These No-Bake Almond Joy Energy Balls are inspired by the ever popular Almond Joy chocolate bar but without all the gunk! They pack a serious nutrition punch and are also gluten-free, vegan AND paleo.
I haven’t talked much about my pregnancy here on the blog (or elsewhere for that matter) but with just 6-8 weeks out we’re definitely in full-blown baby mode around here. We’ve got ALL.THE.CLASSES and appointments and I’ve been warned that baby will be here before we know it. Our journey to pregnancy wasn’t easy and definitely taught me that you cannot prepare for everything, but if there’s one thing I know I can prepare for it is food.
I’m well aware that once baby is here sleep goes out the window (TBH I’ve barely slept this pregnancy!) and you just have to learn to function on little sleep. While I’m not my best self when I’m sleep-deprived, I’m far worse when I’m sleep-deprived AND hungry. And so I’ve spent the last few weeks food prepping and filling a chest freezer I ordered from Costco with healthy meals and snacks. These almond joy energy balls are one of those recipes!
I’ve actually made a couple energy ball recipes because they’re a) super easy to make and b) an awesome snack at all hours of the day. So for those middle of the night feeds I can count on C to grab me a few of these to prevent hangry spells. Whether you’re pregnant, postpartum or just a busy human, I hope these almond joy energy balls bring you all the joy and nourishment you need.
Here’s What You Need
- Dates – the base of this recipe! The dates add a delicious natural sweetness to the recipe and the stickiness holds the bars together.
- Almonds – can you have almond joy without almond? No! If you don’t love almonds you can swap for a different nut though.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder – adds a delicious chocolate flavor without adding sugar.
- Coconut flakes – I recommend using unsweetened coconut flakes so you don’t have a ton of added sugar. Shredded coconut works as well.
- Sea salt – to bring the flavors together
- Vanilla extract – a flavor enhancer. You can also sub with almond extract if you prefer.
- Almond milk – I recommend using unsweetened almond milk!
How to Make Almond Joy Energy Balls
STEP 1: Process the coconut flakes in a food processor for about one minute – you just want to break them up a bit. Make sure you don’t over-process or it will become coconut butter. Remove the flakes and set aside in a bowl.
STEP 2: Place the dates in the food processor and process until they have broken up and come together in a big, sticky ball.
STEP 3: Break up the date ball a bit with your hands and then add in the almonds, cocoa powder, the coconut flakes you didn’t process and salt. Process for several minutes, scraping down the sides as needed. Add in the vanilla extract and almond milk and process until the mixture comes together in a ball. If it doesn’t do this, add in another tablespoon of almond milk.
STEP 5: Remove the mixture from the food processor and roll into roughly 2 dozen balls. Roll each ball in the coconut flakes you processed earlier.
STEP 6 (Optional): place balls on a baking sheet and flash freeze in freezer for 15-20 minutes. This ensures the balls won’t stick together when you place them in your container.
What if my energy ball isn’t sticking together?
This likely means that your dates weren’t sticky enough! If you notice this before you start the recipe, you can soak the dates in hot water for 20 minutes to rehydrate them. If you notice this while mixing the energy balls, don’t stress! Add in 1 tablespoon of almond milk at a time during processing until the mixture comes together.
How to Store Energy Balls
Store your energy balls in an airtight container in the refrigerator for several weeks. You can also freeze for longer storage if you’d like! Just take them out of the freezer 10-15 minutes before eating.
PrintAlmond Joy Energy Balls
These No-Bake Almond Joy Energy Balls are inspired by the ever popular Almond Joy chocolate bar but without all the gunk! They pack a serious nutrition punch and are also gluten-free, vegan AND paleo.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 2 dozen balls 1x
- Category: Snack
- Method: Blend
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes (reserve 1/2 cup for rolling)
- 2 cups dates*
- 2 cups raw almonds
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (you can also use almond extract if you prefer)
- 1–2 tbsp unsweetened almond milk
Instructions
- Put 1/2 cup of coconut flakes into the food processor and process to break up flakes slightly. Do not over-process or it will become coconut butter.
- Remove flakes and set aside in a bowl.
- Place dates in the food processor and process until they have broken up and then come together into a ball.
- Break up date ball with hands and add in almonds, cocoa powder, 1/4 cup of coconut flakes and sea salt.
- Process for several minutes, scrapping down the sides as needed.
- Add in vanilla extract and 1 tbsp of almond milk.
- Process until mixture comes back together into a ball. If it doesn’t do this, add in 1 more tablespoon of almond milk. It should look like the photo above.
- Remove mixture from the food processor and roll into roughly 2 dozen balls.
- Roll each ball in the coconut flakes you processed earlier.
- Optional: place balls on a baking sheet and flash freeze in freezer for 15-20 minutes. This ensures the balls won’t stick together when you place them in your container.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for several weeks or the freezer for several months.
*If your dates aren’t sticky soak them in hot water for 20 minutes and then drain before using.
Keywords: almond joy, almond joy balls, energy balls, almond joy energy balls
More energy ball recipes to try:
- Blueberry Muffin Energy Balls
- Chocolate Matcha Energy Balls
- Lemon Coconut Energy Balls
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Energy Balls
- Mango Almond Energy Balls
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62 Comments
Rachel | Finding the Wardrobe
May 9, 2016 at 4:08 pmThese look delicious! Have you tried using brown rice malt syrup instead of the dates to cut back on the fructose? I’m going to try this out tonight!
Davida Kugelmass
May 10, 2016 at 9:49 amNo I haven’t unfortunately. I don’t know that they would stick together if you did but you could certainly give it a try!
Alex
April 29, 2016 at 2:35 pmOMG, I made these last night, DELISH! My 4 and 6 year old loved them too! I rolled them into fairly small balls and one really takes care of the sweet tooth. I can normally take down a large quantity of sweets, this is my paleo downfall, but these really do the trick to not over do it!
Davida Kugelmass
April 29, 2016 at 4:41 pmWonderful! I’m so happy you and the kiddos loved them 🙂
Sara
April 8, 2016 at 5:44 pmDo you put whole almonds into this recipe? Some comments seem to imply that the almonds are ground into a flour – but the recipe just says add almonds.
Davida Kugelmass
April 8, 2016 at 7:08 pmyou add whole almonds that get ground as they are added to the food processor.
Luxe Calendar
January 22, 2019 at 4:58 amReally liked this recipe. Used a mix of glazed and dried fruits and hazelnuts instead of almonds and didn’t put the milk in. They are so yum!! I think I’m going to be making a lot of variations using this recipe as the base.
Micah Frey
April 5, 2016 at 8:04 amIs there a substitue for dates?
Davida Kugelmass
April 5, 2016 at 9:28 amRaisins or figs!
KJ
March 22, 2016 at 1:47 amI entered ingredients into USDA “supertracker” and got 63 calories per ball (4g fat, 4g sugar, 2g fiber, 26mg sodium, 22mg calcium, 106 mg potassium)
Kristina
March 6, 2016 at 5:14 pmWhat kind of food processor do you use? Mine gets overheated fairly quickly, and I have to wait long periods of time in between blending these ingredients together.
Chantal
February 17, 2016 at 3:43 amReally liked this recipe. Used a mix of glazed and dried fruits and hazelnuts instead of almonds and didn’t put the milk in. They are so yum!! I think I’m going to be making a lot of variations using this recipe as the base.
Davida Kugelmass
February 17, 2016 at 9:39 amfabulous! Enjoy 🙂
Kim
January 7, 2016 at 9:47 pmThese were delicious – kids approved too! Soaked our aged dates & subbed almond flour for the ground, and they still worked perfectly. Rolled a few in cinnamon – yum! Looking forward to trying your other recipes. Thank you!
The Healthy Maven
January 9, 2016 at 7:13 pmAwesome!!! Made my day 🙂 And rolling them in cinnamon is a fab idea too!
Penny
January 6, 2016 at 9:08 pmMade these tonight – fantastic! The mixture was a little too sticky at first, so I put it in the fridge to harden for a bit – then they rolled perfect!!
★★
The Healthy Maven
January 6, 2016 at 11:38 pmGlad they worked out in the end! Yes, they can be easy to over-process but you totally problem solved by placing them in the fridge 🙂 Enjoy!
Randiah
January 6, 2016 at 12:58 pmMade these last night. They came out pretty tadty. I used prunes instead of dates and they were perfectly sweet. I did let a friend try them, and he was sort of freaked out… I guess healthy sweets aren’t for everyone
The Healthy Maven
January 6, 2016 at 4:05 pmhaha yes, a lesson I’ve learned the hard way! I’m so happy you enjoyed them 🙂 One of my favorite treats on the blog!
Viktoriya
January 3, 2016 at 1:58 pmAwesome and delish recipe! I don’t think I processed these long enough because the texture was kinda gooey, but they were still extremely tasty. Just like almond joy. Yummmmz. Thank you!
Mira
May 18, 2015 at 8:19 amMade my 2nd batch of Protein Balls yesterday, unfortunately I didn’t have the ingredients to double the recipe as they’ve disappeared within 24hrs! My 12yr old daughter, whom has an insatiable appetite for sugary foods, exclaimed that they’re just as good, if not better than chocolate, and my 14yr old sports mad son also downs them like there’s no tomorrow. These are now a staple in our household….thanks so much for sharing. Western Australia!
Davida Kugelmass
May 19, 2015 at 5:44 pmtotally just made my day 🙂 So happy you and the fam are enjoying them!!