Energy bites are one of my favorite snack treats and these delicious pumpkin nut butter energy bites combine pumpkin pureé with another favorite of mine – sunflower nut butter.
It’s time for all things pumpkin! Fall is my favorite time of the year, and I love the taste of pumpkin in recipes.
No bake treats are some of my favorites. They come together in just minutes and keep the heat out of the kitchen.
See my recipe for no bake peanut butter oatmeal cookies for another sweet treat that is gluten free, dairy free and vegan.
Sunflower nut butter is a great alternative to peanut butter. It is smooth and creamy and has a taste that is very similar. It works beautifully in no bake recipes, too!
Also be sure to check out my 80 80 calorie peanut butter balls and my 88 calorie chocolate peanut butter energy bites. They taste amazing too.
Making these pumpkin nut butter energy bites takes no time at all!
These energy bites are chock full of healthy goodness.
They are dairy free, vegan and gluten free and are the perfect clean eating snack. Just look at what goes into them!
These energy bites are made in two steps. I started by putting most of the wet ingredients into a food processor along with half of the oats to give me a sticky mixture and then added the nuts, coconut, spices and seeds and pulsed a bit more.
Then everything went into a large mixing bowl to finish adding the rest of the oats and the mini chocolate chips.
Doing the two step process gives me an energy bite that still has some crunch to it, but has a creamy underlying layer that is quite decadent, in spite of the low calories.
Roll, roll, roll the mixture into balls. I got 52 of them by using a small cookie scoop just filled to the top.
My bites ended up being a bit over an inch in size which gives a nice sized snack.
Place the balls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat and put them in the fridge to set for about an hour.
These pumpkin nut butter energy bites are amazing. They are creamy and crunchy and nutty.
The taste of the pumpkin puree is subtle and adds a nice earthy taste to the balls.
Since I kept the maple syrup low (just 1/2 cup for 52 servings) they are low in sugar but still have a lovely sweet taste.
Time for a taste of these delicious energy bites.
My husband is not normally fond of pumpkin desserts, and suffers through pumpkin season in silence, but he loves the taste of these!
These energy bites are a great pick me up before or after a workout. They make a great breakfast on the go.
Keep them in an air tight container in the fridge for about a few weeks. (If they last that long!)
They are a bit sticky but the fridge keeps them nicely set. I love having one with some fruit as a low calorie dessert. They work out at just under 80 calories each and are very low in carbs, sodium and sugar.
Your Halloween party guests will love the taste of these energy bites! If you wish, you can melt another 1/4 cup of the dark chocolate chips in the microwave and drizzle them over the energy bites.
This drizzle adds about 6 calories extra per bite but gives them a richer, more decadent flavor which is also nice for a special treat. The chocolate also hardens around the bites to make them a bit less sticky.
Are you ready for pumpkin season?
For some other tasty energy bite, try these sweet potato energy bites and these almond butter energy balls.
Would you like a reminder of this post later? Just pin this image to one of your Pinterest healthy cooking boards.
Pumpkin Nut Butter Energy Bites
Ingredients
- 4 cups rolled oats, divided (I used gluten-free oats)
- 1 cup Pumpkin Puree - canned or make your own fresh pumpkin puree
- 1 cup Sunflower Nut butter
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 3 Tbsp ground flax seeds
- 3 Tbsp chia seeds
- 1/2 cup small chopped nuts
- 1/2 cup coconut flakes
- 1/2 cup mini dark chocolate chips. I used Enjoy life