Peanut and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites
A sweet treat or pick-me-up from time to time is always welcome. But if you are trying to eat healthily it's not always easy to satisfy those hunger pangs and sugar cravings!
Here is my answer to those days when my sweet tooth is yearning for something substantial, but I want to watch my sugar and carb intake: healthy no-bake Cookie Dough Bites. Even though they taste like cookie dough, there is no flour in these nut-forward, no-bake sweet treats. They couldn't be easier to make at home and are perfect for whipping up with your little helpers.
Experiment with different kinds of nut butter, chocolates, and dried fruits. They are very easy to tailor to your taste and it's great to be able to control the amount of sugar and fat in every bite. I have used milk chocolate in the cookie dough, but if you want to go completely dairy-free, use dairy-free chocolate instead.
To keep things really simple I've measured everything out using the Tala Cook's Measure and some measuring spoons.
Making time: 20 minutes
Yield: 8 small ball-shaped 'bites'
Ingredients:
½ US cup ground almonds
1 tbsp runny honey
1 tbs peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
chopped milk chocolate to taste (I used approximately 20g)
Equipment:
Tala glass storage container with vented lid
1. Place all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix until you have a rubbly, dry-ish mixture that holds together nicely when pressed
2. Roll the mixture into balls and chill on a baking sheet for a couple of hours
3. When the balls are firm, roll again to make perfectly round and refrigerate in a storage container with a lid (the Tala glass storage container with vented lid is perfect).
Tips:
• Bear in mind that nut butter varies wildly in texture – some are very liquid and oily while others are comparatively dry. Err on the side of caution and use just enough nut butter to bind or the balls will be oily and lose their shape.
• Replace chocolate chips with a tablespoon of crushed freeze-dried raspberries for Bakewell
flavor bites!
• For chocolate bites, replace peanut butter with a nut and cocoa butter, add 1 tbs of cocoa powder, boost the sweetness with an extra half teaspoon of honey and omit the chocolate chips.