5-Ingredient Golden Milk Snack Bites

GFVGVDFNS
Jump to Recipe
An overhead image of golden milk snack balls being dipped in shredded coconut with a dish of turmeric on the side

For a while now, I’ve been wanting to recreate the comforting flavors of golden milk in a portable snack.

I theorized a bar might work, but then remembered how very delicious my no-bake cake bites were and I couldn’t get my mind off of golden milk snack bites.

These 5-ingredient balls are packed with warming, anti-inflammatory spices like turmeric and ginger, naturally sweetened with maple syrup, grain- and gluten-free, and come together in about 20 minutes. Oh, and don’t forget the optional coconut butter swirl and “frosting.” Swoon!

Let me show you how it’s done!

An overhead image of ingredients for golden milk snack balls: maple syrup, hemp seeds, cashew butter, coconut flour, coconut butter, golden milk mix

These snack bites start with creamy cashew butter, which I consider one of the more neutral and creamy nut butters, making it an ideal base for this recipe. Need to avoid nuts? Check the ingredients section below for substitution ideas.

Next comes a heaping spoonful of my Golden Milk Mix for that warming golden milk* flavor, and a sprinkle of hemp seeds for added protein and essential fatty acids. Maple syrup adds a bit of natural sweetness, and coconut flour creates a moldable dough with a little added sweetness and coconut flavor.

*Note: learn about golden milk and its ancient history in India and Ayurveda here.

An overhead image of cashew butter being mixed into golden milk spices and maple syrup

Next you can add a dollop of coconut butter for a coconut swirl (optional) and then roll into balls. Enjoy straight from the pan, or refrigerate to chill.

An overhead image of golden milk snack bites being rolled into bite size balls with a blue tray underneath and mixing bowl to the right with cookie scoop

I opted to “frost” these with melted coconut butter. But you could leave them plain or roll them in shredded coconut as well!

An overhead image of golden milk snack bites being frosted with melted coconut butter

We hope you LOVE these bites! They’re:

Tender
Naturally sweet
Portable
Perfectly spiced
Quick & easy to make
& Sort of amazing

These would make the perfect on-the-go snack or healthier treat. I’ve been enjoying one with a cup of hot tea in the afternoon—it’s the perfect pick-me-up. While coconut butter is a delicious “frosting,” I could also see a drizzle of melted dark chocolate making these even more indulgent if you want to serve them as dessert.

Looking for more golden milk recipes? Check out our classic 5-Minute Vegan Golden Milk, Golden Milk Mix, Golden Milk Macaroons, and this fan favorite Golden Milk Smoothie!

If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo @minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!

A straight on image of golden milk snack balls stacked in a small pile with coconut butter and coconut flakes as frosting and garnish

5-Ingredient Golden Milk Snack Bites

Quick and easy, 5-ingredient snack bites with cashew butter, coconut, anti-inflammatory golden milk spices, and naturally sweetened with maple syrup.
Author Minimalist Baker
Print
Coating a Golden Milk Snack Bite in shredded coconut beside a tray with more bites
4.98 from 37 votes
Prep Time 20 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Servings 12 (Bites)
Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine Gluten-Free, Grain-Free, Indian-Inspired, Vegan
Freezer Friendly 1 month
Does it keep? 1 Week

Ingredients

BITES

  • 1/2 cup unsalted cashew butter (roasted or raw // can sub other neutral seed or nut butters, such as tahini or macadamia butter, but we haven’t tested those and can’t guarantee the results)
  • 2-3 Tbsp maple syrup (plus more to taste)
  • 2 Tbsp hemp seeds (or sub other fine seed or plain or vanilla protein powder*)
  • 1 Tbsp Golden Milk Mix (see note for individual spice quantities)
  • 1 Pinch sea salt (optional)
  • 1/3 cup coconut flour (or sub almond flour and add more as needed as it’s not as absorbent)

COCONUT BUTTER optional

Instructions

  • Add cashew butter to a medium mixing bowl along with maple syrup, hemp seeds, golden milk mix (or spices*), and salt (optional). Stir to combine.
  • Add coconut flour a little at a time until a firm cookie dough consistency is reached—not tacky, not crumbly, and moldable into balls.
  • Taste and adjust flavor as needed, adding more golden milk mix for spice/warmth, or maple syrup for sweetness.
  • At this point you can add softened/melted coconut butter and stir loosely into the dough for a swirl effect (optional). Otherwise, skip this step.
  • Scoop out 1 Tbsp amounts and gently roll into balls (as the recipe is written, there should be about 12). Repeat until all dough is formed into balls.
  • Enjoy as is, roll in shredded coconut, or refrigerate for 10-15 minutes to chill. If desired, after chilling, top with warmed (melted) coconut butter (see photo), then chill again to set (about 10 minutes).
  • Leftovers will keep stored in the refrigerator up to 1 week (sometimes longer), or in the freezer 1 month.

Video

Notes

*If using individual ground spices, add 2 tsp ground turmeric, 1/2 tsp ground ginger, 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/4 tsp ground black pepper, 1 pinch nutmeg (optional), 1 pinch clove (optional). Measurements are for recipe as written. Modify if adjusting serving size.
*Check out a round-up of our favorite vanilla protein powders.
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate calculated with lesser amount of maple syrup and without optional ingredients.

Nutrition (1 of 12 servings)

Serving: 1 snack bite Calories: 96 Carbohydrates: 7.5 g Protein: 2.9 g Fat: 6.5 g Saturated Fat: 1.6 g Sodium: 9 mg Fiber: 1.6 g Sugar: 2.9 g

Did You Make This Recipe?

Tag @minimalistbaker on Instagram and hashtag it #minimalistbaker so we can see all the deliciousness!

If you love this recipe...

Get Our Fan Favorites eBook Here!

Reader Interactions

Leave a Comment & Rating!

Have a question? Use ctrl+f or ⌘+f on your computer or the "find on page" function on your phone browser to search existing comments! Need help? Check out this tutorial!

My Rating:




  1. Ekim says

    Can report that it’s delicious with tahini and vanilla protein powder as suggested! Has more protein and amazing use of golden mix.

  2. Annie says

    These are an absolute delight. I can’t stop making them since I tasted my first batch! I subbed natural fresh ground peanut butter in lieu of cashew butter (based on what I had available) and I actually loved the nutty taste with the spice combination. As a variation, I also added a few chopped medjool dates (and added a bit less maple syrup). Thank you for another unique, delicious recipe!!!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Amazing! We’re so glad you’ve been enjoying them, Annie! Thank you for the lovely review! xo

  3. Core says

    I was checking out and have tried a number of your protein bite and bar recipes which got me thinking…could I maybe double this and turn it into bars, a la the 5 ingredient protein bars? Plop them in a loaf pan and freeze? Not sure how I would calculate nutrition exactly, but thoughts?

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      That’s a neat idea! Let us know if you try it! We like using Cronometer for calculating nutrition info.

  4. Amy says

    These snack bites are delicious! I used almond flour instead of coconut flour because it’s what I had on hand. I also swirled in the melted coconut butter instead of putting it on top. I’m always looking for excuses to use my jar of coconut butter and these treats definitely hit the spot!

  5. Elena says

    Made these are they are delicious, nutritious, and warming. They are soft to eat and truly taste like golden milk. I couldn’t get the coconut butter to work so I just rolled in shredded coconut and boom. I especially love you don’t need to blend or use a food processor to make these. These will definitely be on rotation.

    I did have to buy coconut flour and cashew butter but I was able to easily find the ingredients at my local and smaller Safeway.

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerDana @ Minimalist Baker says

      So wonderful! Thanks for sharing, Elena! Coconut butter can be tricky depending on your blending device. Our favorite brand of coconut butter is Ostara (stone ground). Pricey but definitely THE BEST.

  6. Lynne says

    These are delicious! And they’re a great way to satisfy that sweet urge – and get some protein! Could I sub almond butter for cashew?

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerDana @ Minimalist Baker says

      Whoop! You can sub almond butter but it does affect flavor and color quite a bit. Let us know if you try!

  7. Christina Gomez says

    Well these are super delicious! I doubled the recipe in order to make bigger bites. And used half hemp, half protein powder. I rolled them in puffed amaranth. So good!!

  8. Sophie K. says

    Dana, I just wanted to let you know that these bites helped fuel me this weekend for a 50 mile trail race, and they were fantastic!! Bomb flavor, perfect size. Thought I’d share an experience that is not your typical use case for your art. Thank you!

  9. Annie says

    These are incredible! I’m already on batch two and I’ll be making them on repeat. Love how they’re sweet but with a hint of savouriness…they’re really special. I made them basically exactly as described, but without the coconut butter, and have used both hemp seeds and flax seeds. A winner!

  10. Cam says

    Golden milk snack balls were my intro to golden milk and I can’t seem to stop myself! I’ve made them about 10 times and usually with some variation on ingredients for the fun of it.
    Cashew butter makes for the smoothest flavor, almond butter is also good and half almond-half sun butter to hide the sun butter flavor a bit. Peanut butter is different, but good if you’re expecting peanuts-I used more spice tho, to balance the flavors.
    Coconut flour and almond flour are the only flours I’ve experimented with. The ratios are different as you and others noted, and the texture, but equally eat-able!
    In double batches I’ve taken to adding about a tablespoon each of Maca powder and ground flax, adjusting the flour at the end for a good consistency.
    They are delicious topped with coconut butter and seriously addicting dipped in chocolate. Similar to Reeses if you use pb in the mix! I even tried a maple syrup glaze over coconut butter on the less-sweet batches. ??
    The only hiccup I ran into was due to impatience. In a hurry I threw everything in a bowl without measuring the coconut flour. I ended up with too stiff a consistency and other than adding maple syrup no way to loosen it up. I was out of ingredients but in those cases doubling the batch is my go-to.
    All told, the only problem with these is that they are too convenient to eat!
    Thank you, Dana!!

  11. AScott says

    I made this yesterday! Although I had to modify based on my ingredients: I used salted cashew butter and left out the pinch of salt. I also made my own coconut flour out of dried coconut flakes and that turned out more coarse than I had anticipated. The mixture was quite wet, it didn’t roll into perfect round balls as I had hoped for. But they are DELICIOUS! I brought them into work and 4 people have tried and like! I also rolled them in crushed raw un-toasted almond bits; the mixture was a bit too sweet for me (I used 3 tbsp of maple syrup, should’ve used 2), so I thought it would help balance out the flavor. Very excited to have a new snack (as well as Golden Milk mixture). It’s very rich though, I can eat about half of a little ball.

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hi, So glad to hear your enjoyed them! Reducing the maple syrup to 2 Tbsp should help with the texture and sweetness. We hope you enjoy them even more next time!

  12. JoAnn says

    Thank you for this amazing idea! I love your golden milk mix but I don’t like drinking so much milk. So this is a great way to enjoy it!

  13. Haley says

    This is a wonderfully easy snack to make. I brought these over to a friend’s house and it was a hit. Everyone asked for your recipe :)

  14. nicola says

    These were absolutely delicious! I made them for my friend who is suffering from multiple autoimmune disease flares & wanted to find something to help with the inflammation. He loved them. Thank you!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerDana @ Minimalist Baker says

      Ah, thanks, Nicola! So glad you enjoyed these. Next time you mind adding a rating to your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. xo!

  15. Carli says

    I made these with almond butter but otherwise followed the recipe exactly. They’re delightful! I’m a breastfeeding mama that has had to cut dairy for my allergic infant and am always looking for satisfying snacks. These were so quick to make and really hit the mark!

  16. Kelli says

    Thank you for this recipe! I can’t have any milks right now but wanted to try the spice mix so badly. I used sunflower seed butter (avoiding nuts right now) and ground flax for hemp seeds as per someone else’s suggestion. I only needed 2 Tbsp of coconut flour since the 2Tbsp of ground flax stiffened up the dough considerably.
    Yes you can taste the sunflower seed butter but I’m used to that. Rolled them in u sweetened coconut and now I want to eat the whole platter in one sitting :)

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Yum! Thanks so much for sharing, Kelli! We are so glad you enjoyed these! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! xo

  17. Arzu says

    Hi?I tried these with something called sesame paste, a thicker version of tahini. They are a ma zing❣️❣️
    For sweetness, I used date paste. I have not changed the measurements.
    I believe the magic is in your golden milk mix. I cannot get enough of it.
    Here is a little ? for you?

  18. Havah says

    I thought these turned out great! Will def make again and again … and again :) Made them with almond butter and subed vegan vanilla protein powder instead of hemp seeds.

  19. Sophie says

    Thanks for this recipe!
    I subbed cashew butter for tahini and coconot flour for almond flour and maple syrup for agave syrup. However, I would not recommend subbing cashew for tahini –> They turned out very bitter. :-(
    I tried countering the bitterness by adding more agave and more golden milk mix, but this only helped a little. Better luck next time ;-)

  20. Sierra says

    So yummy! I made these about 3 times last week ? a new favorite! So easy to stir together, no blender or food processor required, love that!

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerSupport @ Minimalist Baker says

      Hmm we haven’t tried and can’t say for sure. If you experiment with this recipe, report back on how it goes. Good luck!

  21. Gina Tate says

    I made these recently for a party food for friends who have a very strict diet for health reasons. I used hazelnuts as they were what I have on hand and ground them to replace the cashew butter. We dipped them in enjoy life melted chips and everyone thought they were great. I’m enjoying the undipped leftovers. I enjoy being able to get the benenfits of golden milk without the millk. Thanks for a great recipe idea.

  22. Kelly says

    These are absolutely delicious. I just love the spice combination, and I enjoy a different approach to consuming turmeric aside from either in the usual Indian/curry dishes or via a drink.

    I really enjoyed that I was able to put these together in a standard mixing bowl, as well. I’m so used to energy ball recipes requiring the use of my food processor (because they usually contain dates.) I even caught myself pulling out my food processor. Then I read the directions and said “Oh!” and put it back with some satisfaction.

    I wish I could say I made these exactly as the recipe stated, but I made a couple changes:

    1. I used plain, un-sweetened protein powder instead of hemp hearts (I just don’t like hemp hearts in sweet dishes. I feel they have a savory flavor that just doesn’t pair well with sweet.)

    2. I had to use almond flour as I didn’t have any coconut flour. I ended up adding about an extra 1/4 cup to get the consistency needed to form the balls (thanks for the warning!)

    3. While I was adding extra almond flour, I added a tablespoon of ground flax (in place of what would have been extra almond flour.) Did this just for the added omega 3’s. I also imagine they would be a decent replacement to the hemp hearts/protein powder if you wanted.

    4. I added about a teaspoon of vanilla extract. Because, vanilla. :)

    5. I used a store-bought brand of coconut butter for the swirl-in called Binnie’s Very Vanilla Coconut Butter. It’s pretty divine (but insanely expensive – between the cashew butter and this, these were some expensive little snack bites haha.)

    These were absolutely delicious. I plan to make them again. Maybe trying it out with less expensive almond butter the next go-around, and probably leaving out the coconut butter (unless I make my own.) But that cashew butter really makes ’em good. Cashews are just naturally sweet so they work so good with this recipe.

    Thank you for the inspiration!

  23. Frederique says

    Amazing recipe!!!!! I will absolutly make this again (and again and again and again)!!! My food processor isn’t very powerfull so the coconut butter wasn’t very buttery, but it still worked for this recipe :)

  24. Jessica Marquis says

    I am so making this tonight. I wonder how peanut butter would do here. I kinda feel like it would be too overpowering but might be a fun experiment!?

    Also, I bet that golden milk mix would be great for a golden themed bowl of oatmeal! Golden oats, would love to see your take on a recipe for that! :)

      • Jessica Marquis says

        Okay so I’ve made this twice and they were sooo good!! I did alter quite a few things though based on what I had.
        The first time I used sesame seeds instead of hemp seeds and oat flour instead of coconut (you do have to add a bit more but not much, maybe a tablespoon or so) and they turned out fantastic!
        The second time I used half chia half flax seeds instead of the hemp seeds, oat flour instead of the coconut flour and your caffeine free chai spice mix in place of the golden milk mix(I am such a sucker for chai spice and i couldn’t resist ?) and these were soooo goooood this way! Especially when rolled in cocoa powder! ?

  25. Mary says

    So, I have a confession. When I made my last batch (with the almond flour and almond butter), I fell in love. So did my neighbors! The spice mixture was reminiscent of an Italian spice cookie from my childhood. I have tried many attempts to make it but it just wasn’t special enough.

    I followed your gold milk bites again (with the almond flour and almond butter). I added unsweetened cocoa, a bit more maple syrup and some small vegan chocolate chips. I also added more clove as that was the spice that peaked my memory. They came out sublime. Thanks, Dana for giving me a memory of my childhood!

  26. Heather Page says

    Sorry I need some clarification — I jumped over to your Golden Milk recipe and wanted to double check — when you say use my Golden Milk Mix do you mean dry ingredients or all the ingredients from the recipe — make it and then use in this recipe. Sorry… silly question I just wanted to check because it would be great if you could make the mix ahead and have on hand and just add the oils and milk when ready to have a glass.

  27. Zora says

    These are fantastic! I made the recipe as written, using half vanilla protein powder (I use Bob’s Red Mill per your recommendation- love it!) and half hemp seed hearts, then rolled in shredded coconut. So easy, and so delicious! Planning to make them again this weekend, and will probably double the batch this time so I can freeze some for later. I also like the suggestion from Jan to add raisins in the center- yum! Thanks! :)

  28. Jen says

    Just made these yesterday – delicious and I love the texture! I kept it around 2.5 tbsp maple syrup and it was perfect. I plan to add cardamom to my next batch because I’m obsessed with it lately. Artisana brand raw cashew butter was great – no added sugar and nice and creamy! My first time using cashew butter and I’m a fan. Thanks for a great recipe!

  29. veg-a-cream says

    I have never try to make golden milk this way, but I have a nice idea for cooking it as a creamy meal and I’ll share the recipe on my veg-a-cream.com blog for some days. I wanna try your golden milk balls, but, unfortunately, I live in Poland and there is very hardly to find cashew butter and it’s very expensive ?

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerDana @ Minimalist Baker says

      Bummer! We’ve been to Warsaw and loved it. Didn’t realize cashews were difficult to find there. Hopefully you’ll still be able to use the recipe in other variations!

      • Agnieszka Gajda says

        Of course, I may try with very popular peanut butter! And I think, that Poland is a very strange-vegan country, because there is a lot of vegan restaurants and vegan options in menu the others (for example Warsaw is the second city, which has the most of vegan restaurants), but there is very few, almost no vegan products in the stores.

  30. Jan says

    Holy moly, these are just as divine as I was hoping. Used TJ cashew butter, almond flour (had no coconut flour) and added some vanilla protein powder. So flavorful! I hope they hold up in my pack for my bike rides. Otherwise I’ll probably just stuff them into dates which make a natural package. Did anyone else hear the tiny voice saying, “Poke some raisins into the center!” Wow, thank you Tiny Voice and Dana! Deeee-licious.

  31. Lisa*loo says

    I made this using almond flour (1/2 cup), sunflower butter and chia seeds, I doubled the golden milk seasoning, used 4TBS maple syrup and added a splash of vanilla extract. Delicious!! Super glad to have a ”portable” Golden milk snack! Thank you,Dana—your recipes are always fantastic!

  32. Franny says

    Just made these and they are lovely, Dana. I used Gaia Golden Milk Mix, and since I was short on cashew butter by about two tablespoons, I made up for it by adding a packet of Justin’s Maple Almond butter. I also used almond flour, and you were right, I needed about two more tablespoons to get the perfect consistency. I used a mini ice cream scoop and got about 15 bites. I rolled half of them in shredded coconut, and the other half I dipped in coconut butter. Since I used Artisana brand, it tends to be runnier than home made coconut butter. Thanks again, for yet another great recipe! I appreciate your hard work, dedication, and attention to detail. ?, Franny

  33. Kris Hanna says

    So, you don’t have to cook a cookie if it has coconut flour in it? Interesting. I think with regular flour, you have to cook it, or you could get sick…right? This blows my mind!

  34. Kate says

    Loved this! Used closer to 2.5-3 tbsp maple syrup, and about 1.5 tsp in my milk mix, and it came out great. Not too sweet but enough sweetness that I think many tastebuds can enjoy. I added more milk mix to it too, as the flour leaves it a bit drier and I wanted to try with more of the delicious ‘milk’. I also used a brand of coconut milk that is a staple for me but I’ll be trying with almond or almond x coconut next time. Only disappoint is these are tiny! I had to make two batches. You’ll get about 6-7 ‘regular’ sized balls, and since I made them again, around 9 smaller ones the other time.

  35. Emaleigh Downey says

    I used a scoop of NUZEST protein powder instead of coconut flour and they came out great! Love the flavor switch up to my usual snack bites!

  36. Nat says

    I think my 4 year old would love these! How much does the maple syrup affect the texture? I find cashew butter very sweet so wondering if I could leave out the syrup.

  37. Vasco Lourenço says

    I love simple recipes! Never tried cashew butter. I usually use cashews on salad dressings: they’re the best dressings I made. Have to blend some and try the butter. Thank you for the recipe!

  38. Mary says

    Fantastic! I just made them with a few changes. I didn’t have cashew butter so I substituted almond butter. I didn’t have coconut flour so I used almond meal (I needed about 1 cup, just like you said, Dana). I also added a pinch of orange zest. I already ate two on the way to refrigerate them. Wow!!! Thanks, Dana!

  39. Chrystal says

    I used tahini and brown rice flour because that is what I had at the house. They turned out so good! It was hard not to just eat all the mix before I put the coconut rolled ones into the fridge! What a great snack thank you for this recipe!

  40. Emily Koenig says

    Do you think I could sub in some chia seeds for the hemp seeds?? I haven’t used chia seeds too much so I wasn’t sure.

    Thanks!

  41. Haley says

    I used homemade cashew butter (plain, unsalted cashews blended in a Vitamix) and almond flour instead of coconut flour. I had to almost double the flour and the golden milk mix. Overall tasty and super simple and easy to make!

  42. AJ says

    A very quick recipe to make, and satisfying. Since I didn’t have cashew butter, I substituted the tahini as suggested. 2 thumbs up!

  43. Ashley Marie says

    These look amazing and I’m looking forward to trying them out. Also, thank you for thinking about those of us with but allergies. Such a simple thing but it makes my heart glad.

  44. Tesia says

    This looks WONDERFUL! Do you think I could do it with another kind of flour? I’m allergic to both almonds and coconut. Thanks!

  45. Susan Parker says

    Hello and I’m Susan Parker. I don’t particularly like using Maple Syrup as I’m a former Type 2 diabetic. However, because Dates are low on the Glycemic Scale as to the higher values in Syrups, would it be acceptable to sub the Dates (as in a Date Paste or Date Butter). I’m thinking the Cashew Butter and the Coconut Flour would need to be decreased just a bit to accommodate for the denser texture of the Date Paste/Butter as opposed to the Maple Syrup.

    I’m thinking of giving this a try tonight and seeing what the results look like.

    Also before in other recipes, ive cut back on the Coconut Flour and have sifted into it the Chick Pea Flour to add an extra boost of protein.

    • Avatar for Dana @ Minimalist BakerDana @ Minimalist Baker says

      I actually use Trader Joe’s brand, but it’s easy to make your own. Just blend roasted or raw cashews in a food processor or high speed blender until creamy, occasionally scraping down sides as needed.