If you often make lunchboxes for your kids to bring to school, you know the importance of healthy snacks, like my Carrot Cake Energy Balls, Coconut Energy Balls, Lemon Energy Balls. These Nut-Free Energy Balls are the best and they fit are great if your school have a nut-free policy. They are packed with a blend of healthy fats, proteins, and fiber from plant-based ingredients that kids love. Plus, they are very versatile, and you can create a range of flavors and textures by changing just a few ingredients. So let me share how to make this easy healthy nut free snack.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Here are the basic ingredients you need to make these no-bake nut-free balls:
Natural Sunflower Seed Butter – You need sunflower seed butter with no added sugar, no added oil, or salt. Tahini works as well to make nut-free energy bites, but it adds a lightly bitter flavor. Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats or quick oats. If you don’t want to add ground flaxseeds in the next step, then use quick oats. It has a thinner texture and it holds into balls without the flaxseeds. Ground Flaxseeds, ground chia seeds, or oat flour. Maple Syrup or any liquid sweetener you love, like agave syrup, coconut nectar, or sugar-free syrup such as monk fruit syrup. Mix-In – You can add any seeds like pumpkin seeds, hemp heart, or shredded coconut. Or try adding dried fruits like cranberries or chopped Medjool dates for a boost of sweetness. Sea Salt – If sunflower seed butter is unsalted. Mini Chocolate Chips
How To Make Nut-Free Energy Balls
It’s so easy to whip up a batch of these healthy snacks. You don’t even need a food processor, or fancy kitchen tools, just a bowl and a few ingredients.
Storage Instructions
These Nut-Free Energy Balls store very well in the fridge – for about one week in a sealed glass container. You can freeze this healthy nut-free snack and simply thaw a ball at room temperature for 3 hours before eating or overnight in the fridge.
Serving
These Nut-Free Energy Balls are great after or before a cardio workout to give quick energy to your muscles. You can use them as in a kid’s lunch box. If your school has a nut-free policy, look at my allergy swap options below.
Allergy Swaps
This recipe is easy to adapt to any dietary requirement:
Gluten-Free – to make this recipe vegan and gluten-free, pick a gluten-free oat brand. Sugar-Free – Replace the maple syrup with sugar-free maple syrup made from Monk fruit. It adds fiber to the recipe, so it dries out the mixture quickly. As a result, you may need a bit more syrup to combine the ingredients. Also, skip the dried fruits and use nuts, seeds, or sugar-free chocolate chips.
Flavoring Ideas
You can create a range of different no-bake oat balls with this recipe. You can change the seed butter to tahini, pumpkin seed butter or chickpea spread. Next, change the mix-ins. Below are my favorite combinations:
Dark chocolate chips and shredded coconut Trail mix flavor – Dark chocolate chips, dried cranberries, and pumpkin seeds. Dried banana chip pieces and hemp heart. Freeze dried raspberries and white chocolate chips.
Below are my answers to your most common questions about these oatmeal balls.
More Healthy Oat Recipes
Oats are the cereal of the future since they are better for the planet and high in fiber and proteins to keep your energy levels stable throughout the day. Here are some more oat recipes for you:
