These no bake salted caramel energy balls are vegan, gluten-free, and made with wholesome ingredients. With just 5 ingredients and 10 minutes, you have a decadent yet healthy snack that will delight you with it’s wonderful caramel flavor and addicting fudgy texture.
Vegan salted caramel energy balls
Okay, so I am the queen of energy balls. I’m serious. My chocolate walnut energy balls and carrot cake bites are so drop dead delicious that I didn’t think I could top them, but here we are: salted caramel energy balls.
Oh my god these are good it is hard to believe they are actually healthy.
“But Mimi, how are these caramel flavored with no caramel in them???” SIT DOWN and I’ll tell you.
Ingredients for salted caramel energy balls
The key to getting a delicious caramel flavor is using dates and tahini. This combo tastes just like caramel, you’ll have to trust me on this one. Then oats and cashews make up the base of the energy ball, while cinnamon and salt round out the caramely flavor profile.
My friend said these energy bites tasted like the girl scout cookies caramel delites (formerly known as samoas), because the oats give it a cookie flavor and the dates and tahini nail the caramel flavor. But if you wanted to have a true caramel delite inspired energy bite, I’d say roll these in some coconut flakes and drizzle a little melted chocolate over them… now I’m just giving myself more ideas 🙃 Anyone want to see some caramel delite energy bites on the blog?
How to make these no bake energy balls
- Pulse oats and cashews in the food processor until a coarse crumble forms.
- Add dates, tahini, cinnamon, and salt, then pulse until evenly incorporated.
- Roll the dough into balls and pop in the freezer.
- Enjoy!
Tips for success
- Use a food processor. If you do not have a food processor, a powerful blender will work alright, but you will need to scrape down the sides of the blender frequently to make sure the dough is evenly incorporated.
- Use gooey, soft dates. Medjool dates work best, as they tend to be the freshest and softest. But I often use Delget Noor dates in my energy balls, which are much drier (and cheaper 🤑) If you use drier dates, be sure to soak them 5-10 minutes, or until they are soft and rehydrated.
- If you have issues with the dough sticking together when you roll it into balls, add water 1/2 teaspoon at a time until it is sticky enough to work with.
- Freeze! These energy balls get a wonderful fudgy texture when frozen. If you have sensitive teeth, you can store these in the fridge for an equally as delicious energy ball with a much softer bite.
Nut-free option
Can’t eat cashews? No problem. These energy bites are delicious with or without nuts! Swap out the 1/4 cup cashews for an extra 1/4 cup oats.
More energy ball recipes
If you make this recipe, leave it a rating and a comment! You can also tag me @Daughter_of_Seitan on Instagram so I can see your lovely food creations. XOXO
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Salted Caramel Energy Bites
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 20 energy balls 1x
- Category: Snacks
- Method: No Bake
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
These no bake salted caramel energy balls are vegan, gluten-free, and made with wholesome ingredients. With just 5 ingredients and 10 minutes, you have a decadent yet healthy snack that will delight you with it’s wonderful caramel flavor and addicting fudgy texture.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup oats (gluten-free, if needed)
- 1/4 cup cashews
- 1 cup pitted dates, packed (about 10 dates)
- 2 tablespoons tahini
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2–3 tablespoons of water (if needed)
Instructions
- Remove the pits from your dates. If your dates are dry, soak them in warm water for 5-10 minutes, or until soft and rehydrated. If you have soft gooey dates, soaking is not necessary.
- Add the oats and cashews to a food processor and pulse a few times until a coarse crumble forms.
- Add the pitted dates, tahini, cinnamon, and salt to the food processor. Pulse until evenly incorporated. The mixture should stick together when you try to roll it into balls. If the mixture is too dry, add water 1 tablespoon at a time and pulse again, until it is sticky.
- Form mixture into 1 – 1.5 in balls. Roll the balls in finely chopped cashews (optional), then pop in the freezer for at least 30 minutes before enjoying.
- Store in an air-tight container in the freezer. You could also store in the fridge, but these are best frozen!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 energy ball
- Calories: 55 cals
- Sugar: 6.31g
- Sodium: 16mg
- Fat: 1.6g
- Saturated Fat: 0.25g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0.6g
- Carbohydrates: 10.1g
- Fiber: 1.21g
- Protein: 1.1g
- Cholesterol: 0mg
Keywords: salted caramel, energy bites recipe, no bake energy bites, vegan bliss balls
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