Ditch the Midday Slump With These DIY Whole Food Energy Bite Recipes

We’ve all been there: the mid-afternoon slump hits, and you find it difficult to keep going through the rest of the day. But instead of dragging yourself bleary-eyed to dinner time, one way to give yourself a quick burst of motivation and focus is to snack on an energy bite. They’re easy to make from scratch with vegan ingredients, and they’re tasty, too. Find out more about how to make them below. But first, here’s more about the benefits.

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Are energy bites good for you?

As the name suggests, energy bites (also called energy balls) are simply small, nutrient-dense snacks that provide a quick boost of energy when you eat them. This is all thanks to their combination of complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, and protein; when eaten together, they help to stabilize blood sugar levels. Unlike sugary snacks or caffeine, this energy is usually sustained and won’t lead to a crash.

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RELATED: These 20 Deliciously Sweet Recipes Are All Made With Dates

You can easily buy energy bites at your local grocery or big box store. In fact, according to The Brainy Insights, in 2022 the global market was valued at more than $336 million, and by 2032 it’s expected to reach more than $624 million. 

But if you’ve got the time, it’s also possible to make energy bites from scratch using simple plant-based, nutrient-dense, whole foods, such as oats, nuts, seeds, and dried fruits. Other popular ingredients include sweeteners like dark chocolate and dates, as well as creamy nut butters, like almond butter or peanut butter.

How to make energy bites from scratch: 7 vegan recipes

If you’re feeling inspired to whip up your own batch of energy bites from home, here are some of our favorite recipes, from snickerdoodles to cookie dough to lemon.

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1 Two-Step Vegan Snickerdoodle Energy Bites

These tasty snickerdoodle-flavored bites from The Simply Real Health Cookbook are super easy to make. All you need to do is roll ingredients like almond butter, coconut flour, vegan milk, maple syrup, and vanilla extract into balls, before covering each in cinnamon and popping them in the fridge until you want to eat them. That’s it!
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Minimalist Baker

2 5-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cup Energy Bites

Five ingredients and 15 minutes is all you need to whip up these yummy energy bites from Minimalist Baker. The recipe brings together dates (for fiber and natural sugars), peanut butter (or almond) and chia seeds for healthy fats, and rolled oats for those all-important complex carbohydrates. The final ingredient is dark chocolate, which is not only delicious, but it’s also good for boosting mood, too.
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Our Happy Mess

3 Date Energy Balls

Medjool dates (sometimes referred to as “nature’s candy”) are one of the key ingredients in these date energy balls from Our Happy Mess. But these fruits, which are larger and sweeter than regular dates, are not just tasty, they’re also packed with fiber, minerals, natural sugars, and antioxidants, too. Other nutrient-dense ingredients in the mix include shredded coconut, sunflower seeds, and oats. Finely chopped pretzels add a nice crunch, too.
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Sweet Peas and Saffron

4 Nut-Free Energy Bites

If you’re looking for nut-free energy bites, then this tasty recipe from Sweet Peas and Saffron has got you covered. The basic ingredients are oats, Medjool dates, cocoa powder, and maple syrup, but if you want a little more flavor, you can add coconut, chocolate chips, and pumpkin purée into the mix, too.
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Veggie Chick

5 Chocolate Coconut Vegan Energy Balls

These vegan energy balls from Veggie Chick are a nutrient-dense tasty treat, thanks to ingredients like dates, almonds, cocoa powder, oats, and flax seeds. Recipe developer Christin Russman describes them as “chocolatey pieces of heaven” and says they “are so easy to make in just 20 minutes using only your food processor.”
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Joyful Healthy Eats

6 No-Bake Vegan Cookie Dough Energy Balls

Forget cookie dough from the tub or even cookie dough ice cream, these vegan balls from Joyful Healthy Eats will give you all of the indulgent flavor using a simple energy-boosting mix of chickpeas, peanut butter, maple syrup, chia seeds, and vanilla protein powder. “I guarantee you’ll want to eat these at all times of the day,” says recipe creator Krista Rollins. “They are that good, I almost have to keep a secret stash so my family doesn’t devour them before I get to them.”
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Hello Nutritarian

7 Oil-Free Vegan Lemon Energy Bites

If you’re a fan of summery, citrusy flavors, you will love these vegan lemon energy bites from Hello Nutritarian. Made with ingredients like yellow raisins, lemon zest, cashew butter, and date syrup, they are creamy, sweet, and deliciously zesty. “These also work wonderfully for a quick, on-the-go breakfast option in lieu of oatmeal,” says recipe creator Kristen Hong.
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