5 Ingredients Date Energy Balls (without Peanut Butter and No-Bake)

Discover a simple and healthy snack solution with this 5-ingredient date energy balls recipe - no peanut butter required. These delicious and nutritious treats are perfect for a quick energy boost. Learn how to make them in minutes!

Several years ago, I decided to decrease the sugar in my diet. I still eat sweets (and candy 😊) occasionally, but I try to control how much sugar I add to sweets when I prepare them. Sometimes, this doesn't end right 😂. If the recipe calls for a certain amount of sugar, I cut the amount significantly, and, of course, my cake or cookies don't taste exactly how they are supposed to taste. 

But these date balls are precisely to my taste. Sweet enough, and I don't feel guilty for consuming empty calories from refined sugar. Plus, they are made without peanut butter, so if you are allergic or simply don't like the taste, they are a healthy nutritious snack, just like my granola bars without peanut butter!

Why You'll Love This Recipe

The main reason to try this recipe is that it's sweet but without refined added sugar. Why is this important? Find the answers below:

• Dates have natural sweetness due to their high sugar content (fructose and glucose), but this sweetness is accompanied by fiber, which helps regulate blood sugar levels.
• Dates are whole fruits and contain essential nutrients, including dietary fiber, potassium, magnesium, and vitamins.
• Refined sugar, such as white table sugar, offers no significant nutritional value besides providing energy (calories).
• Consuming high amounts of refined sugar can lead to rapid spikes and crashes in blood sugar levels, which can contribute to diabetes and other health issues.

Also, you can make these date energy balls without peanut butter in no time! Plus, this recipe includes walnuts. Some people suffer from allergies caused by legumes, where peanuts belong, but not from tree nuts, where walnuts are coming from. So, this date energy ball recipe could be a perfect addition to your allergy-free healthy snacks easy recipes collection. 

Ingredients You'll Need for No-Bake Date-based Energy Balls

This recipe calls for only 5-ingredients, and except for dates that you might not have in your pantry at all times, the other four are simple ingredients I bet you already have. 

• Pitted whole dates
• Ground walnuts
• Unsweetened cocoa powder
• Vanilla extract
• Sea salt
• Optional: cocoa powder for coating. You can also coat them in shredded coconut.

Substitutions & Variations

• Suppose you want to increase your energy balls' protein content and make them creamy, but avoid using peanut butter. You can use almond butter, cashew butter, sunflower seeds butter, or tahini. You can also add some protein powder. 
• Experiment with different flavorings to suit your taste. For extra flavor, you can add spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, or cardamom.
• You can customize your energy balls with various add-ins for texture and nutrition, such as rolled oats, quick oats, or oat flour for more fiber, flaxseed or flax meal or chia seeds for more nutrition, or dark chocolate chips for flavor and texture. 

How to Make These No-Bake Date Energy Balls without peanut Butter

• Place the pitted dates in a food processor and blend them until they form a sticky paste. Try pulsing several times until you get it all into a paste. 
• Add the walnuts, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt to the date paste in the food processor. Blend everything until the mixture is well combined. Some people add walnuts that are not chopped in this step. I found it easier if I chopped the walnuts previously and added chopped in this step. The mixture should be sticky and should clump together. If the mix is too dry, add a little warm water (a teaspoon at a time) and blend until you achieve the desired consistency.
• Once the mixture is ready, mix it one more time with a rubber or wooden spatula, and using your hands, take small pieces and roll them into small balls, usually about 1 inch in diameter.
• You can coat the date balls in cocoa powder (or even shredded coconut) if you like. This is optional and adds extra flavor and texture. I usually don't coat mine.
• Place the date balls on parchment paper on a tray or plate and refrigerate them for at least 30 minutes to firm up. The more they stay in the fridge, the better the taste!
• Once they have set, you can keep the date balls in an airtight container in the refrigerator for longer storage. 

Helpful Tips and Tricks

• If your dates are very dry (which can happen if they sit for too long in your pantry), you can soak them in warm water for about 10-15 minutes to soften them before blending. Drain them thoroughly before using.
• A food processor works best for blending the ingredients as it can handle the sticky and thick consistency of date energy ball mixtures.
• Test out your mix. If the mixture is too dry and crumbly, add some water while blending until it reaches the right consistency for rolling into balls.
• You can make your energy balls in different sizes to suit your preferences. Smaller balls are great for portion control (and can also be a great school snack or for road trips when kids are hungry), while a large energy ball can be a more substantial quick snack.

Related

Looking for other quick snacks to make at home? Try these:

Pairing

These are my favorite dishes to serve with these granola bars without peanut butter: