Oatmeal Energy Bites are tasty, no-bake balls combining oats, ground nuts, dried fruit, nut butter, and honey...perfect as a portable breakfast-on-the-go, a protein-packed snack, or a no-guilt-necessary sweet treat!

Well, with Spring Break behind us, we're clearly on the downhill slide to the end of the school year. But how?! My second grader just started his first day of preschool yesterday, y'all -- I swear it. And now he's almost a third grader! Some days my heart just can't deal with how quickly these kiddos are growing up...

But it's a fact. 2015 is already flying by at warp speed. And as the school year winds down, everyone is feeling pretty worn out and run down. The kids. The teachers. The parents {insert hand raised emoji}. But c'mon y'all...let's rally! Yes, we may be feeling drained of all energy and creativity already, but it's not even April...no need to throw in the towel just yet! What we do need is an easy recipe to revitalize breakfast time while also standing in as a protein-packed, energy-boosting snack. And I offer you that recipe today...these easy, breezy, Oatmeal Energy Bites!

What Are Energy Bites?

Have you tried energy bites before? They’re similar to no-bake granola bars, but rolled into snack-able, pop-able little balls. There are lots of variations out there, but my goal was to make these taste similar to an oatmeal cookie…and I think I succeeded!

Ingredients

These Oatmeal Energy Bites take mere minutes to throw together using just a handful of ingredients:

• Nuts. I typically use pecans because I always have some in the freezer.
• Old-fashioned oats.
• Raisins.
• Peanut butter. I prefer using an all-natural variety. Creamy or crunchy will work.
• Honey. You could sub maple syrup if you like.
• Vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. For cookie-like flavor!
• Optional add-ins. Boost the nutrition of these little snacks even more with additions such as chia seeds.

How to Make Oatmeal Energy Bites

Enjoy right away or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator!

Ways to Enjoy Them

These Oatmeal Energy Bites are great for getting out of a breakfast rut, or as a new and exciting snack...but my favorite use for them is putting one in each of my boys’ lunchboxes. They’re not allowed to have chocolate or candy in their school lunches, so it’s nice to be able to slip a wholesome and “acceptable” sweet treat in there for a little something special. (Just make sure your school allows nuts in lunch boxes before doing the same!)

Customizing Your Energy Bites

The best part of these energy bites is that they’re totally customizable!

• The first thing you can change up is swapping the peanut butter for almond butter, sunflower seed butter, or your favorite variety of nut (or non-nut) butter.
• You can also switch up the type of nut that you use. I’ve made these with cashews, pecans, and almonds…all yummy! The nuts are ground up, so even though you don’t bite into big chunks of them, using different types of nut does subtly affect the ultimate flavor.
• Substituting various dried fruit is another way to customize these energy bites. Raisins may be the traditional accent for oatmeal cookies, but I often prefer using dried cranberries instead. And I recently spied a bag of dried cherries in the back of the pantry, which were also a delightful complement to the oatmeal cookie-like spices. Heck, you could even use mini chocolate chips...I won't tell! 😉

However you may decide to customize them, I hope you have a chance to try these no-bake Oatmeal Energy Bites soon!

Whether you enjoy them as a portable breakfast-on-the-go, an afternoon pick-me-up, or a no-guilt-necessary sweet treat any time of day, they’re guaranteed to boost your energy while tickling your tastebuds...and that energy is exactly what you'll need to get through these last 44 or so days of school. (But who's counting?) 😉 Enjoy!

More Wholesome Breakfast Ideas

• Overnight Oats
• Homemade Whole Wheat Pancake Mix
• Wholesome Breakfast Cookies
• Healthy Oat Smoothies ~ Blueberry Muffin & Peach Cobbler Flavors

Oatmeal Energy Bites

Ingredients

• 1 cup nuts, such as pecans, walnuts, cashews, almonds, etc.
• 1 cup old-fashioned oats
• ½ cup raisins, OR dried cranberries or cherries
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds, optional
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ½ cup all-natural peanut butter
• ¼ cup honey
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions

• In the bowl of a large food processor, pulse the nuts until finely ground (but stop before they start turning to nut butter!). Add the oats, raisins, chia seeds (if using), cinnamon, and nutmeg to the nuts; pulse five (1-second) pulses to combine. Add the peanut butter, honey, and vanilla to the mixture; pulse until all of the ingredients are well blended, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
• Use a small cookie scoop or spoon to scoop mixture and roll into 1-inch balls (or whatever size you would like them). Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Notes

• You may use dried cranberries or your favorite dried fruit instead of raisins, but if the pieces are large, dice them up first.
• You may substitute your favorite nut butter (or nut-free butter) for the peanut butter.
• If the mixture does not stick together when you pinch it together, you may stir in a tad more peanut butter. If it's too sticky, you may roll it into balls using slightly damp hands or refrigerate for 30 minutes before rolling.
• After pulsing (or otherwise finely mincing) the nuts, you may combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl if you wish (instead of using a food processor). Mix all of the ingredients well until completely blended. Alternatively, you could use an electric stand mixer to make it quicker/easier to fully incorporate the peanut butter and honey into the other ingredients.

Nutrition

Recipe originally shared at Lil' Luna, published here on March 24, 2015, and updated on August 19, 2022.

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