The no-bake energy bite love continues!
After so many of you readers ate up (ha – literally!) the recipes for classic No Bake Energy Bites and Pumpkin No Bake Energy Bites, I thought it would be fun to make a red and green “holiday” edition of the favorite with these Cranberry Pistachio Energy Bites!
Like the others, these quick and easy little balls are packed with great flavor and nutrition. But there is no baking required! You just need the quick pulse of a food processor (which I happen to be giving one away right now!), or the willingness to do some chopping and stirring to whip these up. And the final result will be delish! I loved the sweet and slightly salty combination of the fruit and nuts. And for fun, I also threw in a few white chocolate chips to brighten things up.
Feel free to play around with the recipe and include what works for you. And hopefully these can provide some extra delicious energy to make it through the holidays!
Cranberry Pistachio Energy Bites
Ingredients
- 8 ounces (about 1 packed cup) chopped dates
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1 Tablespoon chia seeds (optional)
- 1 Tablespoon ground flax seeds
- pinch of salt
- 1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats (dry, not cooked)
- 1 cup shelled pistachio nuts
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1/3 cup white chocolate chips (optional)
Instructions
- Combine the dates, honey, chia seeds, flax seeds and salt in a food processor, and pulse until smooth and combined. You should be able to stir the mixture — if it is too thick, add in another tablespoon or two of honey.
- Transfer the mixture to a large bowl, and stir in the oats, pistachios, dried cranberries, and white chocolate chips until evenly combined. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Once the mixture is cool (and easier to work with), use a spoon or cookie scoop to shape it into your desired size of energy balls. (Mine were about 1-inch in diameter.) Alternately, you can line a small baking pan with parchment paper, and press the mixture evenly into the pan, let it cool, and then cut into bars.
- Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. (Storing them in the refrigerator especially helps the energy bites hold their shape.)
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
I’ve made these several times and they are perfect for snacking! Easy to make … But it takes more than the 15 minutes prep time. Though they are worth the time. I mix the oates, pistachios and cranberries separately first before mixing in the dates honey mixture. Great recipe, thanks for sharing!
Made them just then :)
can not wait to try them!
great recipe!
x
I just went to make these and “someone” has eaten almost all of my pistachios! Grrrrr!!! Any idea what I can substitute to make these right now???
You can use any other nuts — almonds, peanuts, pistachios, any will work! :)
(If I were in your home, I’d probably be the guilty pistachio eater. They’re my favorite!!)
Are dates necessary, if so is there an alternative? What if they are not sticking together very well after being in the fridge for an hour, Is there something I can add at that point?
Yes, the dates are what help hold this recipe together. And if it’s not sticking, it might need more dates. You could alternately make these balls with peanut butter to help as the “glue” instead of dates…
Love the photos! I am going to try this recipe as this is the first one I have picked of all the bars recipes out there!
Thanks for sharing.
Very good. I used maple syrup instead of honey. I also heated the pistachios to increase the flavour first.
I may roll them next time in ground almond to keep the little balls from sticking
I just made these, using whole pitted dates and wildflower honey, and wow are they sweet. I am hoping that mellows, because for me it really takes away from the recipe. Next time I’ll use the weird little chopped dates and a milder honey and see if that helps. I bet using semisweet mini chips would help, too!
Where is the nutritional data for these?
I added pumpkins seeds and coconut oil to this also. Made this tonight. Delicious!
What a first time flop this was! Folks if you love your blender, add the Chia seeds last. If you add the honey and the dates and the flax seed and you ground the chia seed with it, it’s going to make it an unholy mess. It will overheat your blender, and it will hate you. Take a lesson from me. This recipe could use that warning.