Remember my 4-Ingredient No Bake Cookie Bars? Yeah, they’ve been revived and made into a PB-stuffed truffle. Sound good? Trust me, they are.
The concept for this recipe came after a serious craving for no bake cookies and I decided to make a batch of my no bake cookie bars and roll them into balls. After a taste, I decided they needed a bit more saltiness so I dipped them in peanut butter.
Enter thought: oh my goodness they need a PB center. The rest is history.
Despite looking somewhat complex, this recipe is actually quite easy to make. I simply whipped up a batch of my peanut butter pattie dough and a batch of my no bake cookie bars and then rolled the two together!
The result was a no bake cookie truffle with a salty peanut butter center. These could certainly pass as a healthier dessert, snack or pre- or post-workout bite as they have the perfect balance of carbs, protein and sweet.
Also, I have one more idea for how you could consume these, but you’ll have to wait until the next post to see what it is…
- PB Centers
- ¼ cup rolled oats (GF for gluten free eaters)
- 2 pitted dates
- ½ cup raw almonds
- ½ cup roasted salted peanuts
- ½ cup roasted, salted natural peanut butter
- No Bake Cookie Shell
- 18 pitted dates (deglet nour or medjool)
- 3 Tbsp natural, salted peanut butter
- ½ cup dark chocolate chips (non-dairy for vegan)
- ½ cup rolled oats (GF for gluten free eaters)
- To make the PB centers, add your oats to the food processor and mix until small pieces remain. Then add 2 dates and process again until only small bits remain. Remove from processor and set aside.
- Next add almonds and peanuts to the food processor and mix until they turn to meal – a few small chunks are OK.
- Next add peanut butter to the nut meal and pulse until well combined. Then add dates and oats back in and process until the mixture forms a loose dough. If it seems too wet to handle, add more oats. If it seems too dry, add a few more dates.
- Scoop out small handfuls of dough and form into small balls – about 1 tsp. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet and pop in the freezer to harden for 15 minutes.
- In the meantime, prepare your “no bake cookie” shell by pulsing 18 dates in a food processor until only small pieces remain; about 15 generous pulses.
- Add oats, chocolate chips and peanut butter and mix until well combined. You want there to be consistently small pieces but not overly processed.
- Fetch a few of your PB centers from the freezer at a time and scoop out enough no bake shell to cover them – about 1 Tbsp. Flatten the no bake cookie dough and then drop a PB center on top (see picture). Then carefully form the no bake shell around the pb center, adding more no bake layer as needed. Slightly wet your hands to help them stick and form into a ball. You will have leftover PB center.
- Place back on cookie sheet and pop back in the freezer for 15 minutes to set. Will keep fresh in an air-tight bag or container for up to a week. Store in fridge or freezer to keep for longer.
Averie @ Averie Cooks March 16, 2013 at 5:58 am
Pinned! Pb + Choc = best combo ever!
Reminds me of all the balls and bites I’ve made over the years. I have one that’s sort of like this and uses a pretzel-peanut butter filling, wrapped in PB cookie dough, dipped in chocolate.
Love yours! And the step by step shots are great!
Melissa @ My Whole Food Life March 16, 2013 at 7:02 am
OMG these look so good! I am a big fan of the no bake cookies using dates as well. I am going to have to try this. Thanks for the recipe. :)
Caitlin March 16, 2013 at 7:47 am
clever, lady! love it!
Christal@NutritionistInTheKitch March 16, 2013 at 11:10 am
Yum, delicious treats made with whole unrefined ingredients, I’m in! :)
Tammy March 16, 2013 at 9:13 pm
As my husband runs a peanut butter plant it feels like a no-brainer that I “need” to make these. They look amazing!
Tammy
Hannah March 17, 2013 at 7:10 am
I made these today, and oh my goodness, they are unbelievable. They taste exactly like no-bake cookies. SOOOOO delicious.
Stephanie @ Girl Versus Dough March 17, 2013 at 10:03 am
How did you know that this was EXACTLY what I was craving today? ;) So much yumminess going on here!
Kathryn March 17, 2013 at 11:27 am
Oh you are just too good. These look like the perfect little pick me up.
Sarah March 17, 2013 at 10:24 pm
These look amazing. All too easy to munch one after another whilst sitting at my desk, I think! Eh – it’s a risk I’m willing to take.
Jessica@AKitchenAddiction March 18, 2013 at 9:59 am
This is the perfect combination! Love that they’re no-bake, that way I don’t have to wait to eat them! :)
M March 18, 2013 at 3:07 pm
Looks amazing best combo ever!!! Love the idea!!
Amanda @ Once Upon a Recipe March 18, 2013 at 3:52 pm
Yes, puh-lease. These look like heaven!
Helen V March 18, 2013 at 7:41 pm
I just made these and am in love! I made 1/2 just as the recipe was written and then added a little honey to the pb/almond mixture and rolled them with the chocolate mixture in the middle. So very delicious! I think I may have found my after workout snack. Thanks!
Andrea March 18, 2013 at 9:54 pm
These were deeeeelish!!!
Abby @ The Frosted Vegan March 19, 2013 at 1:22 pm
I love these are no bake and pb chocolate!
Angela2BPecked March 19, 2013 at 1:24 pm
How many balls is one serving? This information helps me figure out how I add it into my calorie count for the day.
Dana March 19, 2013 at 2:18 pm
One ball is one serving. I tried noting it in my recipe box but it somehow keeps deleting it! Sorry. I’ve also adjusted the calories a bit to reflect only using 1/2 of the peanut butter center dough, so it’s more accurate now. Hope that helps!
Angela2BPecked March 19, 2013 at 2:46 pm
Thank you, for the quick response! :D
Karen March 20, 2013 at 2:42 pm
So glad I saw this – I printed out your recipe for the bars the other day and planned on making them today. But I might go bite-size instead. Can’t wait! Thanks.
Julie and Brit @ twosaucysisters.wordpress.com March 21, 2013 at 4:54 pm
Holy. Yum. We just made these today, and they’re soooo good! We’ve made plenty of [ahem] balls before, but we never thought of making a ball within-a-ball! What a great idea, wish we had thought of it! ;) Oh well, can’t have all the good ideas, right? Thanks for the incredible recipe!
Sammy Tee March 26, 2013 at 10:41 am
WOW! These look so amazing and delicious, and easy enough for a college student (like me) to do without spending a lot of money. I’m going to use my peanut butter made with coconut oil instead to get a nice coconutty flavor into it too.
I wonder how bad it would be for me if I put these on a stick and dipped them into white chocolate..
Magi April 5, 2013 at 8:12 pm
I’m vegan and GF and can’t do oats at all – gf or otherwise – any substitution ideas? Looks nummy…
Dana April 5, 2013 at 10:13 pm
I’d suggest just adding more nuts and leaving out the oats entirely. They’re simply for fiber and texture. But just compensate with more nuts to get the “grittiness” you’re looking for to achieve a “dough.” Hope that helps!
Julia April 19, 2013 at 5:24 pm
These are sooo yummy! Made them last night!
Nikki May 7, 2013 at 11:03 pm
Random question. What font is the “no bake cookie” part of the “PBS-stuffed no bake cookie ” picture in?? I’ve been looking for that font:). Thanks. Also, I’m about to try these cookies:)
Dana May 8, 2013 at 11:40 am
The font is blackout and in that photo it’s simply reversed!