Skip to Content

No Bake Sweet Potato Energy Balls – Gluten Free Healthy Snack

These no bake sweet potato energy balls are a powerhouse of nutrients in one delicious bite. 

The balls are naturally sweet with a bit of a kick from fresh ginger and are the perfect way to add healthy nutrition to your snack time.

This recipe is vegan and gluten free. The savory sweet potato balls are very easy to make and taste amazing.Sweet potato energy balls with chocolate drizzle

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 and vegan.

We all love to snack, but most snack foods are very high in saturated fat and granulated sugar. Instead of loading up on these unhealthy ingredients, we’ll be making a tasty snack that features loads of heart healthy foods that will benefit your body.Vegan energy balls

If you are looking for more ideas for heart healthy snacks, be sure to check out this article. It gives 30 ways to snack that will actually benefit your heart instead of hurting it.

Also be sure to check out my 80 calorie peanut butter balls and my 88 calorie chocolate peanut butter energy bites. They taste amazing too.

How to make these sweet potato energy balls

Creating energy balls is as easy as taking our your food processor! The sweet potato balls recipe is no bake, except for one thing – the sweet potato.

I bake these ahead of time and just keep them in the fridge to use in recipes. Canned sweet potato also works fine.

The sweet potato will get combined with some medjool dates and a bit of pure maple syrup to give some sweetness to the balls in a more natural way. Sweet potato, medjool dates and pure maple syrup

Cashews, pepitas, chia seeds and ground flax seeds add a nutty and nutritious bit of extra goodness. And sunflower seed butter adds a “peanut butter” like taste to these oatmeal energy balls that can’t be beat.Cashews, pepitas, flax seed, sunflower seed butter and chia seeds

Old fashioned rolled oats give the bites a nice hearty texture that will stay with you to keep you satisfied for hours. 

Ginger and turmeric add a healthy dose of antioxidants, and a banana adds more natural sweetness and something for the nuts and grains to bind to.Banana, rolled oats, ginger and turmeric

These photos show just how healthy these bites will be. Can’t wait to get started on them!

Making these clean eating energy bites

Start by placing the oats, dates, ground flax seeds, turmeric ginger, pepitas, chia seeds and cashews into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the nuts are starting to have a ground look that is similar to coarse graham crackers.ground nuts and seeds for sweet potato balls

Add in the nut butter, sweet potato, banana, cinnamon and maple syrup into the bowl and pulse until the mixture is well combined and sticky.Sweet potato energy bites mixture

Form the mixture into one inch balls on a baking sheet that is lined with parchment paper.

NOTE:  The mixture will be quite sticky, so its a good idea to work close to the sink so that you can wash your hands as you go. How to make energy bites

I need to warn you.  DON’T taste the dough.  Don’t do it.  Trust me.  If you do, you’ll end up with far less than 30 energy bites! It is so darn good!

I wouldn’t mind eating one right now, but there is another little treat to come.  Some chocolate, cause who doesn’t like chocolate on anything?Dark chocolate for drizzling

I’m talking dark chocolate now.  Not milk chocolate which is basically just milk and sugar. 

This recipe calls for 100% cacao dark chocolate mixed with a tiny bit of coconut oil so that it will drizzle over the top of the balls.Drizzled sweet potato energy bites

The dark chocolate adds a touch of decadence to the balls but also hardens a bit over them, allowing them to lose some of their stickiness, which makes them easier to store (and to eat!)

Even though dark chocolate is quite bitter, combine it with these incredibly full of flavor ingredients and it just makes the bites that little bit better. Now THAT’S  what I call a healthy energy bite!Sweet potato balls recipe

How do these no bake oatmeal energy bites taste?

In a word – amazing!! These little bites of energy are sweet, crunchy and slightly chewy. The sweetness comes from the banana, maple syrup and dates and gives you a nice “I’m having a snack” moment without sending your blood sugar through the roof.

The cashews, chia seeds, and pepita seeds add some nice crunch and the sweet potato and nut butter make them just creamy enough to give them the texture of a truffle.  So tasty, so easy and SO GOOD FOR YOU!

This recipe for energy balls makes 30 balls, each sweet potato bite has 88 calories and is relatively low in carbs, sugar and fat. 

It’s hard to believe that such a tasty little bite has only 88 calories, but that’s good news…it means you can have two!Taking a bite of these superfood energy balls

Benefits of turmeric and ginger

These delicious energy bites have turmeric and ginger in the mix of ingredients.  Both of these have health improving benefits:

Turmeric

This spice has been used for thousands of years in India as a medicinal herb. The main ingredient in turmeric is curcumin which is very effective in helping with inflammation, supporting the immune system to help fight infection and is high in antioxidants.Benefits of Ginger and Turmeric

Ginger

This root vegetable has a very long history of use for its medicinal qualities. It aids digestion, helps fight the flu and controls nausea, to name a few health benefits.

More superfood energy balls ideas

I love how easy energy balls are to make.  Basically, all you need is something sweet, something crunchy and something to bind the balls together. 

They are wonderfully adaptable and work with whatever you have in your pantry in the way of healthy ingredients.

Here are a few more delicious recipes for tasty energy balls:

Would you like to be reminded of this recipe later? Pin this image to one of your healthy cooking boards on Pinterest so that you can easily find when you are ready to make these healthy energy balls.

Healthy sweet potato energy balls

Admin note: this post for no bake sweet potato energy balls  first appeared on the blog in June of 2018. I have updated the post to add all new photos, a recipe card to print, and a video for you to enjoy.

Yield: 30

No Bake Sweet potato energy balls

Taking a bite of these superfood energy balls

These nutrient packed energy balls are the perfect healthy pick me up snack to enjoy before a workout or with some fruit as a dessert.

Prep Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup old fashioned rolled oats (check label to make sure gluten free)
  • 4 medjool dates
  • 3 tablespoons of ground flax seeds
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons of ground turmeric
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons of grated fresh ginger
  • 1/2 cup pepitas
  • 1 tablespoon of chia seeds
  • 1/2 cup cashews
  • 6 tablespoons of sunflower seed butter
  • 1/2 cup of cooked sweet potato (canned is also fine)
  • 1 small banana mashed banana
  • 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon of maple syrup
  • To drizzle
  • 20 grams of dark chocolate (100% cacao (I used Guittard and it was 4 small squares)
  • 1/2 teaspoon of coconut oil

Instructions

  • Combine the oats, dates, ground flax seed, turmeric, ginger, pepitas, chia seeds and cashews in a food processor and pulse several times to crush the nuts.
  • Add the seed butter, sweet potato, banana, cinnamon and maple syrup and pulse the mixture to combine the ingredients well.
  • Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Form the dough into 1 inch sized balls and place on the baking sheet.
  • Put the dark chocolate in a microwave safe bowl with the coconut oil and heat for about 1 minute.
  • Place the melted chocolate in an icing bag and drizzle over the top of the oat energy balls.
  • Place the balls in the fridge for 30-45 min to firm up.
  • Remove from the baking sheet and store in an air tight container in the fridge.
  • Nutrition Information:


    Amount Per Serving: Calories: 88Total Fat: 4.6gSaturated Fat: 0.9gUnsaturated Fat: 0.9gCholesterol: 0.0mgSodium: 20.7mgCarbohydrates: 9.8gFiber: 1.8gSugar: 4.4gProtein: 2.7g

    Share on Social Media

    Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are "affiliate links." This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive a small commission from the sale, but the price is the same for you. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

    Skip to Recipe