I first tried these raw oatmeal balls when I visited my sister Cassandra in Vancouver a few years ago.

She was a new mom at the time (her baby was only 5 weeks old!) and she was there for the week from LA. I had just finished a dance contract the night before for Veronic Dicaire in Montreal, and I couldn’t wait to fly out the next morning to surprise my sister and meet my new nephew West. And did I ever surprise her! I popped into her hotel room and she almost dropped the baby!

While visiting Vancouver for the week, Cassandra had made these scrumptious, ever so satisfying raw oatmeal energy balls that we both couldn’t stop devouring. She had made a few different flavour combinations, with different nut butters, spices and extracts, and they were all decadent and delicious. They’re oatmeal based, with lots of nuts and seeds, peanut or almond butter, shredded coconut, chocolate chips… and they’re perfection!

When it was my turn to have a baby last spring, my sisters (yeah, I have a second sister Chelsea, who is equally passionate about food and eating) made four different kinds of these oatmeal bites and stocked my freezer for the sleepless nights that were to follow.

Every time I make a batch (actually, it’s always a double batch), they seem to taste a bit different, but they’re always delicious. I keep mine in the freezer and snack on them throughout the day. When I teach barre classes and am gone for the day, I always make sure to bring a few with me. They’re perfect at any time and are a great source of clean energy! I’ve offered them to friends and family, and everyone has always loved them so much that they wanted the recipe.

The possible combinations for these oatmeal balls are endless! (You’ll see that I use this phrase a lot while cooking). Get creative and you can make them into any flavour you’d like. Want a coffee version? Swap the chia seeds for ground coffee and you’ll have energy au boutte! I’ve tweaked the original recipe for you guys and this is my favourite version. They really are the gift that keeps on giving! Treat yourself or treat others… I promise no one will complain. 😉

BOOM voilà, enjoy friends! xo

Health benefits of the ingredients

• Oatmeal: high in fiber, energy booster, lowers cholesterol
• Coconut: improves digestion and absorption of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals
• Nut butter: protein, healthy fats, fiber, vitamins, and minerals
• Chia seeds: excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids, rich in antioxidants, provide fiber, iron, and calcium
• Cinnamon: high source of antioxidants, anti-inflammatory, protects heart health, helps fight diabetes
• Almonds: healthy fats, fiber, protein, magnesium, and vitamin E

 

Recipe

Makes about two dozen (but it’s definitely worth making a double batch!)

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup peanut butter *
• 1/3 cup honey or maple syrup
• 1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
• 1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds **
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds **
• 1 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla
• A pinch of sea salt, if your peanut butter is natural and has no added salt
• 1/3 cup chocolate chips (optional, but highly suggested!)
• * You could use any nut butter: almond butter, sunflower seed butter, cashew butter, etc. For a combination of butters: 1/4 C peanut butter + 1/4 C almond butter.** You could swap the seeds for almonds and just throw in 1/2 C almonds.

To make

• Mix all ingredients, except for the chocolate chips, using a food processor.
• Once mixture is blended and still has texture, add the chocolate chips.
• Keep in the fridge or freezer in an airtight container.

Bon appétit!