My husband and I are gym regulars and often, we would want to grab small energy bites to give us energy before our workouts. You can get many inspirations from Pinterest.
My friend from Dessertini SG introduced to me her recipe for making energy bites and I tweaked a bit to suit our taste. It is pretty addicting and delicious as I often caught my husband grabbing some bites once in a while. Well, he has a terrible sweet tooth, hence, I prefer him to snack on these healthy bites instead of those high sugary sweets sold outside. So this is extremely great for both young and old who love indulging themselves with sweets too!
Recipe for Cranberry Energy Bites
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 40 minutes (include 30 minutes just for chilling – Take a break!)
Servings: 20 – 25 small round bites
Nutrition Per serving: 80 Calories
Ingredients:
- 1 Cup Chopped pitted dates
- 1/2 Cup Honey
- 1 Tablespoon Chia seeds
- 1 Pinch Salt
- 1 1/2 Cup Baby oats
- 1 Cup Sunflower seeds
- 1 Cup Dried whole cranberries
Cooking Steps:
- Blend the chopped dates, honey, chia seeds and salt in food processor until it become smooth.
- Mix the oats, sunflower seeds and cranberries into a big bowl
- Stir in the blended mixture from Step 1 and mix well
- Put the bowl into the fridge and chill for 30 minutes to harden it for easy shaping
- Shape the mixture into small balls
- Ready to be served – Keep it chill in fridge to maintain the shape
Storage: Store them in fridge for up to 1 week. Freeze if you want to keep it longer.
NOTE: I used whole dried cranberries as I found out that it is more sour as compared to dried sliced cranberries which tends to be on the sweeter side. I have tried putting sliced cranberries on my first attempt but the whole energy bite was too sweet for my liking. Adding whole dried cranberries instead help to balance the sweetness from the dates and honey due to its sourness.
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Here’s why I recommend making these healthy snacks, which is pretty easy to do:
Health benefits of these energy bites:
Dates – It is rich in dietary fiber, antioxidants and the essential minerals like potassium and magnesium. It also contains vitamins such as thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, folate, vitamin A and vitamin KHoney – Contain antibacterial, flavonoids, antioxidants properties. It also known to help enhance athletic performance by maintaining glycogen levels and improving recovery time than other sweeteners. I used Manuka Honey as it is known to strengthen immune system.
Chia Seeds – Loaded with fiber, protein, Omega-3 fatty acids and various micronutrients.
Sunflower Seeds – Excellent source of vitamin E, copper and vitamin B1. In addition, sunflower seeds are a good source of manganese, selenium, phosphorus, magnesium, vitamin B6, folate and niacin.
Oats – Provides many nutrients, including carbohydrate, protein and a small amount of natural fat. As it contains the oat germ, it is also rich in minerals, vitamins soluble fiber.
Dried Cranberries – Not as nutritious as fresh cranberries but still contain small doses of vitamins and minerals.
I hope you will enjoy these healthy snacks as much as we do!