Remember snack breaks in Kindergarten? You know, that magical time in the afternoon to break for treats like milk & cookies, apples, chex mix, or ants on a log?
Now that you’re past Kindergarten (assuming I don’t have any Kindergarten readers out there) do you still make time for snacks? I loooovvvee snacks and always look forward to these little breaks, or as I like to call them: “mental vacations”.
These days in the peak of marathon training with hills and speed workouts and hours of running I am hungry like all the time, even more than normal. It’s true what they say about EPOC (excess post-exercise oxygen consumption), people. It is true.
With that said I need a little bit more than carrots and cucumbers to get me through my afternoon. Yeah sure, I’ll throw in some hummus and nuts every once in while, but I some days I just want more.
I made these little balls of deliciousness, so that I’m not a worthless hangry disaster in the middle of the workday.
Except I don’t call them “balls of deliciousness” because that would be weird. Instead I went with “Mocha Energy Bites”, which is maybe a little more appetizing? However, you can call them whatever you want. Perhaps something like – I’m just going to throw this out there – Shweddy Balls.
PS – I am already excited for when they play the SNL Christmas Special on TV. My favorite. Who’s with me?!
Ok, let’s take a look at what is actually in these things.
Oats, dates, almond butter, chocolate covered coffee beans, ground flaxseed, honey, instant coffee crystals (not pictured), and vanilla (also not pictured).
Mix everything together and you got yourself a tasty little snack. Not only are these bites super delicious, they are also good for you and will keep you satiated (and energized!) until your next meal or snack or until the next time you want/need to eat again.
The coffee flavor isn’t overpowering, but if you really aren’t into coffee (who are you?!) you can leave out the coffee crystals and beans and just use dark chocolate chips instead. No biggie.
Besides being healthy and delicious these are ridiculously easy to make. All you need to do is pulse a few things in a food processor, then mix everything together, then form them into balls. I’m talking minutes here. Super quick. Super easy. And then your fridge is stocked with snacks for the rest of the week!
Oh, oh, oh, they are also nice and convenient to pack to bring to class/work/errands. Throw a couple in a little baggie and toss (or gently set) into your purse/gym bag/briefcase/backpack/lunch box for a quick, popable, delicious, healthy treat.
How much do you love that?!
Gaaahhhh I love it so much!! But then again, I get really excited about my snacks.
So what I want you to do now is schedule a mental vacation for Monday at about 3:00. Ok? Can you do that, please? All you need is a few minutes.
Now what I want you to do in make these. Again, all you need is a few minutes. Ok?
Then when your mental vacation alarm goes off eat 2-3 of these mocha energy bites and happily power through the rest of your day. Mmk? Great. Thanks.
- ½ cup dates
- ½ cup almond butter
- ¼ cup honey
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- ½ teaspoon instant coffee crystals
- ¼ cup ground flaxseed
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- ½ cup dark chocolate covered coffee beans
- Put the dates in a bowl of a food processor and process until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the almond butter, honey, vanilla, and instant coffee until combined. Transfer to a medium-sized bowl.
- Add in the flaxseed, oats, and chocolate covered coffee beans. Stir until everything is incorporated. You may have to get down and dirty with your hands here.
- Form the mixture into balls that are about 1 to 1½ inches. Store in the refrigerator for about a week or in the freezer for longer.
I pulsed my chocolate covered coffee beans in the food processor a few times to break them down a little bit.
If you don’t want to use chocolate covered coffee beans increase the instant coffee to 1 teaspoon and use ½ cup dark chocolate chips. These would still be good without the instant coffee or coffee beans as well. I would recommend keeping the chocolate though!
Make these gluten-free by using gluten-free oats.
Geezzzz sorry for being so bossy there, I just want you to have snack time like the glory days of Kindergarten.
They look so tasty but I’d worry I’d eat half of them at once!
Yes, it is difficult! I kept reminding myself that if I ate them all right away I wouldn’t have any saved for the rest of the week.
I made something similar this weekend, energy butes are so convenient and delicious. I like to grind my oatmeal just a little, it makes the bites taste more like chocolate truffles.
Oh, that’s a great idea! I’ll have to try that out next time, because there will definitely be a next time.
I am always on the lookout for healthy, easy, and filling snacks to get me through the workweek. These look like they will fit the bill perfectly! YUM!
I hope you try them out!
Jenna, these are my fav energy bites so far. I’m still not eating sugar so I just took a small bite of one, but they are my favorites because Misha loves them. I love these because they have the dates and Flaxseed but the coffee taste is so good that Misha didn’t even notice they might be health 🙂
He asked if I would make them again. My friend was over last night and she asked for the recipe.
I was just thinking, I wonder what they would taste like without the honey. Any suggestions on what I could use that would sweeten without sugar or artificial sweeteners?
Hi Linda – I’m so glad you like them! And Misha too 🙂 Are you looking to avoid sugars and all sweeteners? Dates, honey, pure maple syrup, and fruits are all natural sweeteners that are good alternatives to sugar. I haven’t tried these without the honey, but I’m sure they would still be good, especially if you already have your palate accustomed to less sugar. If you do make them without the honey, let me know how they are!