Protein Energy Balls

My family and I recently played golf at Bandon Dunes in Oregon, and they had their Bandon pro-energy balls at every snack shop. We could not stop eating them! I got home with six sleeves and was determined to replicate them. After 15 batches, I got pretty close! Share this protein energy balls recipe with a golf lover in your life. Although truth be told, they are great for anyone looking for a healthy snack upgrade.

❤️ Why You’ll Love These Protein Energy Balls

• Nutrient-Dense: These energy bites are packed with protein and fiber for such a small size.
• Great for Many Dietary Restrictions: They are gluten-free, dairy-free, and egg-free. If you substitute the honey, you can make these Bandon energy balls vegan!
• Convenient Snack: These no-bake protein balls are easy to make and perfect for on-the-go. If you’re a golfer, pack some the next time you play!
• Customizable: This recipe is easily adapted to suit your taste preferences and dietary needs.

🍯 Protein Energy Balls Ingredients 

• Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats provide protein and fiber.
• Coconut: Buy shredded unsweetened coconut. If you can find lightly roasted coconut, even better. 
• Peanut Butter makes everything taste better. It also acts like a glue for the other ingredients.
• Honey sweetens these Bandon protein balls and binds the oats and seeds together.
• Vanilla: Make sure to use pure vanilla extract, not imitation vanilla.
• Seeds: Ground flaxseed, hemp hearts (the soft inside part of hemp seeds), and chia seeds all contain protein and fiber.
• Salt: I used fine sea salt to balance the sweetness.
• Mini Chocolate Chips are optional, but I recommend using them! I used Enjoy Life Foods’ chips to keep these energy balls dairy-free.

👩‍🍳 How to Make Protein Energy Balls

1. Oats and Coconut: Put the oats and shredded coconut in a blender or mini food processor and blend until they’re almost a powder, with a few oats still intact. Pour into a bowl.
2. Remaining Ingredients: Stir in the peanut butter, honey, vanilla, flaxseed, hemp hearts, and chia seeds. 
3. Chocolate Chips: Mix in the mini chocolate chips.
4. Form the dough into balls about the size of a tablespoon. Place them in a container lined with parchment paper. Continue with the remaining dough. Depending on the size, you should end up with 17 to 20 servings.
5. Refrigerate the peanut butter protein balls for at least an hour or longer to allow them to firm up before eating. 

🪄 Tips and Tricks

• Stir the honey and peanut butter together, then mix the dry ingredients.
• The mixture may seem dry when you start mixing, but keep going. It will come together!

🗒 Variations

• Crunchy Peanut Butter Protein Balls: Roast ⅛ cup of peanuts, chop them, and add them to the dough. You can also use crunchy peanut butter.
• Dried Fruit: Stir in raisins or dried cranberries.
• Coconut: Toast your coconut in a skillet on the stove or on a sheet pan in the oven, or buy it pre-toasted to amp up the flavor.

🗒 Substitutions 

• Nut Butter: Switch up the flavors by using almond butter or cashew butter.
• Allergic to peanuts? Substitute sun butter.
• Sweetener: Use maple syrup or agave instead of honey.
• Oats: Any oats, like steel cut or quick oats, will work.
• Out of hemp hearts, chia, or flax? Omit it and double up on one of the seeds you do have. 
• Protein Powder: Replace one of the tablespoons of seeds with a tablespoon of protein powder.
• Salt: Kosher salt will also work.

🍽️ Best served with

These Bandon Dunes protein balls are an excellent high-protein snack or breakfast on the go. If you’re serving them for breakfast and want something extra, pair them with a piece of fruit or a cup of yogurt.

👝 How to Store

These no-bake peanut butter energy balls will last for up to two weeks in an airtight container in the refrigerator. If you bring them with you as a snack, they can stay at room temperature for a few hours. Just make sure they don’t get too hot so they don’t fall apart, and the chocolate melts.

You can also freeze the protein balls for about three months. To eat, thaw them in the fridge or let them sit on the counter for 10 minutes before eating.

🤔 Common Questions

5 from 3 votes

Protein Energy Balls

My family snacked on these protein energy balls at Bandon Dunes golf resort, so when I returned home, I set out to remake them. I got pretty close! Share this recipe with the golf lover in your life or anyone looking for a healthy snack upgrade.

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Equipment

• Blender or mini food processor

Ingredients 

• ▢ ¾ cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• ▢ ½ cup unsweetened shredded coconut, If you can find lightly roasted, even better.
• ▢ ½ cup creamy peanut butter
• ▢ ¼ cup honey
• ▢ ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
• ▢ 1 tbsp ground flaxseed
• ▢ 2 tbsp hemp hearts
• ▢ 2 tbsp chia seeds
• ▢ ¼ tsp fine sea salt
• ▢ ¼ cup mini chocolate chips or other mix-ins, Optional. (I used Enjoy Life Foods for dairy-free.)

Instructions 

• Add the oats and shredded coconut to a blender and blend almost into a powder with a few oats still in tact. Pour into a bowl.
• Add the peanut butter, honey, pure vanilla extract, ground flaxseed, hemp hearts, and chia seeds to the oat mixture.
• Stir until combine and then mix in the chocolate chips.
• Make into balls the size of a tablespoon and put in the fridge in an airtight container lined with parchment for at least an hour. I refrigerate mine overnight. Enjoy!

Notes

If you want more crunch, roast peanuts and chop them. Add 1/8 cup to the mix.

Additional Info

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Make this recipe?Mention @itsnicolejaques or tag #nicolejaques!