A bite-sized snack that mixes the perfect combination of salty and sweet to keep hunger at bay and your energy level up!
There is a short story behind these Almond Butter Pretzel Bites: A coworker asked me if I had any recipes for energy bites, I said that I did, I made these over the weekend, brought them into work and she was immediately obsessed and ate them all. The end.
Okay, maybe there’s a part two to that story.
I recently received the “Eat Well Be Well” box from Influenster and… wait, I should back up. Do you know what Influenster is? If you follow me on Facebook (which you totally should), you probably saw my post about this. If not (and again, you should), here’s the deal:
As a member of Influenster, you take occasional surveys and they match you up with pertinent campaigns to send you products to try out and provide your honest opinions. I’ve discovered so many great products that I never would have come across on my own by participating in the campaigns I’ve been lucky enough to have sent my way.
You’re set up with campaign goals like writing reviews or posting pictures of the products in use on Instagram – nothing earth shattering, and half the time it’s stuff that I would do anyway! Come join in the (free!) fun – sign up with my referral link so they know I’m bringing the cool kids to the party
Okay, you’re caught up. Back to the story…
This time around was an “Eat Well Be Well” themed box full of coupons for health-conscious goodies and a bag of Glutino Gluten-Free Pretzel Twists. While I don’t have a dietary restriction related to gluten, I do like to avoid it as much as I can.
Since my coworker just asked about a recipe for energy balls, and I just got this bag of pretzels, and my go-to energy ball recipe happens to have pretzels in it… why wouldn’t I take the opportunity to get some pictures and post it to the blog?
Of course before I poured the bag into the bowl, I sampled a handful to see what I thought – spoiler alert: they’re great! If you didn’t tell me they were gluten-free, I wouldn’t know it.
I’m pretty finicky when it comes to food that tastes gluten-free when you know darn well that gluten should be there, and this passed the test. Just the right amount of salt, too – cha ching!
I love this recipe because it completely satisfies my salty + sweet cravings, and keeps hunger at bay. I usually use almond butter, but you can use peanut butter as well – it’ll give you the same awesome result with a slightly different flavor.
They’re naturally dairy-free and no-bake, which are both big wins in and of themselves. Even better, it’s super easy to make these completely gluten-free (by using GF oats) and/or vegan (agave syrup and vegan chocolate for drizzling).
No additional salt needed since the pretzels give you just the right amount to balance things out. So basically, they’re the perfect snack. Just sayin’.
Oh, wait! There’s a part three to this story.
While I was drizzling dark chocolate over these bad boys, I was a bit distracted by the cat trying to get on the counter I was using and stopping paying attention to what I was doing. I had a pastry bag full of warm chocolate in one hand, and the other pushing a cat’s face in what felt like slow motion off the counter and onto the floor.
In the process, I squeezed the bag too hard and popped the small decorating tip right out and onto one of the bites (insert me yelling “Nooooo!” in slow motion, too).
And since the chocolate was hot and the bites were cold… it stuck to it. Immediately.
It was like it was wearing a hat. Don’t believe me? Check it out:
Yep. It’s wearing a chocolatey metal hat.
So go make these without my chocolate faux pas and let me know what you think!
Description
Ingredients
- 1 cup Glutino Gluten-Free Pretzel Twists, or any other brand pretzels
- 1 cup oats, gluten-free, if desired
- ¼ cup almond butter or peanut butter
- ¼ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons honey, maple syrup or agave syrup
- ⅛ teaspoon pure vanilla extract, optional
- Dark chocolate, optional for drizzling
Instructions
- Add pretzels and oats to a food processor and pulse to get small chunks.1 cup Glutino Gluten-Free Pretzel Twists1 cup oats
- Add the rest of the ingredients and pulse until combined.1/4 cup almond butter or peanut butter1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut2 tablespoons chia seeds2 tablespoons coconut oil2 tablespoons honey1/8 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Shape into balls and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Chill in the freezer for 30 minutes to set.
- If you want to drizzle with chocolate, do it now! It’ll set very quickly due to the hot chocolate hitting the cold bites.Dark chocolate
- Store in an airtight container in fridge (for short term storage) or freezer (for up to two weeks). Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is generated by an automatic API and does not take variations across specific brands into account. This information is provided as a general guideline and should not be treated as official calculations. Learn more here.
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A big thank you to Glutino and Influenster for the complimentary goodies!
Sara
Great recipe, tastes great, thank you!!! How would you recommend making this stick together better and less crumbly?
Leslie Kiszka
If you’re finding it to be crumbly, that could be due to the kind of almond butter you’re using (as some are more oily and “wet” than others). You could try adding a little more coconut oil!