These 6-ingredient peanut butter protein balls only take a few minutes to throw together and are full of healthful ingredients! Naturally gluten-free, whole grain, dairy-free and with a vegan option.
Just basic ingredients
There’s loads of good stuff in these protein balls. Tons of natural peanut butter plus a bit of raw honey (or brown rice syrup for a vegan option), oats and coconut.
And of course, some mini chocolate chips because… why not? ;) Feel free to omit them if you want to limit your sugar.
Make sure to use the kind of peanut butter that just contains peanuts and salt. If you use a brand that has added fat and sugar, these peanut butter balls likely won’t turn out well. You’d also be adding a ton of fat (and probably not the healthy kind) and sugar!
So easy that kids can make them alone
To make these peanut butter protein balls, all you do is dump the ingredients into a bowl and roll the mixture into balls. It’s not an especially sticky mixture so you’ll have to squeeze them together to get the balls to hold together.
I’ve made these peanut butter protein balls a number of times with the exact same ingredients (as in from the same package) and the very small amount of water I needed to add to hold the mixture together varied each time (hence the range in the measurement given).
also discovered that instead of using additional water to bring together the mixture, vanilla extract’s a tasty alternative!
Prefer something more cookie-like but don’t want to turn on the oven? Try these no-bake oatmeal cookies! They’re also 100% whole grain and naturally gluten-free + vegan. And seriously – they’re one of my favorite recipes.
Peanut butter sub?
Wondering how to make peanut butter? All you need is 1 ingredient and a food processor!
But if you can’t have or don’t have peanut butter or peanuts on hand, you can experiment with other nut butters. I’ve tried today’s recipe with sunflower seed butter and it worked great. But I’m not sure about other nut butters.
They’re not always 100% interchangeable so I can’t say for sure if other types would work in these protein bites. That’s why I called it an experiment. ;) But I’m quite sure they’d be fine wth other types.
I can tell you that almond butter works amazingly well in these bliss balls, as does sunflower seed butter for a nut-free option. They’re like a chocolate version of this recipe and truly so delicious.
For a grain-free chocolate version, try these chocolate peanut butter protein balls. If you use cashew butter, then you’ve got youself some paleo protein balls. :)
Vegan option
Honey is quite a bit stickier and thicker than maple syrup and that’s why I only have brown rice syrup listed as a honey sub for this recipe.
I tried these balls with maple syrup but they fell apart more easily. So that’s why I recommend brown rice syrup.
If you give these peanut butter protein balls a try, I’d love to hear what you think!
And here are some resources if you’re new to the vegan or gluten-free diet:
- Are Oats Gluten-free?
- Is Honey Gluten-free?
- Are Chocolate Chips Gluten-free?
- Are Chocolate Chips Vegan?
- Is Peanut Butter Gluten-free?
- Is Peanut Butter Vegan?
Peanut Butter Protein Balls (gluten-free, vegan, whole grain, dairy-free)
- Prep Time:
- Cook Time:
- Ready in:
- Yield: 24 1" balls
Ingredients
- 1 cup (256 grams) natural peanut butter or sunflower seed butter for nut-free (the kind with just peanuts / seeds and salt)
- 1/4 cup (80 grams) honey or 1/4 cup brown rice syrup for a vegan version
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups (135 grams) rolled oats (use gluten-free oats, if needed)
- 1/2 cup (42 grams) unsweetened shredded coconut
- pinch of salt
- 1/3 cup (57 grams) mini chocolate chips (use vegan chocolate chips, if needed)
- 2-4 teaspoons water or additional vanilla extract
Directions
- In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the peanut butter, brown rice syrup or honey and vanilla extract.
- Stir in the oats, coconut and salt until well combined and then add the chocolate chips. If the mixture doesn’t hold together well when pinched together, add the additional water or vanilla, a teaspoon at a time until the mixture holds together well when pinched.
- Form 1” balls by pressing about 1 tablespoon of the mixture together.
- Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or refrigerate for 1 week.
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255 comments on “Peanut Butter Protein Balls (gluten-free, vegan options)” — Add one!
16 comments are awaiting moderation!
These turned out wonderful – we made the coconut ones and the cinnamon raisin and loved them both!
Yay! I’m so glad to hear that! :) Thanks for your comment!
Can you supply the macronutrients for this recipe? They’re amazing but hard to track :(
I don’t have that info but you could use this recipe analyzer for the nutritional profile.
This looks soooo good. I am on a weight loss journey as well and snacks is where I fall short sometimes. I have a 5 and 6 six year old so you can imagine the goodies I’m tempted with. I’ll try this recipe. Who know maybe the kiddies will like it too!
I hope that you and the kids will enjoy them! I think they’re pretty kid-friendly. :) Thanks for your comment!
Just made this. It looked beautiful, tasted great!
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for the feedback!
Just made this. It looked beautiful, tasted great.
I’m glad to hear that! Thanks for your feedback. :)
With its benefits I can call it magic ball, great recipe and this easy make I can make some then keep it for week. Many thanks for sharing.
You’re welcome! I hope you’ll enjoy them. :)
I like that the first photo is of the finished product. Gave me the kick I needed to try it out. My kids love them. It’s their new favorite snack. Thanks Erin.
I’m really happy that your kids liked them so much! Thanks for the feedback. :)
I use a recipe a lot like this one. I keep the balls in the freezer in a zip lock bag. They are delish when they are that cold.
These are also great frozen! Thanks for the tip. :)
Can you eat them right after you make them or do you have to wait 1 week – 3 days?
You can eat them right away. You can store them at room temperature for up to 3 days or refrigerate for 1 week. :)
Can I add another half cup of oats instead of coconut? I don’t like coconut
Yes! You may need a little more or less than 1/2 cup. Just add a bit at a time until you like the consistency. :)
Thanks so much, I can’t wait to try it
You’re welcome! Enjoy. :)
Do you have nutrition information? These are my new favorite snack but I would love to keep track of them in my food diary fitness app
I don’t have that info but you could use this recipe analyzer for the nutritional profile. :)
Love them! What is the nutritional value of one? Calories?
I’m glad you love them! I don’t have that info but you could use this recipe analyzer for the nutritional profile. :)
This is such a great snack! I made a batch today and made it with almond butter instead of peanut butter and it came out so amazing. Great recipe and can’t wait to keep making this one!
Yay! I’m so glad to hear that. :) Thanks for your comment!
Erin, thank you for sharing this! I have made this so many times. Everyone that tries it, loves it!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy everyone loves it. Thanks for your comment! :)
I crew on sail boats and I made these one day for a race. At first no one was really interested in them. I thought wow I got all these balls I have to bring back home. After a couple of hrs, my container was handed back to me empty. They were asking were there any more left? haha. New snack for the crew!!
Haha. This made me laugh. I’m so happy that the tupperware was returned empty! Thanks for your comment. :)
I love this recipe and my roommates are now obsessed with them. So I have to make them weekly.
Haha. I’m glad that they’re obsessed. :) Thanks for your comment!
Erin, this looks wonderful! I’ll try it today. Thank you for sharing!
I hope you enjoyed them! Thanks for your comment. :)
Thanks! Made this last night so quick, easy and tasty!
I’m glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for your comment. :)
Great recipe. You know, I really like it when in the beginning there is a small Preface and most importantly – a photo of the finished dish. When I saw what was going to happen, I immediately said to myself – “Lisa, you will do it!”. To be honest, I did it the second time, but look like the photo you have. Was lucky to order all integritty in one place!
I’m so happy that you enjoyed them! :)
Erin, what a gorgeous peanut butter protein balls! Your directions make this seem like such an easy approach, too. I would love to make this soon!
Thanks a bunch. :) I hope you’ll like them as much as we did!
Erin, what a gorgeous idea! We absolutely love protein balls! Definitely need to try these!
Thanks so much! I hope you will. :)
Hello Erin, awesome protein balls :) thanks for sharing.
Thank you! I’m glad you liked them. :)
Has anyone tried freezing these?
I’m sorry for just now seeing this! Yes, it works fine. :)
Hey there, I’m a huge fan of peanut butter and this peanut butter protein ballslook way awesome!
Thanks! I hope you’ll get to try them. :)
Hi Erin ! You’re very skilled. awesome protein balls
Hello! Thank you very much. :) I’m happy you enjoyed them!
Love making these! Great recipe! ☺
Thanks so much! I appreciate the feedback. :)
Can you substitute the PB with anything else? My daughter is allergic to peanuts – I use to enjoy these very much before having her.
Any kind of nut or seed butter should work. :)
The nutrition calculator came out with this:
Nutrition Facts
Servings: 18
Amount per serving Calories 129
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 20g 26%
Saturated Fat 2.5g 13%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 65mg 3%
Total Carbohydrate 9.1g 3%
Dietary Fiber 1.9g 7%
Total Sugars 4.9g
Protein 4.9g
Vitamin D 0 mcg 0%
Calcium 3mg 0%
Iron 0mg 1%
Potassium 31mg 1%
Awesome! Thank you for sharing that info
How much protein is in ball?
I don’t have that info but you could use this recipe analyzer for the nutritional profile.
Awesome!I made it last weekend. The taste was wonderful. Thank for your recipe
Do we have to wait a week until we can eat them?
Nope. You can store at room temperature for up to 3 days or refrigerate for up to 1 week.
Thank you so much for a great recipe. I made these yesterday and they were super easy and tasty.
So happy to hear that! Thanks for your comment. :)
what is the calorie, fat, protein and carb count in the original recipe?
How much protein per ball
I calculated the calories of the ingredients listed and found that the calories per piece would be around 115.
What about carbs??
I don’t have that info but you could use this recipe analyzer for the nutritional profile. :)
Can these be made with powdered peanut butter, such as PB2?
I’ve never tried it so I really can’t say. Sorry about that!
You could, but you would need to add more liquid so they have moisture to stick together…
These look very good, do you know nutritional value of them? protein and calories mainly? thank you
I don’t have that info but you could use this recipe analyzer for the nutritional profile.
How many balls do you think is a serving size? They are Delicious thank you for this recipe!!
Sorry for just now seeing your question! I think 2-3 is a reasonable number. I’m so happy you liked them. :)
I love this recipe! I really appreciate having the weight listed too as cups confuse me and put me off using a recipe. I add a scoop of vanilla protein powder too and eat one with some fruit when I need a snack after work before I go to the gym.
I’m happy you find the grams useful! I’m from the US but hate using cups because they’re not accurate. Everyone packs a cup of flour differently. I’m happy you love the recipe! Thanks for your comment. :)
I’ve been making this recipe for about 6 months and use most of the original recipe but use honey, dessicated coconut and Meridian peanut butter (which is pure peanut ie no salt, palm oil or sugar added) and sometimes add in dried raisins or cranberries. They always turn out delicious and Ive never needed to use any water. My 5 year old daughter takes one to school in her packed lunch instead of sweet treats. Thanks Tracey (UK)
Hi Tracey from the UK! :) Raisins and cranberries sound like great additions. I love that you pack your daughter one of these instead of a dessert! I hope she enjoys her not super sweet treats. Thanks a bunch for your feedback!
Any idea of calorie content on these?
Hi! I don’t have that info but you can copy and paste the recipe here for the nutritional profile, if you’d like. :)
Pam did you ever find out the calorie content? I got a really hIgh number.
These peanut butter protein balls look absolutely fantastic. Beautiful photos, too. I look forward to trying this.
Thank you! I hope you’ll enjoy them. :)
I was wondering if you could substitute maple syrup for the honey. Any thoughts? I can’t wait to try these. What a perfect summertime snack!
That should work but my worry is that they might not be as sticky, and therefore more difficult to roll into balls. I would love to hear how they come out. :)
Do you cook the oats first?
Nope! Never cook oats first unless a recipe specifically says to. :)
What can you substitute for coconut? (lot of fat in coconut) Can handle the peanut butter and chocolate chips but would love a lighter fat sub for the coconut.
You could add more oats until the texture is how you’d like it. :)
So glad to hear there is a substitute for coconut. I have a tree nut allergy and was trying to think of something with a consistency similar to coconut that is still super tasty. Do you have any other suggestions than more oats? I might sprinkle some (well more than some for sure!) cinnamon into part of a batch. I love cinnamon!
T
Cinnamon sounds like a delicious addition! And no, I can’t really think of any other good shredded coconut subs. I just googled it and can’t find anything that would be a good sub in this recipe. Sorry about that! Happy holidays! :)
Would this recipe still work if the oatmeal was replaced with almond flour?
The two aren’t interchangeable but you could mix everything except for the chocolate chips together and then add almond flour until it comes together. I’d love to hear how it goes!
Has anyone froze these? How well do they freeze and what’s the best length of time? Thanks.
I’ve frozen them and it works well! What do you mean by best length of time? Like how long? I didn’t freeze them for super long but I’m guessing a few weeks would be fine.
Put them in the fridge till the next day! Delicious and addicting
Thanks for the tip! So happy you liked them. :)
These are delicious! I ate two and satisfied my sweet tooth. One probably would have done it, but I just couldn’t help myself. So easy!
Haha. Two is still very reasonable. :) Thanks a bunch for your comment!
Just made these and they are delicious! And nutritional value wise, I’m sure they aren’t even that bad! Yum!
So happy you liked them! :)
Awesome recipe! I love it!
So happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know. :)