No-Bake Apricot Coconut Energy Balls {Gluten Free, Vegan}

Hi friends. Goodness, what a crazy past week. It all started Wednesday in the middle of the night when my 3 year old woke me up with a case of the stomach bug. By Friday he was doing great and my husband and I settled in to watch our Homeland marathon Friday night (we’re currently on Season 2 and loving it!) and then my 6 year old daughter wakes up throwing up that evening. Her sickness lasted throughout the night, poor girl. Then Saturday morning my 8 year old felt bad. He caught it too and by 3pm that afternoon it made it’s way to me as well.

So 5/6 of us were taken down by Saturday evening. Needless to say we had to cancel all Easter plans and we ended up staying home in a PJs, sitting out in the sunshine, recovering. It was definitely our most unusual Easter ever!

I have to laugh at the fact that it took me weeks to prepare for Easter and it was all for nothing. We were planning on having friends for brunch, and like a crazy mom with 4 kids I had to find the perfect coordinating outfits (which they didn’t wear) and I stuffed the eggs for the egg hunt early in the week (which we didn’t do). At least my early planning worked in my favor when the Easter baskets were assembled and ready to go even though I felt like death. It was a fun distraction for Sunday afternoon when everyone was feeling a bit better.

But anyway, although it was a bummer of a week, my mom arrives for a visit tomorrow and we are on Spring Break so we are excited to have some fun! and we are going to recreate our Easter brunch this weekend, complete with decorating the Easter sugar cookies that I made early in the week (and froze).

Oh and in case you were wondering, the hubs did not stay well. Unfortunately by Monday night it caught up with him. Our first illness that took the whole family down within a week! No fun.

But enough about that, let’s talk about healthy snacks now that my appetite is back. These little treats are my newest favorite combo and I have been making them over and over. I love how easy snack balls and bars are to make. Just dump in the food processor and grind away. I also love the million different versions you can make.

I have had a thing for apricots lately and love them paired with nuts. I mean everything goes well paired with nuts, right?

In this bite, you’ve got some protein, fiber, healthy fat from the coconut and nuts, potassium and vitamin A from the apricots and natural sweetness from the dates. A perfect bite. And super satisfying! And the only equipment you need is a food processor (linked to the one I have)!

I honestly can’t get enough of these! What’s your favorite combo of these little snack balls? I am also partial to the chocolate chip cookie dough ones and these oatmeal peanut butter balls are always a winner!

[Tweet “The perfect bite! No-Bake Apricot Coconut Balls via @nutritiouseats #glutenfree #vegan #raw”]

Apricot Coconut Snack Balls

 

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Author: Melanie F. | Nutritious Eats

Recipe type: Snack

Serves: 14 balls

Ingredients

• 1 cup apricots
• ½ cup dates, pitted and chopped (about 5 medium)
• ½ cup almonds
• ½ cup cashews
• 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 Tablespoon coconut oil, melted
• 2 Tablespoons water
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Place all ingredients in a food processor. Blend for ~1½ minutes or until mixture starts to come together and no large chunks are still visible. Using a cookie scooper (1½ Tablespoon size), scoop out a heaping portion. Roll into a ball. Continue until all mixture is used. Store snack balls in a Tupperware container in the refrigerator.

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