These key lime energy balls come together in about 15 minutes and taste just like a bite of key lime pie! They are full of zesty lime flavor and are a great sweet snack or dessert! These treats are great for making ahead of time, are made with nutritious ingredients, and are also gluten free and vegan.
Ingredients you'll need
- Old fashioned rolled oats: I recommend buying organic oats whenever possible. Click here for one of my favorite oat brands.
- Raw cashews: make sure you get raw cashews instead of roasted cashews. Raw cashews have a more mild flavor and are very versatile. You can keep any leftovers for your next batch of energy balls or you can soak them and use them as a dairy free/vegan way to make soups creamy (blend soaked cashews with water and use in place of milk or cream in a recipe), make your own cashew cream, or make healthy edible cookie dough.
- Raw almonds: make sure you also get raw almonds. Similar to cashews, raw almonds have a more mild flavor.
- Unsweetened shredded coconut: a lot of the shredded coconut that you will find on the baking aisle at the grocery store is sweetened. Check the ingredients to make sure you are getting unsweetened coconut. That dates will add all the sweetness you need for this recipe.
- Medjool dates: Medjool dates are larger and more creamy than regular dates and can be found at most grocery stores. If you have leftovers, you can add them to smoothies, make bacon wrapped dates, or add cashew butter to the middle and enjoy as a sweet treat!
How to make key lime energy balls
Start by adding the oats, ½ cup coconut, nuts, and salt to a food processor or high speed blender. Blend until you have a fine meal.
Next, add the dates and blend together until you have a sticky dough. This should look similar to cookie dough. You may have to stop and scrape down the blender a couple times before you get to the cookie dough texture.
Transfer the dough to a large bowl and mix together with the zest and juice of two limes. I like to use the back of a wooden spoon for this part.
In a separate shallow bowl or plate, add the remaining ½ cup of coconut and the zest of 1 lime. Mix together.
Use a tablespoon to scoop out the dough and roll into balls.
Roll the balls in the coconut and lime zest mixture to coat and place in a store container. You can either enjoy right away or refrigerate for an hour or two for a more firm texture. Enjoy!
Energy ball tips
I use my Vitamix blender to make my energy balls but you can also use a food processor. If you find that your dough is too try and not sticking together, you can add a tablespoon of water at a time until you get a consistency that will stick together. If the dough is too wet and will not stay in balls, add ¼ cup of oat flour (add oats to a Vitamix or food processor and blend until you have a fine powder).
If your dates are not soft (sometimes they may dry out in the refrigerator), soak them in warm water for about 5 minutes prior to making the recipe. Make sure to press out any excess moisture so your dough does not get too wet.
More energy ball recipes
You can store energy balls in the refrigerator for 2 weeks and in the freezer for about 3 months.
Recipe
Key Lime Pie Energy Balls
Equipment
- 1 Food processor or high speed blender
Ingredients
- 10 Medjool dates, pitted
- 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, separated
- ¾ cup old fashioned rolled oats
- ½ cup raw cashews
- ¼ cup raw almonds
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 3 limes (zest), separated
- 2 limes (juice)
Instructions
- Add the cashews, almonds, oats, salt, and ½ cup of the coconut to a food processor or high speed blender.
- Blend or process until you have a fine meal/powder.
- Add the dates to the blender or food processor and blend together with the oat and nut mixture. The mixture should start to thicken and look more like cookie dough. You may need to stop and scrape down the sides of the food processor or blender a few times until you get to the cookie dough texture.
- Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and add the lime zest from 2 limes, lime juice from 2 limes, and vanilla extract. Mix together until well incorporated.
- In a shallow bowl or a large plate, add the remaining ½ cup of coconut and the zest from 1 lime and mix together.
- Using a tablespoon or large spoon, scoop out the nut & date mixture and use your hands to roll into balls.
- Roll the balls in the coconut & lime zest mixture to coat the outside of the balls.
- Repeat with the remaining date & nut mixture and enjoy!
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