Chocolate PB Energy Balls

Name: Chocolate PB Energy Balls
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 16 balls
Ingredients: 3/4 cup old-fashioned oats; 4 tbsp PB Fit Sugar-Free powder; 3 tbsp 100% cocoa powder; 3 tbsp semi-sweet chocolate morsels; 1 tbsp light brown sugar; 1 tbsp black chia seeds; 1/8 tsp salt; 1 cup raisins; 1 tsp vanilla extract; (approx.) 3 tbsp water

June 12, 2020 Frank Mastrandrea Comments 0 Comment

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Every so often along your weight loss journey, you discover a new food item which makes you wonder how you ever lived without it. I’ve been asking myself just that exact question since I put together this recipe for Chocolate PB Energy Balls.

This 73-calorie treat hits a sweet spot that other items miss. It’s a sweet treat, but it’s also healthy and low calorie, and at the same time it’s full of ingredients designed to make it satisfy not only a sweet tooth but a hunger craving as well.

It also takes fewer than 10 minutes to whip up a batch on your own, so there’s no reason not to give these a try and see if you agree!

Ingredients (Makes 16 balls)

3/4 cup old-fashioned oats
4 tbsp PB Fit Sugar-Free powder
3 tbsp 100% cocoa powder
3 tbsp semi-sweet chocolate morsels
1 tbsp light brown sugar
1 tbsp black chia seeds
1/8 tsp salt
1 cup raisins
1 tsp vanilla extract
(approx.) 3 tbsp water

Everybody in the Pool

Compared to baked treats, there is far less precision required in following a recipe such as this. Even so, there are a few techniques which will assure you will get the proper texture every time, and they are quite easy to follow.

In a food processor, combine all the dry ingredients: the oats, PB powder, cocoa, chia seeds, brown sugar, semi-sweet morsels, raisins and salt.

Blend the mix for 10-15 seconds until well mixed. When done, it should be a light brown color.

Look For the Stars in the Sky

I know this might sound odd, but the way I always know when this mix is just right, is when “the stars come out”

By “stars” I’m referring to the flecks of oatmeal. As mentioned, when first blended the mixture will be a uniformly light brown color. Now add the vanilla and the first tablespoon of water. Mix again. You will see it darken slightly, but it will still be a relatively uniform color.

When you add the second tablespoon of water (and mix again), you will start to notice a change, as you will BEGIN to notice the oatmeal flecks in the mix.

But add the third tablespoon (and mix again) and if it is ready you should suddenly see a dramatic change – the mixture should be dark with bright white oatmeal “stars” in the sky. If you squeeze a bit of it between your fingers you will feel that it will stick together nicely. Once you have that consistency and look, you are there!

Time to Get Rolling

The mixture should yield 16 balls. If you’d like to make them a bit smaller and reduce the calories then you can get 18, if you get overly ambitious you might get only 14 your first try… but on average you should aim for 16 balls.

I find setting out a piece of wax paper to be the best work space. I decant the mixture from the food processor into a big bowl, and then take a handful of the mix and squeeze and roll until I’m happy with the consistency of the shape and size.

As you get down towards the end, you can go back and add additional mixture to some of your smaller balls to make them bigger, or pinch off bits from some of your larger balls, etc. The goal is for all your balls to be approximately the same size.

Once done, transfer to an air tight container and refrigerate for at least two hours and they are ready to go! They are best kept in the fridge for as long as the last. In our house, a batch usually lasts 2-3 days, tops. I would imagine that based on the ingredients, there should be no problem keeping these in the fridge for up to a week if need be.

Substitutions

Many recipes of this type call for dates rather than raisins as the bulk ingredient, and you’re welcome to make that substitution here. Instead of 1 cup of raisins, I’ve used 10 of the large Medjool dates and found the taste, texture and nutritional info to be largely the same.

Dates typically have more moisture than raisins, so some people prefer using them as they yield a more chewy texture. On the other hand raisins are a lot easier to source than dates, so there’s that.

Personally I don’t taste much of a difference, but when I have made them both ways our son has a strong preference for the raisin version… so that is the way we go most of the time.

The other item you might not have readily available is the PB Fit powder. First of all, I’d highly recommend adding it to your pantry. It’s so much easier to work with in cooking than regular peanut butter, and you reduce your calories and sugars significantly.

That being said, if you’re in a pinch and you still want to make this recipe with regular peanut butter you can. Instead of 4 tablespoons of powder, you’ll use 2 tablespoons of peanut butter. Most likely you’ll find you only need 1 (if any) tablespoon of water at the end to adjust the consistency of the mixture. You will also need to adjust the calories based on the peanut butter you choose. Just an FYI.