not a big fan of peanut butter try using almond butter or sunflower seed butter. But I'm sure many people would agree with me if I said peanut butter completes chocolate.

Made with 5 simple ingredients! No grains, No dairy, No gluten, and No refined sugars...and no oven required.

Seriously what's not to love?

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Bites gluten-free, vegan | Yields: 16 balls

adapted from Gimme Some Oven's No Bake Energy Bites

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Ingredients:

• 1 cup gluten-free old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/4 cup almond flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup vegan dark chocolate chips
• 2/3 cup + 2 tbsp natural peanut butter (or your favourtie nut butter)

Instructions: 

1. In a large bowl, mix together oats, almond flour, coconut and chocolate chips. 
2. Add peanut butter and mix together thoroughly. 
3. Scoop the mixture out of the bowl using a mini ice cream scoop or spoon and then using your hands, roll into balls.

*Tip* Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to two weeks.

Nutritional Information:

Serving Size: 1 ball Calories: 142 Fat: 10g Fiber: 2g Protein: 6g Sodium: 0mg Carbohydrates: 8g Sugar: 1g

If you like these check out these Peanut Butter Energy Bites

Blueberry Muffin Energy Bars

Hey it's Thursday! How's everyone doing? I'm great but I would be doing a whole lot better if Spring would hurry up and get here already. This winter has been pretty rough. So much dryness in the air and cold temperatures. That breif warm up last week was such a tease!

That's why I whipped up some tasty treats to share with you guys this week.

Granola bars and healthy fruit and nut bars are one of my favourite things to make. I certainly have a soft spot for them.

I'm should start by mentioning that these bars turn out to be a fail the first time I made them. Ugh! Not a great way to start the week. My dates were a bit dry so I added some water to the mix. Only I added a little too much and the whole thing became a giant mess of date paste instead of a nice dough that I could form into bars. I never would have thought it would be so easy to mess up no-bake fruit and nut bars, but I somehow managed to do it. Ha! Back to the drawing board I went and came out with these beauties.

It's a great idea to make these and keep them wrapped individually in the freezer. They don't freeze and this keeps them nice and fresh.

These no-bake bars are easy enough to make and can be thrown together in minutes. One of these would be a perfect snack before a workout. Or if you tend to be one of those people who skip breakfast or grab a muffin and a coffee at the drive-thru then you've gotta try these bars instead. They're loaded with super foods like walnuts, hemp seeds, and blueberries, and the only sugar in them comes from the dried fruit. Plus they taste like a blueberry muffin.

Blueberry Muffin Energy Bars no-bake, gluten-free, grain-free, vegan | Yields 6 bars

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Ingredients:

• 1 cup soft pitted dates
• 1 cup walnuts
• 2 tbsp raw hemp seeds (I used north coast naturals)
• 1/4 cup vanilla protein powder (I used vega sport)
• 1/4 cup dried blueberries

Instructions:

1. Place walnuts and hemp seeds in your food processor and process until finely chopped (like breadcrumbs). Pour the nut + hemp seed mixture into a bowl and set aside.
2. Place the pitted dates in your food processor and process into small sticky pieces. The mix will be clumpy.
3. Add the nut + hemp seed mixture back into the food processor along with the protein powder and dried bluberries. Process until evenly combined  and the mixture holds together.
4. To shape into bars: turn mixture out onto a long sheet of plastic wrap, then fold the wrap over the dough to cover it.
5. Flatten with your hands and roll out the dough with a rolling pin to desired thickness. Cut into bars.
6. Keep in a sealed contained, or individually wrap and store in the refrigerator or freezer. These bars can be eaten straight from the freezer as they will not freeze.

Nutrition Information:

Serving Size: 1 bar Calories: 248 Fat: 12g Fiber: 4g Protein: 8g Sodium: 7mg Carbohydrates: 28g Sugar: 16g