No-Bake PB & J Energy Bites

As with all of The Minimalist Baker recipes this is easy and tasty. Love these for a quick bite or meal

I have been making these energy bites for years, they are the only accompaniments my son will take in his lunch box that aren’t a packable processed simple carbohydrate. I love that they are nutrient dense and a healthier option. I have made them with slight variations that really don’t work. Always! use creamy peanut butter. Chucky doesn’t have the same sticking power. I haven’t used other fruits, so I am no help there. I’ve subbed honey for maple…ONCE. It’s just ok, maple is the preferred sweetener. Don’t forget the protein powder, it throws off the wet to dry ratio. And my last and final tip – NEVER, I mean never use quick oats. They also throw off the wet:dry ratio and make the crumbliest energy bites ever. No bueno.
Bonus Tip: I use a 1-ounce scooper (w/the flipper that empties it) to make uniform sized bites, it usually yields 15 bites. I hope this helps, and happy baking/cooking!! ;)

These are delicious! I didn’t have chia seeds so substituted sesame seeds, used dried prunes as the fruit and added in freeze-dried davidson plum powder to add a fruity tartness.

This is one of the best recipes I have ever made!!!!!!!

I don’t normally comment on things like this, but I just want to let whoever is ready this know that this recipe is so good I’m actively sharing it with everyone I know. This is the best snack I’ve ever had.

Easy and delicious! Made with freeze dried cherries which add a light crunch. Perfect snack for when I am craving something sweet.

I just made these for an alternative to the date based protein balls (which I love btw). It is a good way to hide flax as the maple syrup gives just the right sweetness. And I did use dark chocolate chips since that was all I had on hand, though I will have to try them with dried blueberries. That sounds amazing. I did have difficulty rolling them into balls as they were too dry. Maybe use a smaller oat flake?? Mine are quite large and “robust”. But I guarantee they won’t last long in the freezer. Haha. Thanks for the great recipies.

I was looking for a super easy energy bite recipe that didn’t need a food processor, and this is it! I had all of the ingredients except protein powder. They were a little sticky but the bites stayed together nicely after a trip to the fridge. Perfect PB&J combo, especially with the dried blueberries!

I made this and it was really good. Used raisins and it turned out great.

I love, love, love this recipe! I use chocolate chips instead of dried fruit. It’s my go-to for a super easy, healthy treat. :) Thank you!

Another magical winner. We didn’t have dried fruit so I mixed 50/50 dates and some strawberry jam. They turned out amazing. Thank you, Dana!

I’ve been making these on repeat for my son who has been looking for healthier snacks that provide some fuel for his sports practices but still feel like a treat. He is learning more about how to make wise choices that taste good but make you feel good, too (something his mom and dad are still working to learn!) – this recipe is the perfect example for him. I’ve made 25+ recipes from this site – almost all winners – but this is in my top three. Thank you! (PS I use a chocolate protein powder and do everything just as written – occasionally a batch feels a bit dry so I just drizzle in a little syrup and it comes right together!)

We used to buy protein “balls” from a meal prep store and thought they were OK. I was looking for something similar that I could make at home. I did not modify a thing when I made these. They took me all of 5 min to make and I brought some to my dad’s office as a surprise. My dad and husband LOVED these! I will be making these again soon! Thank you!

Great base recipe that can get creative with…different dried fruits, whatever nuts and seed that trip your trigger…love this, will make it often.

I work at 12 everyday. This morning, after working out and showering and getting ready, I realized I only had 25 minutes to make and eat some food before I had to be at work. I knew there was no way in heck I could swing that. So, I googled “15-minute vegan energy bites,” and because the Internet, and minimalist baker, is glorious, this was the first result. It took me less than 10 minutes to throw everything together, I popped it in the fridge, and finished some other things I had to do while they chilled. I took a bite and HOLY FRICK. These are good. I mean, REALLY, really, good. I, someone who does not even like sweet things in the morning (or ever) is sold. I not only have a way to start using my protein powder (smoothies are yuck), I have also found my new quick breakfast, as well as a snack for our upcoming road trip! Cheers to minimalist baker ?‍?

These are gorgeous. I used nip & nut cherry bakewell almond butter (sadly limited edition) that might have taken them to the next level!
How these could last in the fridge for a week is a mystery to me. I offered them to my kids and hubby and they are almost all gone. Next time I’ll do a double recipe and hide some so I can enjoy them for a few days :p

I made these with my toddlers and they were shoving the mix into their mouths before we could even get them formed into balls. We used dried cherries and raw almond butter plus a little pink Himalayan salt. Can’t wait to try with different fruits and/or cacao nibs. Great recipe and great for little kids!

Very tasty and very easy! I did not use the protein powder and otherwise followed the recipe, using raisins as the dried fruit since they were readily available. I must have been cautious with my scoops because I ended up with 18 balls, but I don’t see a problem with that! :) I’ve got 10 of them freezing, 7 in the fridge, and ate one right away to confirm they were good. They’ll be an awesome snack at work!

So flavorful, quick, and easy! I used the Bob’s Red Mill Vegan Vanilla Protein Powder (which I really like) and dark maple syrup. It ended up quite sweet, but still good. I’m storing the bites in the freezer because I like the frozen no-bakes texture.

These were so tasty and easy to make! So much cheaper than store-bought energy bites, too. Can’t wait to enjoy these for my morning snack during the week!

These energy bites are delicious! I didn’t have any dried fruit on hand, so instead I used organic dark chocolate chips. PB+chocolate is the best combo ever! Will definitely keep making these.

This is one of my kids and my favorite recipes ever! So good, so filling and so delish! Thanks

I’ve used Quaker Instant oatmeal with Apple added some raisins and it worked great. Along with rest of ingredients it called for.

Delicous and so easy!! I used peanut butter and dried cherries. Great combination.

Huge hit with my daughter so we have made them again and again….

Sweet and easy! I’m always looking for quick snacks in the morning when I’m on the go. If you love peanut better, this is the recipe for you!

I’ve made these twice and they turned out so well both times. I used natural peanut butter instead of the creamy stuff, added half a teaspoon of salt to make up for that sub, substituted honey for the maple syrup, and skipped the protein powder because I didn’t have any. The only thing I found was I had to keep them chilling in the fridge for a bit longer than 5 minutes, about 10 did the trick. They got pretty sticky once the mixture warmed up. That might have been because of the swaps I did. A great recipe, thanks!

Im so glad I found this recipe! Its always so exciting when you have all of the ingredients (or most) on hand already. I used raisins for the dried fruit but I didn’t have flaxseed meal but just added a little bit more Bobs Redmill protein powder and they were scrumptious! I was thinking of adding a couple balls to my almond banana shake in the morning too!

Thanks for all your great recipes!

Made these this weekend. I subbed dates for the syrup and tossed them in the food processor for a minute, then rolled them in hemp seeds for a little extra protein. They were so delicious and were perfect little energy boosts when we started flagging on our 17 mile hike! Thank you!!

I own a fitness studio and made these for all of my staff — everyone loved them! Perfect blend of salty and sweet, and love that we get protein in every bite. I’ll definitely be making these again.

I just gave this a go. So simple and delicious. Thanks ! :)

Just gave this recipe a go. Really simple and tasty. Thanks :)

Loved these! Would be best to use fresher jar of almond/peanut butter as the oil would help these stick together better. I used the bottom of the jar, so these were a bit drier but were great when eaten straight from the fridge.

Just made these, and they are FABULOUS. Used Enjoy Life chocolate chips instead of fruit. My son and husband keep asking me for “one more”…..and then “just one more”…….and then “this is the last one”. Thanks for this fantastic recipe!

Aloha, Dana!
Great recipe to satisfy a sweet tooth!! I added dried cherries and some vegan chocolate chips… O.M.G! Also had to sub honey since I wrongly thought I still had maple syrup on hand. Came out delicious and I am super excited to try a bunch of variations in the near future!
Thanks again,
Alli

Yum! Definitely needed to add honey (we’re not vegan) to our batch :)

Just made these! Haven’t even formed into balls yet but I couldn’t resist trying them. Yum! I used Honey because we are not vegan and I added some dates I had left over. So easy and good!!!!

Do yourself a favor and make these!!! Yes yes and yes. They are perfect. YUM!

I love these :) I just made these yesterday – they formed perfectly and taste amazing. I’m going to have one before my workout this evening and try one of your smoothies for afterward.

Awesome recipe!

These are my new favorite things in the entire world. You are a genius. Your recipes are like 80% of my diet. People say “oh it must suck to be dairy and wheat free” NOPE

I used half peanut butter, half almond butter. It’s delicious and so easy! Perfect little sweet snack at work!

Just made these today with cranberries, Orgain vanilla protein powder, an for two tablespoons wheat germ (since was a little wet). They are amazing and will be a staple from now on! I agree with the person above regarding nutritional info – I think it’s a little under estimated…just FYI to anyone counting calories/points. They are too good!

So easy to make & very delicious! :)

Made these, and ever since, always have home-made power balls (that’s what we call them in our house) of some sort in the fridge ready to go. We use peanut butter or almond butter, lots of seeds and nuts, sometimes raisins, sometimes chocolate chips, vegan protein powder, coconut, honey or maple syrup…the combinations are endless. Thank you!

Dana, you have a way of making simple ideas work well. This is really fantastic. It’s pretty much a granola bar in ball form, if you think about it. I used to make your granola bar recipe all the time (with the toasted almonds and all), and it’s delicious but kind of a pain. This, while not quite as good because of the “fake” taste of the protein powder, is significantly easier to throw together (and I had all the ingredients in my pantry already). I will probably start making batches of these for my kids and me to use as quick snacks.

I used raisins and Bob’s Red Mill vanilla protein powder. I would probably prefer a different dried fruit but raisins are what I had :) I thought about using chocolate chips but there’s a certain element of oatmeal raisin cookie to them that I quite like. I followed the recipe exactly and did have to add a bit more PB and maple syrup to make them sticky enough. When I make more I’ll play around with the flavors — there are a lot of possibilities!

I made this with honey instead of maple syrup and they turned out delicious!

I didn’t have protein powder or wheat germ, but made them without those. I used dried cherries and added a handful of chocolate chips at the request of my son. We loved them! These are so much better than buying granola or protein bars! Thanks for another great recipe.

I’ve been enjoying these with my tea every afternoon at work-if I only bring one, I can’t over indulge! These are fabulous, love your recipes.

Just made them!!! DELICIOUS!!!! Cant stop eating :)

I love all your recipes! Thank you so much for sharing <3

Hi this recipe was fantastic! I added mashed banana and some dairy free chocolate chips and wow we all left it thanks so much for sharing!

These were excellent! FYI – I used date syrup in place of maple syrup (exact same amount) and it worked perfectly.

I loved this recipe! I made it and everyone at home and at work really enjoyed it. It’s easy to make (it doesn’t get any easier than that, really!!), it’s quick, simple and healthy ingredients and it’s tasty!!

Fantastic as usual! Thank you Dana.

These are blowing my mind right now. I’ve ate 2 and want more…
I used almond butter and golden raisins.

I made these bad boys last night, super easy and quick to throw together. I’m excited to give some other add on ingredients a try! Used Vanilla Vega Sport Performance protein powder and everything blended together very well. Another hit Dana!

Just wanted to say I tried these out whilst out mountain biking and not only are they delish they do seem to sustain your energy as well.

Thanks

My 3 year old couldn’t stop eating these ? But neither could I! ?

Thank you, Dana! We have been trying to eat down our pantry and this was perfect! My roommates and I recently merged homes, so we have like 3 jars of peanut butter with 1/4 cup left in 2 of them.

I served them as an evening snack with some leftover jellies, such as traditional grape. But blueberry was tasty as well as raspberry. Could almost roll these into balls then do the thumbprint which leaves a perfect place for a dollop of jelly to serve (idea cred to my roommate, d’A)

I also used vanilla flavored protein powder so it was super rich with the maple powder. Next time I will try to change the protein powder (or incorporate maca root powder?) or just add more peanut butter to tone down the sweetness.

We used golden raisins, so delicious!

I’m thinking next time I will try some chopped nuts of some sort .. almonds? Sunflower? Crunchy peanut butter would be great way to add texture too!

Was wondering if these are bake-able?

Cheers!

Just whipped these up, delicious guilt free treat. Love all of your recipes ?

Made this with my 5 year old niece and she suggested adding sliced almonds and some
raisins and it was great! So easy – thank you!

Just made them they are healthy tasty and very delicious treats. I used maca powder and dried goji berries. It’s a super healthy treat packed with goodness.
Thanks for the recipe Dana.

My little girls loved these like they were cookies ? So simple and healthy. I also made your curry lentil & potato soup the other day. My family loved both. So happy I found your site, I’ve recommended friends visit too.

Thank you!

These are absolutely amazing and very easy to make. Anyone to bakes/cooks often will have all of these ingredients in the cabinets! Perfect Vegan snack to add into my diet!

Read this and was instantly back in the kitchen. Delicious!

Yummy! I added a teaspoon of flax, since I wasn’t too sure if I’d like the flavor. Next time I’ll add more. I have a lot of protein powder (SunWarrior: Vanilla) that I don’t regularly use, but with these protein balls I’ll definitely be using it now! I can’t wait to use it all up, and someday buy the Bob’s from your review!

Yum! Used pb2 powdered peanut butter and these turned out fantastic.

I forgot to rate it…5 stars definitely and so many variations possible. Is great for kids.

I cheated and through all of it in the food processor and then rolled in flax and hemp seeds. So good! The only problem is it’s hard to just eat 1:-)

Thanks Dana!

Just moments after I read this recipe, I was up at the cupboard, pulling out ingredients and pulling these together. Subbed hemp seed hearts for the flax meal, Vega greens, and the last of the raisins. Easy, awesome, and everything you could want in a treat. Well done, Dana!

Just made half a batch with GF oats, dates, and chopped figs. SO YUMMY. tastes like pb cookie dough with figgy magic and Chia. thanks for the great snow day recipe!