SunButter & Jelly Energy Bites

SunButter & Jelly Energy Bites made with oats, Medjool dates, No-Sugar-Added SunButter, and your favorite jam. The perfect snack!

It’s that time of year where healthy snacks are invaluable, am I right? 

Seriously, what I wouldn’t pay for a healthy homemade snack when I’m running from dog mom-ing to teaching yoga to shooting recipes. 

It’s the weeks where I don’t meal prep snacks where I stare at the open fridge between meals asking myself, “What do I even eat?!”

Usually after this question I end up opening my chocolate drawer and grabbing a block of chocolate and calling it a day. 

And while chocolate is delicious and I eat it daily, I think we can all agree that it’s not super sustaining. 

Hello, sugar crash at 11 AM. 

Then I found these prepackaged peanut butter and jelly bites at the grocery store a few weeks back and I enjoyed them! 

The snack concept is that jelly is in the center and the doughy ball surrounding it is made of peanut butter. 

They were nice plop in my mouth after finishing up weighted dumbbell sets, or while running from Flora’s puppy teeth (ouch!). 

However, I didn’t want to continue to pay for the packaging, so I decided to make my own at home. 

They’re easy to make and store well in the refrigerator for an energizing lift. 

These SunButter & Jelly Energy Bites are made with oats, Medjool dates, No-Sugar-Added SunButter, and your favorite jam.

They’re the perfect bite-sized snack packed with plant-based protein and complex carbs to fuel your goals and dreams.

What You Need to Make SunButter & Jelly Energy Bites

You probably already have all of the ingredients that you need to make these SunButter & Jelly Energy Bites.

Basically, it’s a nut butter-y bliss ball with a gooey jelly center. 

They’re a sweet PB&J snack suitable for on-the-go because jelly (read:the party) is on the inside! 

And I made mine better because they’re allergen free with the addition of SunButter. 

Here’s what you need to make SunButter & Jelly Energy Bites:

• Medjool Dates
• Gluten Free Oat Flour
• No Sugar Added SunButter
• jelly (homemade or store bought)

That’s it!

How to Make Jelly “Balls”

The first step to this recipe is to make the jelly workable.

In order to wrap our energy bites around the jelly, it needs to be more of a solid.

To achieve this, we freeze our jelly balls!

First, use a 1/2 teaspoon measure to scoop out jelly “balls” and place them on a parchment paper lined plate or baking sheet.

Place them in the freezer for about 10-15 minutes to harden.

Depending on the consistency of your jelly, it may take more time to harden. 

If you’re not sure how long it will take, you can plan for at least 1 hour to ensure the jelly is firm enough to be workable. 

How to Make SunButter Dough

Next, we create the sweet and nutty SunButter dough.

Add the Medjool dates to a food processor or high speed blender and process until you have a thick paste.

Transfer the date paste to a bowl and add in the oat flour and SunButter.

If you don’t have oat flour, you can create your own by blending oats in a high speed blender on high until you have a fine flour. 

Then you can measure it and add to this recipe! 

Stir with a spatula until you have a smooth batter.

It will be hard to combine at first, but will come together after a few kneads!

How to Make SunButter & Jelly Energy Bites

Scoop the SunButter dough out in ~1.5 TBSP increments and roll it into balls with your hands.

Flatten the balls into small discs by pressing them between your hands or flattening with the bottom of a glass. 

Place them on another parchment lined cookie sheet. 

Once the jelly “balls” are hard, remove them from the freezer.

The trick here is to work quickly to ensure that the jelly doesn’t melt! 

Press one jelly “ball” into the center of the SunButter dough disc and use your fingers to fold the dough around the frozen jelly to seal it off.

Roll again with your hands so you have a tight ball.

Repeat this process until you’re out of jelly and SunButter balls! 

Depending on how big your make your balls, this recipe will make anywhere from 15-18 balls. 

Brand Notes

While I love using No Sugar Added SunButter for this recipe, you could also use any SunButter flavor for different variations.

You can also use any nut or seed butter you have on hand, but I think SunButter adds something special. 

I love that it adds plant-based protein and a delicious nutty flavor that is reminiscent of peanut butter but without the allergens. 

Swaps and Substitutions

Also up for interpretation is what jelly you use! 

I love using homemade or store bought jelly, but you can also use jam, fruit preserves, or any fruit butter. 

A thicker jelly works much better than a thinner jelly for this recipe so that it freezes more solid and compact. 

Try finding a no-sugar-added or naturally sweetened jelly for the best nutrition profile!

I used a strawberry chia seed jelly that was absolutely delicious. 

Change the berry profiles to match your mood. 

Try the combination of SunButter and apple butter in the fall; you won’t regret it! 

Notes on Meal Prep

Store the SunButter & Jelly Energy Bites in the fridge for up to two weeks or the freezer long term storage. 

They’re also fine at room temperature for the day.

I love to keep mine in a silicone bag for wherever the day might take me.

The jelly will remain sealed within the bites if you’re gentle with them.

And if you have a little tear, don’t worry, they’ll still be delicious. 

How to Serve SunButter & Jelly Energy Bites

These SunButter & Jelly Energy Bites are the perfect snack to pop in before or after a workout!

A protein trifecta of oats, No Sugar Added SunButter, and dates keeps them hearty and filling with lots of chewy texture.

They’re naturally sweetened with just Medjool dates and jelly. 

The addition of sunflower seed butter keeps these balls nut-free and packed with healthy fats.

And the best part is that they’re totally portable.

Grab a couple for a mid-morning snack, healthy dessert, or on-the-going adventuring.

Enjoy!

More Bliss Balls 

• Grain-Free Chocolate Cherry Bliss Balls

• Blueberry Muffin Energy Balls

• Beet Brownie Bliss Balls

• Pumpkin Apple Bliss Balls

• SunButter Date Bliss Balls

• Lemon Chia Bliss Balls

• Carrot Cake Bliss Balls

• Gingerbread Bliss Balls

• Pumpkin SunButter Chocolate Chip Bliss Balls

• Snickerdoodle Oat Bliss Balls

• Maple Walnut Bliss Balls

• Raspberry Cashew Cheesecake Bliss Balls

• SunButter & Jelly Bliss Balls

• Tahini Chocolate Chip Bliss Balls

I Want to Hear From You

If you make this SunButter & Jelly Energy Bites recipe, let me know!

Be sure to leave me a comment, rating, and review so I can use your feedback to create more yums.

Give me a shout on Instagram and use #floraandvino to show me your creations.

Check out my Pinterest page to pin more recipes like this one to make later.

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XO Lauren

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This post is brought to you by SunButter, but all words and eats are my own. Thanks for supporting the sponsors that keep me hungry!