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These vegan peanut butter chia balls are the perfect, kid-friendly on the go snack! Full of flavor, fiber and a hint of sweetness, these chia peanut butter protein balls are nutritious, easy and delicious!  

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I don’t think I need to tell you about my love for homemade snack recipes. These chia seed protein balls are our new favorite!

The kids love them, they’re ready in minutes, and easy to throw together – all of my favorite things. Plus, chia seeds for kids are full of so many necessary nutrients!

These chia seed energy balls continue to be one of my favorite snack recipes.

I made a bunch this weekend as part of my toddler snack meal prep but it’s safe to say I munched on most of these because they make for great on-the-go snacks for parents, too!

They are the perfect balance of quick and delicious, and they make healthy no bake treats look and feel really easy. 

Why You’ll Love Peanut Butter Chia Balls

• Full of nutrient-dense ingredients – oats, nut butter, chia seeds, flaxseeds and more. Each bite provides about 5 grams of protein. To increase the protein, add your favorite protein powder (I love Puori) or even protein oats.
• Ready in minutes – Who doesn’t love a good, quick no-bake recipe? These really taste like little peanut butter and jelly energy bites. We love them as kids’ hiking snacks too!
• Easy to throw in kids’ lunches – If you struggle with packing a lunch for school, these peanut butter chia balls are a great addition! If you are in a nut-free school, you can use soy butter or sunflower seed butter.
• Versatile and flexible – If you don’t have an ingredient or want to substitute it out, easy enough! You can use honey or maple syrup as your sweetener, and sub out the nut butter. You can leave out the dried cherries, or use raisins or another dried fruit instead.
• Vegan and gluten free – If you make these energy balls with flax and chia seeds, it is vegan and gluten-free, and a great plant-based protein source. Make sure to use certified gluten-free oats!
• Easy to freeze for later – Part of me thinks I should keep making things in bulk to freeze for when baby gets here (like my freezer friendly meals), but the other part of me knows that snacks like this don’t last for long around our house. Freeze extra in stasher bags, and your future self will thank you!

Ingredients For Chia Peanut Butter Balls

To make these vegan, gluten free energy balls, you just need a handful of ingredients, which I get from my monthly Thrive Market haul.

• oats – Increase the protein with these protein oats
• peanut butter – I always recommend a drippy peanut butter! I also love the Thrive Market brand
• hemp seeds
• chia seeds 
• flax seeds 
• maple syrup
• vanilla extract
• dried cherries – I love this brand because it has no added sugar or oils

Ingredient Variations

• If you don’t have hemp, chia or flax seeds, you can leave them out or swap with adding extra of one of them. They don’t really change the taste, but add some texture and a ton of omega 3‘s + nutrition!
• Substitute peanut butter with almond butter, soy butter, or even sunflower butter.
• If you don’t have dried cherries, you could also substitute raisins, craisins or dried blueberries as well.
• If you suffer from FODMAP intolerance, dates can be problematic as a source of fructans and can lead to runners stomach symptoms, so it’s nice to know these are no date energy balls!

Let’s talk about the dried cherries – they are fantastic in these chia seed energy balls.

I’ll also add them to these cherry oatmeal muffins and trail mix for kids. And even these tart cherry gummies for lasting recovery.

Want some more fun kid-friendly recipe ideas for snacks and meal prep? Check out our dietitian-approved 30 healthy recipes for toddlers and kids!

I want healthy recipes to help my picky eater!

How To Make Chia Seed Protein Balls

To get started, you will need a food processor for this recipe because it does all the work for you!

Then, just mix all of the ingredients together, pulse for a few minutes, and you’re done! 

These flaxseed and chia peanut butter balls are perfect for quick, on-the-go snack ideas – the perfect pre-game snack! They check ALL of the boxes – carbs, protein and fats.

If you have a selective toddler who needs more calories and nutrition, peanut butter balls with chia seeds are a great snack for picky toddlers because the peanut butter makes them familiar.

Kinda like a pb&j in bite-size form!

Finally, just make sure to allow these guys to sit in the fridge to firm them up a bit, but they can be ready in under an hour!

If the mix seems too dry, you can add more honey or maple syrup if needed.

Storing No Bake Chia Seed Balls

These chia seed protein balls are great for the freezer.

After you roll them into ball shape, keep them in a freezer-friendly bag or stasher bag for up to 3 months.

More No Bake Snack Recipes

• Lemon Coconut Protein Balls
• No Bake Carrot Cake Bites
• Sweet potato coconut energy bites
• Chocolate peanut butter coconut bites
• Chocolate Pomegranate Energy bites
• Edible Cookie Dough Bites

Servings 10

Peanut Butter Chia Balls

Sarah Schlichter, MPH, RDN

These vegan peanut butter chia balls are the perfect, kid-friendly on the go snack! Full of flavor, fiber and a hint of sweetness, these peanut butter protein balls are nutritious, easy and delicious!  

4.56 from 9 ratings

Print Pin

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 40 minutes mins

Total Time 50 minutes mins

Ingredients  

1x2x3x

• 1 cup rolled oats
• ¼ cup maple syrup or honey if not vegan
• ¼ cup ground flax
• 3 tbsp natural peanut butter
• ¼ cup hemp seeds
• ¼ cup chia seeds
• 1 tsp vanilla
• ¼ cup dried cherries I love no sugar added

Instructions 

1. Stir all ingredients, except the dried cherries, in a medium bowl or pulse in a food processor on low.
2. Transfer mixture to a small to medium bowl, adding cherries in last.
3. Cover and let the mixture sit in the refrigerator for 30-45 minutes to make the mixture easier to hold and handle.
4. Form into 1” balls. Store in an airtight container and keep refrigerated for up to a week.

Notes

– you may need to add extra honey or maple syrup if the mix seems too dry.

– If you want to up the protein, use protein oats or add a protein powder.

– If the mixture seems too sticky, you may need to add more dry ingredients or reduce the nut butter/maple syrup.

Equipment

Dried Cherries Unsweetened Tart Cherry, 1lb. Montmorency Tart Cherries, Dried Sour Cherries Fresh, Montmorency Dried Tart Cherries, Dried Cherries No Sugar Added, All-Natural Whole Sour Cherry 16 oz.

KitchenAid KFP1466CU 14-Cup Food Processor with Exact Slice System and Dicing Kit – Contour Silver

Spectrum Essentials Organic Ground Flaxseed, 24 Ounce (Pack of 1)

Nutiva Organic Premium Black Chia Seeds, 32 Ounce

Nutrition

Serving: 1Calories: 156kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 5gFat: 8gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 6gSodium: 22mgFiber: 4gSugar: 8g

Did you make this recipe?Let us know how it was!