Energy balls or energy bites or protein balls or whatever you want to call them. These damn delicious little things are the best to have around for a quick snack, sweet treat or to take them on the go instead of a bar.

My son loves all things cinnamon like ice cream, bagels and of course snickerdoodle cookies. So, I used cinnamon for the inspiration for this recipe hoping he would like them. Are all kids this hard to please? Really, I made these for his baseball tournament last weekend and they ended up being a big hit in the dugout. Don’t freak out, I asked about allergies before passing them around.

These bites only require a few steps and they have lots of goodness inside. I used chia seeds, which you can find out more on their nutrition benefits here and they contain dates for a natural sweetener. I made 2 versions, one with protein powder and one without. I use Vega Organic Proteins and Greens powder, which has stevia making the bites have a bit of sweetener aftertaste. Both are good, just a little different.

Cinnamon Energy Bites

Ingredients:

1 cup pitted dates (about 15)
1 cup nuts (I used almonds and cashews)
2 T nut butter (I used almond butter)
1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder or 1 scoop collagen protein (optional)
2 T chia seeds
1/2 t vanilla extract
1 t cinnamon plus more for coating
1/4-1/2 t sea salt
water
coconut sugar for coating (optional)

Directions:

Add nuts and dates to food processor and pulse until small crumbles.
Add nut butter, protein powder, chia seeds, vanilla, cinnamon and salt.
Add water 1 T at a time until ingredients are well blended and forms a paste. I used 4 T water with protein powder and 2-3 T without.
With wet hands, roll into balls.
Mix cinnamon with coconut sugar and roll ball in mixture if desired. Just do it!
Place balls on parchment lined baking sheet or plate and place in refrigerator to set.
Store in airtight container for 1 week.

I hope you enjoy these little bites as much as we do. Just don't forget to share =)

Lin