Raw Energy Balls! (Revisited)

Raw Energy Balls!
(Vegan ~ Raw ~ Gluten-Free ~ Dairy-Free ~ Soy-Free)

**Check out @veganrescue on Instagram for a video/reel of this recipe.**

Makes: 13
Total Time: 10-15 Minutes, plus overnight soaking
Difficulty: Easy
Author: Vegan Rescue/Jessica Williams

Raw Energy Balls! I absolutely love this recipe, and it truly gives me a boost of energy. You can find my original post [here] from January 8, 2015. So, this is a re-post of my exact original recipe. Also, I cannot believe that my blog will be 10 years old soon!! This recipe makes a baker’s dozen, and each ball is about 140 calories. They are very nutritious, gluten-free, and high in fiber. They are actually very filling, one in the morning is enough for me. I really hope you try this one. I’m glad I re-visited this recipe to give you some fresh pictures. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1/2 Cup Organic Roasted Unsalted Peanuts, divided
1/2 Cup Raw Almonds (soaked, rinsed and drained)
1/2 Cup Organic Pumpkin Seeds (soaked, rinsed and drained)
1 Tbsp Pure Coconut Oil
1 Tbsp Chia Seeds
1 1/2 Tbsp Hemp Seeds
2 Tsp Maca Powder
1 Tbsp of 100% Cocoa Powder Unsweetened
5 Pieces of Organic Turkish Apricots
6 Pieces of Organic Medjool Dates, pitted
1/4 Cup Organic Maple Syrup
1 Tsp Salt, optional

Directions:
-Soak the almonds, pumpkin seeds and 1/4 cup of the peanuts for about eight hours or overnight. You can use fresh filtered water, if available. Also, if using the salt, you can add the teaspoon of salt when soaking.
(Note: I soak only half of the peanuts and add the remaining half during the final step. I do this because it adds that familiar peanutty taste and texture. However, you can soak all of the peanuts during the initial step for nutritional purposes, if you prefer).
-Next, drain and rinse the soaked nuts/seeds.
-In a food processor, add the soaked nuts/seeds, coconut oil, chia seeds, hemp seeds, maca powder, and cocoa powder. Pulse for about 30 seconds.
-Add the Medjool dates and Turkish apricots then pulse for another 30 seconds.
-Finally, add the remaining 1/4 cup of peanuts (if divided) and maple syrup. Pulse until all ingredients have been incorporated this will form a ball or a paste-like mixture.
-With wet hands grab about 1 1/2 tablespoons or so, of mixture and roll into 1-inch balls.
-Place the Raw Energy Balls on cookie sheet lined with parchment/wax paper.
-Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Soaking/Suggestions:
If I’m preparing this on the weekend, I’ll put the seeds/nuts to soak the night before and prepare the recipe the next morning. If it’s a weekday, I’ll place them to soak in the morning before I leave for work, so I can prepare the recipe after work. If your initial reaction to soaking is as mine was, that it sounds very time consuming, especially for a quick 10-minute recipe…it’s not so bad. You can plan ahead and use the above tips, which works great for me.
There have been a few situations where I forgot to soak and really needed these. So, if you are in a pinch, I have made this recipe after soaking for two hours to at least soften them.

-Soaking seeds/nuts improves the nutritional value – the vitamins, proteins and allows for better digestion. It also removes anti-nutrients/toxins. Place nuts/seeds in fresh/filtered water, I use about a 2:1 ratio, and typically add a teaspoon of salt. Also, for a raw diet you can choose to omit the cocoa powder.

-Storage: Store the Raw Energy Balls in a sealed container – I like to keep them nestled on the parchment paper. They should remain fresh for seven days, but they typically don’t last that long at our home.

On the topic of blogging:
Recently, my posts have been more recipes and less blogging. Unfortunately, I think I must have read a few too many Reddit comments on opinions about blogging. I once read a comment where someone said they hate scrolling through a person’s blog post to get to a recipe. For some reason, that stuck with me. So, I looked up some articles and information on blogging in general. Good news…it’s not dead, lol!
When I went to make these Raw Energy Balls, I read back my original post, and it was bittersweet. It reminded me of the joy of blogging. But in the post, I referenced my two dogs, and my Brody passed away some years ago. I miss him so much. Brody was a rescue, he was a little crazy (haha), but he brought us so much joy.

(Vegan ~ Raw ~ Gluten-Free ~ Dairy-Free ~ Soy-Free)
Makes: 13
Total Time: 10-15 minutes prep, plus overnight soaking and 30 minutes refrigeration
Difficulty: Easy
Author/Credit: Jessica Williams/Vegan Rescue

Ingredients:
1/2 Cup Organic Roasted Unsalted Peanuts, divided
1/2 Cup Raw Almonds (soaked, rinsed and drained)
1/2 Cup Organic Pumpkin Seeds (soaked, rinsed and drained)
1 Tbsp Pure Coconut Oil
1 Tbsp Chia Seeds
1 1/2 Tbsp Hemp Seeds
2 Tsp Maca Powder
1 Tbsp of 100% Cocoa Powder Unsweetened
5 Pieces of Organic Turkish Apricots
6 Pieces of Organic Medjool Dates, pitted
1/4 Cup Organic Maple Syrup
1 Tsp Salt, optional

 

Directions:
-Soak the almonds, pumpkin seeds and 1/4 cup of the peanuts for about eight hours or overnight. You can use fresh filtered water, if available. Also, if using the salt, you can add the teaspoon of salt when soaking.
(Note: I soak only half of the peanuts and add the remaining during the final step. I do this because it adds to that familiar peanutty taste and texture. However, you can soak all of the peanuts during the initial step for nutritional purposes, if you prefer)
-Next, drain and rinse the soaked nuts/seeds.
-In a food processor, add the soaked nuts/seeds, coconut oil, chia seeds; hemp seeds, maca powder, and cocoa powder. Pulse for about 30 seconds.
-Add the Medjool dates and Turkish apricots then pulse for another 30 seconds.
-Finally, add the remaining 1/4 cup of peanuts (if divided) and maple syrup. Pulse until all ingredients have been incorporated this will form a ball or a paste-like mixture.
-With wet hands grab about 1 1/2 tablespoons or so, of mixture and roll into 1-inch balls.
-Place the Raw Energy Balls on cookie sheet lined with parchment/wax paper.
-Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Soaking/Suggestions:
If I’m preparing this on the weekend, I’ll put the seeds/nuts to soak the night before and prepare the recipe the next morning. If it’s a weekday, I’ll place them to soak in the morning before I leave for work, so I can prepare the recipe after work. If your initial reaction to soaking is as mine was, that it sounds very time consuming, especially for a quick 10-minute recipe…it’s not so bad. You can plan ahead and use the above tips, which works great for me.
There have been a few situations where I forgot to soak and really needed these. So, if you are in a pinch, I have made this recipe after soaking for two hours to at least soften them.

-Soaking seeds/nuts improves the nutritional value – the vitamins, proteins and allows for better digestion. It also removes anti-nutrients/toxins. Place nuts/seeds in fresh/filtered water, I use about a 2:1 ratio, and typically add a teaspoon of salt. Also, for a raw diet you can choose to omit the cocoa powder.

-Storage: Store the Raw Energy Balls in a sealed container – I like to keep them nestled on the parchment paper. They should remain fresh for seven days, but they typically don’t last that long at our home.