Chocolate Almond Butter Protein Balls
Posted Apr 14, 2016, Updated Jul 17, 2024
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Chocolate Almond Butter Protein Balls are made with 7 ingredients in 10 minutes. They are the perfect easy & healthy snack recipe. Also, these Almond Butter Energy Balls are paleo, gluten-free, dairy-free, date-sweetened & vegan.
These little balls of chocolatey bliss are crazy delicious and healthy! They’re paleo, gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan and are only sweetened with date. Simply almonds, dates and a few other ingredients come together beautifully to make a healthy treat to satisfy your sweet tooth.
Everyone in my family LOVES these Almond Butter Energy Bites. My husband, who usually doesn’t care for my “healthy” treat options, raves about these. However, My kids think I’m feeding them cookies for a snack. And, I like to enjoy them in the silence that follows all of my babes settling in to their nap/quiet time in the afternoon.
Chocolate Almond Butter Protein Balls: Substitutions
As always I recommend making this recipe exactly as it’s written. But here are a few notes on substitutions:
- Almonds: To keep these balls raw choose raw almonds. 1 cup of any nut variety will work in this recipe. To keep it paleo make sure you choose almonds, cashews, pecans or walnuts (i.e. no peanuts)!
- Almond Butter: Any variety of nut or seed butter will work in this recipe. My two favorites are almond butter and cashew butter. Just be sure to choose a variety that meets your dietary needs.
- Almond milk: Any variety of non-dairy milk can be used with delicious results. Also, I’ve used coconut milk and cashew milk in this recipe.
How to Make Almond Butter Protein Balls
Process Nuts & Dates Together
First when making paleo energy balls, always start by processing the dates and nuts together. These are the two most difficult ingredients to process, so it’s important to be sure that they’re finely ground and mixed well before adding the rest.
Add the Rest of the Ingredients.
After the nuts and dates are processed well, add the rest of the ingredients and process for about 60 seconds.
Make the Almond Butter Energy Balls
Next, process the ingredients for 30-60 seconds. The mixture will begin to clump together. At this point, it’s time to stop processing because the it is ready to be formed into balls.
like to keep these Chocolate Almond Butter Energy Bites small (about 1 TBS of mixture per ball), but you can make them any size you like.
Be careful because you do not want to over-process this mixture or the energy bites will turn out greasy. The picture below shows how the optimal “clumpiness” you are looking to achieve for energy bite perfection.
Add a Drizzle or Coating
Finally, you can leave your Chocolate Almond Butter Energy Bites bare, or you can drizzle them with extra almond butter, roll them in coconut, etc.
Store/Freeze
Store these almond butter protein balls in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks or in the freezer for up to two months.
Almond Butter Energy Balls Recipe FAQs
Yes! Energy balls are full of healthy fats, fiber, and protein.
Yes, I suggest storing them in the refrigerator so they stay fresh for longer. They can be eaten at room temperature or packed in a lunch box, etc. for a day.
If your protein balls aren’t sticking together well then add some more moisture, in this case I’d suggest adding more almond butter.
If you make and love our recipes, it would mean so much to me if you would leave a comment and rating! And don’t forget to follow along with us on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, and Youtube – be sure to tag @joyfoodsunshine and use the hashtag #joyfoodsunshine so we can see your creations!
Chocolate Almond Butter Protein Balls
Ingredients
- 2 cups pitted dates
- 1 cup almonds
- 2 Tablespoons almond butter
- 1 Tablespoon almond milk
- 2 Tablespoons cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Line a baking pan with wax paper, set aside. (These will not be baked! This is where the bites will be placed after they are rolled into balls).
- Put dates and almonds in the container of a food processor fitted with the “S” blade. Process until mixture is resembles a coarse meal and is uniform throughout.
- Add the rest of the ingredients (almond butter, almond milk, cocoa powder, vanilla and salt) to the food processor and process until the mixture just starts to clump together. (Do not over process here or the bites will become oily).
- Roll 1 TBS portions of the mixture into balls and place them on the prepared baking sheet.
- Place the baking sheet lined with energy bites into the refrigerator or freezer for 30-60 minutes or until they are firm.
- Transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator or freezer.
Video
Notes
- Almonds: To keep these balls raw choose raw almonds. 1 cup of any nut variety will work in this recipe. To keep it paleo make sure you choose almonds, cashews, pecans or walnuts (i.e. no peanuts)!
- Almond Butter: Any variety of nut or seed butter will work in this recipe. My two favorites are almond butter and cashew butter. Just be sure to choose a variety that meets your dietary needs.
- Almond milk: Any variety of non-dairy milk can be used with delicious results. I’ve used coconut milk and cashew milk in this recipe.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
These were delicious! Even a hit with my finicky 6 year old. Better than candy any day.
These are seriously amazing. And easy! Already planning my second batch. Thank you for sharing!
These are my favorite of all of Laura’s energy ball bites! Will definitely make again!
Just made these!!! THEY ARE DELICIOUS! Thank you so much!
Energy balls are perfect for after running or exercise and these would be perfect! The husband is always peckish after a cycle and peanut butter is one of his fav’s!
These should good enough that your cave man, “don’t do weird ingredients”, Dad is going to give them a try.
Woo Hoo! Go dad! Also….let’s distinguish between “weird” and “healthy.” 😉 If you can buy it at Trader Joe’s it’s fair game in my opinion… 🙂
Aww, potty training! I remember those days 🙂 I have a boy & a girl as well, so I also recall how different it was for each of them, hoping it goes smoothly for your little guy! Also, love this recipe, Pinned & Yummed, thank you for sharing!!
Thank you Angela! Yes…potty training is hilarious and disgusting all at once! LOL! It IS amazing how differently boys and girls are! My daughter was begging to be potty trained before she was 2…and my son is almost 3 and just jumping on the potty train! 😉 Have a great day! 🙂
I love energy balls like this – such a great healthy way to snack with some extra good nutrition! Pinning and Stumbleing!
Thank you Ilka! I love having healthy nutritious snacks on hand! 🙂 Have a great day!
I am so excited about this…I have every single ingredient in my pantry already! My son has recently started cooking and I think he can probably handle this recipe by himself. Thanks so much for sharing at Inspiration Thursday (and for giving me something to keep an eight year old busy for a while!)
These are SO SO fun to make with kids! Mine love to push the buttons on the food processor and roll them into balls! 🙂 It’s a little messy but oh so worth it! I hope you and your son enjoy them! 🙂
We love eating apples with almond butter, so I bet we will love these energy bites! I love snacking so it’s important for me to keep healthy things like this in the house so I don’t eat junk food!
I agree! Having healthy snacks on hand is so important! I love knowing I have these on hand to keep us energized throughout the day! 🙂