Almond Joy Protein Bites

We tried these first over Christmas break and they are quick and easy tasty treats.

Make sure you always have a batch in the fridge or the freezer.  They’re great to eat before or after iou workout, as you are sitting in the car waiting for seminary to end, to send in kids lunches, or as a treat to fill your sweet tooth hankering. 

These protein balls are easily customizable. You can switch out the almond butter with any nut butter of your choice. You can also change the flavor by using different extracts or nuts/seeds in place of the mini chocolate chips.   If you don’t have the protein powder, no worries, don’t put it in.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup almond butter
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 tsp coconut or almond extract
• 1/4 cup milled flaxseed or protein powder
• 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 1/2 cups oats
• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

INSTRUCTIONS

• Combine almond butter, honey, extract, flaxseed and 1/4 cup coconut into the bowl of a stand mixer.  Mix well.
• Add oats and chocolate chips.  I didn’t have mini chips so I just chopped up a bunch of regular chips.Mix to combine.
• Use a mini cookie scoop to form balls.  This scoop
  Still seems a bit big.   Eye ball to whatever size you want. Roll balls in 1/2 cup coconut.
• If stacking, use parchment paper between layers.  Store in the fridge or freezer.

NOTES

You can use any nut butter in place of almond butter.

For a smoother, more cookie-dough-like texture, use blended oats or Kodiak Cakes flour in place of the oats.

If you're using all-natural almond butter, you may need to add a little more honey or melted coconut oil to help bind the protein balls together better (if the mixture seems dry and crumbly).