These protein packed power balls make a great little snack or treat. The cocoa and dates add just enough sweetness that you'd never know there's no sugar added!
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I recently bought my first bar of unsweetened chocolate (100% cacao)… And to steal vocabulary from my 5-year-old, it tasted disgusting!
However, in some magical way the combination of ingredients in this recipe below make the cacao taste like “regular” chocolate. I have to thank a 100 Days of Real Food reader for introducing me to a version of this recipe. I would have never thought to put these items together and now we can’t stop eating these protein power balls!
Try these Peanut Butter Protein Bars too!
A Snack Recipe That Keeps You Full
A lot of people (both kids and adults) turn to high sugar or processed carbohydrate snacks when they’re hungry. Not only are these terrible options from a real food perspective, they’re also not very filling.
The best snacks to keep you full for a long time contain both protein and fats like these power balls. They take longer for your body to digest, which leaves you feeling satisfied for a longer period of time.
Unfortunately so many packaged protein and fat rich nut snacks are full of additives like sugar and processed oils which is a no-go in our real food household.
That’s where these protein power balls come in! With 6 grams of plant-based protein and 15 grams of healthy fats, they’re a great post workout power food or kid-friendly snack.
Check out these High Protein Meal Prep Ideas!
Make Higher Protein Power Balls
I used pecans for my power balls, but at 2.6 grams of protein per ounce they aren’t the most high-protein option when it comes to nuts. If you’re looking to pack more protein into each power ball, try some of these options instead:
- Hazelnuts: 3.8g of protein per 1oz (and will make your power balls taste like Nutella)
- Walnuts: 4.3g of protein per 1oz
- Pistachios: 5.8g of protein per 1oz (shell before measuring)
- Cashews: 5.1g of protein per 1oz
- Almonds: 6g of protein per 1oz (highest protein option)
Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Balls FAQs
Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Power Balls
Ingredients
- ¾ cup nuts (I used pecans)
- ¾ cup dates (dried, pitted)
- 2 tablespoons peanut butter (an all natural PB is recommended - the only ingredient necessary is crushed peanuts)
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients into a food processor and blend.
- Form into balls and serve immediately or keep refrigerated.
- For a slightly different variation without peanut butter check out the chocolate torte recipe.
Lindsay says
Just made the peanut butter honey ones - big hit! The kids (and I) loved them!
Jennifer says
My daughter has a peanut allergy but I love this idea! Could I substitute almond butter or sunflower seed butter for the peanut butter? If so would the measurements be the same or different? Thank you!
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Jennifer. Yes, I don't see why you can't sub the almond butter or sunflower seed butter. I would keep the measurements the same. Jill
Michelle says
These are wonderful to freeze and take out as little as one at a time for a treat. You can omit anything you don't like or add anything healthy you do to this recipe. They are also great snacks before or after workouts (I have one post jog), on road trips, school lunches or snacks, for trips to the park, picnics, and the list goes on and on :-)
maria says
Prefer the chocolate peanut butter powerball to the oats and honey one. Oats and honey were too sweet for me, felt like I was buzzing.
Version #1, great success. My husband likes them too. Next time I'll try adding some oats.
maria says
Just made version #1. YUM!
I've been wanting a chocolate treat without sugar and this is perfect. I made them in the blender and am going to roll them in unsweetened coconut before freezing.
Stephanie says
Thanks so much for this great recipe. What a great idea for school snacks. I love your site too!
Cathy Morrin says
With the original Powerballs, is the chocolate ground or melted? If melted, how many ounces or squares equal a tablespoon?
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Cathy. It should be ground. Jill
Stacy says
I have these in the fridge right now! Can't wait to try them. The parts I licked off my fingers tasted delicious ;) Question, do they have to stay refrigerated? We don't have a ton of room in the fridge. Maybe I will freeze some :)
Assistant to 100 Days (Jill) says
Hi Stacy. They don't have to stay refrigerated, but, that's probably preferable. They do freeze well too like you stated. Jill
heather says
called these chocolate balls for my picky girly, and she said, "these are great"!
Alicia says
I brought these as a dessert last night to a dinner party & they were a hit! I saved a couple for my junk food loving dad to taste & didn't tell him they were 'real food.' he LOVED them! That was the ultimate test. Thanks for the great recipes:)
Lisa says
I actually misread the recipe and put 3 oz of solid baking chocolate in these....it tastes amazing, like bits of chocolate chips in these! It was a mistake I plan to replicate :)
Anna says
These were very very yummy!! Thank you for the recipe! I tried the chocolate one and used raisins instead of dates because I didn't have any.
Kendra says
I finally got the chance to try out the powerball recipe (the chocolate one, of course!), and it was delicious! Thank you for sharing! We've also tried the chicken nuggets, hummus, and cheesy crackers. Having a good food processor really helps! I have been inspired by your food journey and am slowly making changes in my own life and in the eating habits of my family! Thank you!
Kacy says
hello! My family and I are preparing for a road trip and I was thinking of making these now and freezing them for our trip in 3 weeks. Do you know if these would freeze well? Thx for the recipe!
100 Days of Real Food says
I honestly have not tried freezing them before...let me know what happens!
Kristie says
My (continously) hungry boys loved these! We made them with peanut butter, honey, ground up almonds, and coconut. Thanks for posting this!
(Here's a link to the picture of our powerballs)
http://www.kristiephoto.com/?p=545
Kathie Taylor says
You really should connect with Pinterest. I especially love finding healthy recipes that I can past on to my friends.
Penny says
Okay.. never mind on my question above, I used 1 ounce of cacao bar. I can not believe how good they are!!!!!! So yummy!
Penny says
When you say 3 tablespoons of the cacao bar, how many squares or ounces is that? I am not sure how much to use! Thanks!! Love your blog!!!
Tracy says
I just made the chocolate-peanut butter powerballs. Delicious! I can't wait to try out the chocolate torte version that you linked to. Thanks for another great recipe.
Amy @ A Little Nosh says
The chocolate peanut butter was delicious! I used cocoa powder instead of the chocolate, and added some more peanut butter to make it "stick" better. So delicious!
Jenna says
Just tried these and found them to be wonderful! Thinking of making them for a Christmas cookie exchange...do they freeze well?
100 Days of Real Food says
I've never tried to freeze them before...let me know how it goes!
crystal says
I add oats and use walnuts instead of pecans (I add just a smidgen of water to compensate for the oats.) I also freeze them. They are AMAZING frozen.
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Ashley says
I tried the chocolate torte recipe earlier (which was awesome) and decided I wanted to try the peanut butter ones here. I got a bit inspired and changed a few things. I used 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder instead of the chocolate bar, added honey, and a bit of water to make them easier to mold. These are AMAZING. Might have to even give them out for the holidays. This will DEFINITELY help me stay on track with eating fewer processed foods. I just need to learn to stop at eating one or two...
Erin says
I just made the oat/honey/PB version and they are yummy! I'm so glad to find an easy snack to give my 2 year old rather than junky crackers or granola bars. I used 1 c. ground flax rather than the nuts so it was easy for him to chew and it worked great! I can't wait to try the chocolate/date version next...I might save those for myself ;) Thanks!
Ashley says
I can't wait to experiment with these. I've been thinking of making a homemade version of a lara bar. I have some dried persimmon from whole foods that's going to have to make an appearance soon.
Brianna says
Lisa, I'm not a stalker, haha. I just wanted to review the recipes of yours that we have tried, which is quite a few! So....
For those of you who haven't tried these, do yourself a favor and make one batch. I don't even want a Snickers after having these. They're guilt-free and cover any and all chocolate cravings in this house! P.S. For one recipe, I tried raisins instead of dates because the only dates I found are sweetened. However, the raisins didn't do the trick. I'll just wash the dates I guess. LOL
J says
I do not own a food processor (just a magic bullet). I would like to purchase one, but the different parts and gadgets are intimidating and I feel that cleaning all of them would be a pain. Does anyone have a good recommendation for a good food processor that is easily cleaned and with no fuss parts?
100 Days of Real Food says
With an appliance like a food processor you don't want to mess around with a cheap or inexpensive version. You get what you pay for and mine, which is Cuisinart, is still going strong after almost 12 years.
Dianna says
Just found your website and LOVE it! Made these powerballs today and my oldest (5yr) gobbled it up! Cant wait to try the breakfast cookies and zucchini bread. Keep up the good work--Its nice to not feel crazy because Im trying to do the best I can for my family.
AlisonT says
Love the chocolate ones! And because they hit the spot so perfectly, I am content to eat just one, where in the past I would eat tons of chocolate or candy in one sitting. I tried the peanut butter/honey version last night, and I find them too sweet. Next time I'll reduce the amount of honey. (Although, I ran out of natural PB, so I used half natural PB and half Kraft PB, which probably added to the sweetness factor.) In addition to the PB, oats and honey, I used raisins, sunflower seeds and unsweetened coconut. Yum!
Dani M says
These are SO good! I have eaten way too many in the last 24 hours! lol!
I ended up using 2oz(4 squares) of the chocolate bar and just tossed it in the food processor with everything else. Turned out great. Thanks for the recipe!
Melody says
LOVE the power balls! I could eat gobs in a setting but limit myself to one........NOT easy! Thanks for the recipe!
Gail medaris says
Amazing!!! This will take care of my sweet tooth! This will also be great addition too my kids teachers gifts!! I will just have to make a lot!!
Gail
Amy says
I never usually comment on blogs, but I just had to tonight. I am on day 2 of my 10 day challenge. I was really craving my usual sweet, so I figured what they hey I'll try these. I was somewhat skeptical that they would anything better than ok. WOW!! So yummy!! These may have to be a permanent fixture in my house. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
100 Days of Real Food says
Trust me...I had never eaten a date in my life before we started our real food pledge so I know exactly what you mean about being skeptical. But when I was feeling desperate for chocolate I was much more willing to try new things though. And I have done a side-by-side comparison (now that I can have regular dark chocolate again) and I like my chocolate powerballs better! I am so glad it worked out for you as well. Oh and this is the recipe I use the most now (rolled into little powerball sizes): https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2010/07/17/recipe-chocolate-torte-with-whipped-cream-and-chocolate-sauce/
Beth says
How do you measure the chocolate? Do you melt it first? I think I may have done something wrong!
100 Days of Real Food says
Try this recipe instead...it is a little easier to deal with the powdered cocoa. Just make the tortes into little powerball sizes (which is what I do with this torte one which is my favorite): https://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2010/07/17/recipe-chocolate-torte-with-whipped-cream-and-chocolate-sauce/
lakesidemama says
Since I love Key Lime Larabars and they are $2.29 EACH up here in Canada, I decided to try to tweek your powerball recipe (which I love) and it worked! Here is my recipe.
Lime-Flavoured Power Balls
1 ½ cups dates
¾ cup unsweetened coconut
1 ½ cups raw almonds
1 Tbsp. honey
1 tsp. finely grated lime rind
Juice of ½ lime
Put all ingredients except for lime juice in food processor. Pulverize.
Add lime juice gradually until the mixture forms together. It usually takes about
the juice of half a lime.
Form into inch-sized balls. Refrigerate or freeze.
Enjoy!
100 Days of Real Food says
very cool...thanks for sharing!
lakesidemama says
Since I love Key Lime Larabars and they are $2.29 EACH up here in Canada, I decided to try to tweek your powerball recips (which I love) and it worked! Here is my recipe.
Lime-Flavoured Power Balls
1 ½ cups dates
¾ cup unsweetened coconut
1 ½ cups raw almonds
1 Tbsp. honey
1 tsp. finely grated lime rind
Juice of ½ lime
Put all ingredients except for lime juice in food processor. Pulverize.
Add lime juice gradually until the mixture forms together. It usually takes about
the juice of half a lime.
Form into inch-sized balls. Refrigerate or freeze.
Enjoy!
sandy says
we have a nut allergy in the house... this tastes just fine w/ sunbutter or soy nut butter.. I also have a friend who calls these "fiber bombs"
Violet Monkey says
Made the chocolate/pb version last night (for a bit of dessert after making your grilled pimento cheese sandwich!), and it was fantastic.
Your daughter was not wrong about the taste of the 100% cacao by itself. (I couldn't resist tasting it!).
I can happily eat 75% dark chocolate with a smile on my face, but that was just terrible. However, mixed up with the dates, pecans and peanut butter - it definitely works.
Once this batch is gone, I'll try the oat/honey version. It sounds good, too. :)
Lisa says
I know the dates work magic with that bitter unsweetened cocoa...the version I am currently addicted to though is this one made into little balls: http://thefoodillusion.wordpress.com/2010/07/17/recipe-chocolate-torte-with-whipped-cream-and-chocolate-sauce/
Holly says
I just made the first version and they're very good. They were extremely easy to make. My boys even at them.
Cori says
How do I make these w/ no nuts or peanut butter? Do you have any ideas?
Lisa says
Just leave out the peanut butter (similar to this recipe http://thefoodillusion.wordpress.com/2010/07/17/recipe-chocolate-torte-with-whipped-cream-and-chocolate-sauce/) and how about trying sesame seeds or pumpkin seeds instead of pecans? Can Ella have those?
Shan says
Sunbutter.. it's made with sunflower seeds. my friend's son loves it. and, instead of the nuts maybe pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, wheat nuts or banana chips