{Easy} Chocolate Chip Energy Bites

Happy Sunday, friends! 

Chocolate Chip Energy Bites

Yesterday, Janey had a volleyball tournament, and while I didn't go, I did pack some snacks to help keep them fueled throughout the day. Trailmix, bananas, PowerAde Zero, and Energy Bites. Ok, before you say it, yes, I realize that as 14 year olds, they would have loved to have the Doritos and Fudge Rounds I intentionally passed up at the grocery store... I just can't do it and live with myself. Besides, they will play much better if they have longer lasting energy from good, whole food sources. And let's be real, I'm just not buying junk food, I don't care who it's for...your kid sister, or mine. Needless to say, anytime I make something "healthy" I get pretty nervous that it will come out tasting like cardboard that even the dog won't eat. That happened once (Bella!). These energy bites are definitely not cardboard! They taste like the drop, boil cookies of my childhood but with way less sugar!

The original recipe is from Gimme Some Oven and I just love her site! Head on over there to find more recipes, including the Nutella Bite recipe I am going to try next weekend. I tweaked it a little, mostly because I just used things I already had. The chocolate chips are Ghirardelli because...well...once you find a good thing, stick with it! The honey is local honey from McCormick's bees because, again, I found a good thing. Once you try the flavor of local honey you will find that there is just no point in using store bought, mass produced honey. The local stuff is truly the Bee's Knees! Long ago, I wrote about some benefits of local honey if you're interested in learning more. I used sweetened coconut flakes simply because our local store does not carry unsweetened, so that added some unnecessary sugar. Lastly, I pretty much grilled the coconut on a skillet rather than waiting on it to toast. The finished product was downright, delish. So, without further ado...

Chocolate Chip Energy Bites

by Rainie Robinson

6077397

Ingredients (about 24 balls)

• 1 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/2 cup toasted coconut (preferably unsweetened)
• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter
• 1/2 cup flaxmeal
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Mix all ingredients until well combined.

Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes to make it easier to shape balls.

Roll the dough into roughly 2 inch balls each until all of mix is used.

Cover and refrigerate for an hour or more.

Enjoy!

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Nutritional Information:

If your recipe made 24 balls, each one contains about:

Calories: 91, Fat: 4.9g (3.1g are unsaturated, healthy fats), Carb: 8.9g, Fiber:1g, Sugar: 4.6g, Protein: 2.1g

Keep them in the refrigerator when you are not eating them and they are much better! They started to melt as soon as I took them out for their photoshoot. These make a wonderful grab n' go breakfast items, especially for kids. They are also perfectly pack-able snacks for field trips, tournaments or any other event where you may need sustainable energy... like life, in general. Enjoy!