Who doesn’t love chocolate and peanut butter? While I’m sure there are some odd folks out there who don’t care for that combination, everyone in my household goes crazy for the peanuty, chocolatey, amazing goodness that is this snack.
If you have looked at the back of any pre-packaged “health food” bar you’ll notice almost all of them have added sugar. To help limit our sugar consumption I wanted a grab-and-go snack option for Ella, Josh, and I that would be delicious but also sugar-free. The resulting Yum Yum ball recipe is just that, but it’s also gluten-free and keto-friendly. Yay! This recipe calls for unflavored collagen powder which is great for gut, skin, hair, and nail health, but the balls can be made vegan if you use a plant-based protein powder (this chocolate flavored greens protein powder is amazing).
Because there is a lot of fat in these snacks, they do best stored in the freezer. I prefer to make big batches of these balls and the Cashew Coconut Yum Yum Balls (I usually double the recipes) and pull a few out at a time and keep them for a couple of days in the refrigerator (so they’re not frozen when the desire for one strikes). If you prefer to store them in the freezer you can simply take one out of the freezer and let it sit for 10-15 minutes to thaw at room temp before enjoying.
- ½ cup cashews
- ½ cup peanuts
- ½ cup macadamia nuts
- 2 Tbl raw unsweetened cacao powder
- 1 cup unsweetened dried coconut shreds
- 1 cup peanut butter
- ½ cup unsweetened collagen protein powder
- 1 tsp powdered stevia
- ½ cup unsweetened almond milk
- Add nuts to food processor and pulse until nuts are chopped fine.
- Add the cacao powder and coconut to the food processor and run to incorporate.
- Add the peanut butter, protein powder, stevia, and almond milk and run the food processor until well mixed.
- Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed to ensure all ingredients get blended.
- Once the mixture is blended, remove the blade from the bowl and remove the bowl from the food processor base.
- Place a sheet of parchment paper over the top of a baking tray.
- Scoop out about a tablespoon's worth of dough and use your hands to make it into a ball.
- Place the ball onto the parchment paper and repeat the process for all of the dough.
- Place the sheet of dough balls into the freezer for at least 1 hour. Once the balls are frozen you can remove them from the sheet tray and place into a container in the freezer for storage.
- When you're ready to eat one, simply remove it from the freezer and let thaw at room temperature for 10 minutes.