With the Kids

Healthy Cookie Dough Balls

I love getting my kids into the kitchen by making simple recipes where they will find success. This recipe for our healthy cookie dough balls is no exception. We make many variations of cookie dough balls, but this recipe is the simplest and a favorite around our house!

Kids in the Kitchen: Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls

Healthy Cookie Dough Balls

Whether you call them energy bites, cookie dough balls, or no-bake cookies, these little tasty morsels take just a few basic ingredients and turn them into a quick and easy sweet treat. Unlike regular cookie dough, the base of these chocolate chip cookie dough balls is a mixture of cashews and oats, giving them a nice dose of protein.

With a little supervision at the food processor, kids can easily make these on their own. I love keeping a stash of these in the fridge, but they never seem to last long. Let’s get cooking!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup raw cashews
  • 1/2 cup rolled oats
  • 3 Tablespoons honey
  • 2 Tablespoons maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 Tablespoon unsweetened shredded coconut (optional)

Method:

Step 1: Add cashews and oats to a food processor and pulse until you get a flour-like consistency. You don’t want to make cashew butter, but you don’t want any big chunks either.

Making cookie dough balls

Step 2: Add maple syrup, honey, vanilla, and shredded coconut (if using). Pulse and mix until it forms a ball of dough.

Making healthy cookie dough balls with kids

Step 3: Remove dough from the food processor and stir in chocolate chips or chunks by hand. At this point, I like to stick the dough in the freezer for 5 minutes or so, to make for easier rolling.

Step 4: Get your clean-handed kids to come and help you roll the dough into balls. We make ours fairly small and bite-size. Sorry, no photos of us rolling – we were all too sticky!

Chocolate chip cookie dough balls

This recipes makes about 16-18 one-inch dough balls. Store in the refrigerator or freezer. Eat and enjoy!

Happy cooking with your kids!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls
Ingredients
  • 1 cup raw cashews
  • 1/2 cup rolled oats
  • 3 Tablespoons honey
  • 2 Tablespoons maple syrup
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 Tablespoon unsweetened shredded coconut optional
Instructions
  1. Add cashews and oats to a food processor and pulse until you get a flour-like consistency. You don't want to make cashew butter, but you don't want any big chunks either.
  2. Add maple syrup, honey, vanilla, and shredded coconut (if using). Pulse and mix until it forms a ball of dough.
  3. Remove dough from the food processor and stir in chocolate chips or chunks by hand. At this point, I like to stick the dough in the freezer for 5 minutes or so, to make for easier rolling.
  4. Get your clean-handed kids to come and help you roll the dough into balls. We make ours fairly small and bite-size. Sorry, no photos of us rolling - we were all too sticky!
  5. This recipes makes about 16-18 one-inch dough balls. Store in the refrigerator or freezer. Eat and enjoy!

*Originally posted 4/3/13

6 comments

  1. These look really good and I’m glad they’re a healthier option than a lot of snack foods. Two quick questions. First, what is the purpose of keeping them refridgerated? Is it just so they aren’t sticky at all and to keep them well formed? And second, have you tried making this with extra honey and omitting the syrup? If you did, how did that turn out?

  2. Thank you for that lovely reciepe !!!
    Will do that for tomorrows daycare picknick
    Cant wait

    Thanks and greetings from Germany
    Jessika

  3. Oh dear! How could I forget the best part? I used 1/4 cup chocolate chips – you could use mini chocolate chips, regular size, or even a chocolate bar cut into chunks. Thanks for letting me know about the missing ingredient! :)

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