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    Home » Breakfast and Breads

    Healthy Hazelnut & Cacao Energy Balls

    September 4, 2019 by Garima@TLC 2 Comments This post may contain affiliate links

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    If you are a fan of chocolate desserts, you will love these healthy hazelnut & cacao energy balls. The complex flavor of these balls may remind you of chocolate brownies or cake; however, you will not experience the energy dip that comes about when eating a sugar-dense dessert.

    These no-cook, gluten-free, vegan bars come together in less than 30 minutes and you can store these in refrigerator for a week to enjoy as a snack or dessert.

    Dates make a healthy sweetener

    Dates offer a healthy alternative to processed white sugar to sweeten desserts, energy bars, etc. Dates have a much lower glycemic index compared to sugar. Glycemic Index (GI) of a food measures how carbohydrates affect your blood sugar levels. Foods with high GI, such as white sugar, cause blood sugar to rise too quickly accompanied by a quick crash. This is why you feel tired after eating a sugar-dense dessert or drinking a sugar-laden soda. In contrast, a food with low GI, such as dates, are digested slowly causing to release energy at a slower pace, which offers sustained energy over a long period. Moreover, while white sugar only sweetens, dates offer a number of health benefits as a bonus. In addition to being a good source of fiber, dates are also high in bone-protecting minerals such as calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, and potassium. (Stay tuned for a longer blog post on health benefits of dates).

    Meal plan this healthy hazelnut & cacao energy balls for snack and dessert

    These healthy hazelnut and cacao energy balls not only sooth a sweet tooth, but also truly live up to their name by providing energy. Commercially-available energy bars and balls are often too high in processed sugar, which fails to offer long-term sustained energy. Here are some tips to meal plan this recipe:

    • Put the ingredients on your grocery list.
    • Make it on a weekend or whenever you have some extra 30 minutes on your hand. You can refrigerate these balls for a week. You can also make multiple batches and freeze them in one-week supply portions. Then take out one batch every week. You can freeze these healthy hazelnut & cacao energy balls for up to four weeks.
    • I often eat two of these balls for breakfast, if breakfast running short on time to make breakfast.
    Healthy Hazelnut Cacao ENergy Balls  scaled

    Healthy Hazelnut & Cacao Energy Balls

    The complex flavor of these vegan, gluten-free, no-bake energy balls may remind you of chocolate brownies or cake; however, you will not experience the energy slump that comes about when eating a sugar-dense dessert.
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 5 mins
    Cook Time 15 mins
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine Global, Gluten-free, Vegan
    Servings 10
    Calories 123 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    • 1 cup sprouted quick-cooking oats (using sprouted oats highly recommended, but can use regular kind*)
    • 1/2 cup hazelnuts (can sub with equal amount almonds, lightly toasted or raw)
    • 2 tbsp raw cacao powder (or sub with equal amount pure cocoa powder)
    • 2 tbsp sun butter (can sub with equal amount almond butter)
    • 3 medjool dates (seeded, or any other variety)
    • 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 3 tbsp maple syrup**
    • 2 tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut
    • 1/8 tsp Pink Himalayan salt (preferably coarse crystals, optional)

    Instructions
     

    • Lightly toast, about 2-3 minutes, the hazelnuts over medium heat in an iron skillet. Alternatively, you can also toast hazelnuts in a toaster oven. Skip this step if using raw.
    • Start out by processing oats in a food processor***. Add toasted hazelnuts and process till the mixture attains coarse consistency.
    • Add dates, sun butter, maple syrup, vanilla extract, cacao powder, and Pink Himalayan Salt, and unsweetened shredded coconut. Process till the mixture comes together and forms a ball.
    • Take the mixture out in a plate and form into balls. Enjoy as a snack or dessert.

    Notes

    *If using regular oats, if it best to enjoy these healthy hazelnut and cacao energy bars infrequently as high amount of phytates in oats can hinder the absorption of essential minerals such as calcium, zinc, iron, and magnesium. 
    **vegetarian option-can sub with equal amount honey.
    ****I have not tried it yet, but you can also use a blender to make this recipe. 
    Make it heart healthy: Skip the unsweetened shredded coconut and Pink Himalayan salt. 
    Make it diabetes friendly: Omit the unsweetened shredded coconut and replace maple syrup with 3 dates+ 1tbsp sun butter or almond butter.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1oz (1 ball)Calories: 123kcalCarbohydrates: 15gProtein: 3gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 42mgPotassium: 143mgFiber: 2gSugar: 9gVitamin A: 112IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 42mgIron: 2mg
    Keyword Less than 30 minutes
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Suma

      September 21, 2019 at 7:58 pm

      The beauty of TLC's recipes are that even when an ingredient is left out or subbed with the best available option, the result is still so filling and tasteful.
      We subbed maple syrup with honey and the hazelnuts with almonds. It tasted awesome. The recipe was easy to follow and quick since its a no-bake. Thank you Garima!

      Reply
      • Garima

        September 24, 2019 at 1:26 pm

        Suma, Thanks so much for the kind remark and showing that being flexible is key to easy cooking!

        Reply

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