Description
Kick up your energy with these simple and healthy no-bake Cranberry Pistachio Energy Bites!
Ingredients
Scale
- 8 ounces (about 1 packed cup) chopped dates
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1 Tablespoon chia seeds (optional)
- 1 Tablespoon ground flax seeds
- pinch of salt
- 1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats (dry, not cooked)
- 1 cup shelled pistachio nuts
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1/3 cup white chocolate chips (optional)
Instructions
- Combine the dates, honey, chia seeds, flax seeds and salt in a food processor, and pulse until smooth and combined. You should be able to stir the mixture — if it is too thick, add in another tablespoon or two of honey.
- Transfer the mixture to a large bowl, and stir in the oats, pistachios, dried cranberries, and white chocolate chips until evenly combined. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Once the mixture is cool (and easier to work with), use a spoon or cookie scoop to shape it into your desired size of energy balls. (Mine were about 1-inch in diameter.) Alternately, you can line a small baking pan with parchment paper, and press the mixture evenly into the pan, let it cool, and then cut into bars.
- Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. (Storing them in the refrigerator especially helps the energy bites hold their shape.)
I’m running out now to pick up what I need for this!!
Are the cranberries sweet?
Thanks, Diane
I’m sorry if this was already mentioned. I can see the nutritional information but am not sure how big a 1 oz. ball is. How many balls did this recipe make?
Thanks!
Is there something that can be used besides honey? I am allergic to honey.
Maple syrup or rice syrup
Looks delicious! A must try!
Looks delicious. A must try!
These little bites are so beautiful! I’m pinning to make them this weekend! I can’t wait!
I just made them. They look beautiful! I didn’t add the choc chips but am letting them set up first. If I think they need any more sweetening, I am going to drizzle choc over them but I think the dates and the honey add enough sweet hints. Thanks for the recipe!
Love nuts and dry fruits.
wow, thanks…I have lots of dietary limitations, but this recipe gives me lots of yummy options.
these were the first energy bites I had ever made — wow, did I pick the right recipe to start with! I think they’re my new favorite! there’s something about the contrasting flavors of the cranberry and white chocolate that make these divine! thanks for sharing!
What a first time flop this was! Folks if you love your blender, add the Chia seeds last. If you add the honey and the dates and the flax seed and you ground the chia seed with it, it’s going to make it an unholy mess. It will overheat your blender, and it will hate you. Take a lesson from me. This recipe could use that warning.
I added pumpkins seeds and coconut oil to this also. Made this tonight. Delicious!
Where is the nutritional data for these?
I just made these, using whole pitted dates and wildflower honey, and wow are they sweet. I am hoping that mellows, because for me it really takes away from the recipe. Next time I’ll use the weird little chopped dates and a milder honey and see if that helps. I bet using semisweet mini chips would help, too!
Very good. I used maple syrup instead of honey. I also heated the pistachios to increase the flavour first.
I may roll them next time in ground almond to keep the little balls from sticking
Love the photos! I am going to try this recipe as this is the first one I have picked of all the bars recipes out there!
Thanks for sharing.
Are dates necessary, if so is there an alternative? What if they are not sticking together very well after being in the fridge for an hour, Is there something I can add at that point?
Yes, the dates are what help hold this recipe together. And if it’s not sticking, it might need more dates. You could alternately make these balls with peanut butter to help as the “glue” instead of dates…
I just went to make these and “someone” has eaten almost all of my pistachios! Grrrrr!!! Any idea what I can substitute to make these right now???
You can use any other nuts — almonds, peanuts, pistachios, any will work! :)
(If I were in your home, I’d probably be the guilty pistachio eater. They’re my favorite!!)
Made them just then :)
can not wait to try them!
great recipe!
x
I’ve made these several times and they are perfect for snacking! Easy to make … But it takes more than the 15 minutes prep time. Though they are worth the time. I mix the oates, pistachios and cranberries separately first before mixing in the dates honey mixture. Great recipe, thanks for sharing!
Holy smokes Wonder Woman, My daughter is such a picky eater, & loves to eat healthy. Which leaves the options limited, but this recipe is a score! You can only eat so much trail mix, Almonds, etc. when your on the go consistently. Can’t wait to get to the store for ingredients. <3
I go to weight watchers and was wondering if anyone knows the points on these. I would appreciate your feedback:)
Love these! Can’t wait to try variations.
They’re lovely! :)
Do you think I can use dried apricots instead of dates? I don’t like them so much.
Thank you!
Thanks! And yes, you can, although the apricots will not be quite as sticky/binding as the dates. Still, I imagine they would work fairly well. Good luck!
I made these and everybody went wild! So delicious! One, with a cup of coffee or tea, and breakfast was handled. Or popped one inbetween meals to curb the hungriest …. I will always keep these on hand!
Thank you for this amazing recipe!
Made these yesterday and they are DELICIOUS! I added ground almonds (suggested by someone in comments below) – it definitely helped to keep them from sticking together. It added a nice flavor too!!
I made these and took on a fishing trip to Alaska. They were amazing. I did roll them in ground almonds so they didn’t stick together, but they traveled well, and kept me from eating junk while enjoying the great outdoors. Thanks so much!!
Loving the easy and quick recipes.
OMG!!! these were amazing, I could not keep my hands off these as well as my family. I am making these again today. I made them when I went home to Chicago and all the family members dug in… delicious!!!! Also, I used agave in place of honey
These looks so uber yummy but man I hate dates!! Do have a suggestion as to what I could use to replace them?
You could use figs or prunes, or even nut butter. Enjoy!
I just tried making them just now and they do taste really great. I was just wondering how long can they stay out in those round shapes without them falling apart? Do they need to be continuously refrigerated? I plan to make them at one of our family events in the coming weeks and just wanted to know how long it can stay out for.
Hi Reena,
These will keep just fine out of the refrigerator. I just refrigerate them to help them hold their shape. Enjoy!
Just made these like 10 minutes ago and it taste absolutely amazing. Had one question though – how long can it stay out for (once it is out of the fridge)without losing it’s round shape?
They can stay out however long you would like, and they probably will not lose their shape unless they are transported (like in a ziplock bag or something). Otherwise, they should generally stay together in energy ball shape. :)
Help, i cant get mine to stick together after refrigerating 1 hour
made these and they are delicious.
Made these finally! We formed them into Bars instead or balls. They are a little sticky, so we have to keep them in baggies, but they are VERY tasty!
Thanks Courtney!
Thanks these look reallly healthy
I was just wondering what the nutritional values are this particular recipe? I need the numbers ! HELP!! :-) :-) :-)
Hey John, I’m sorry but we currently are not publishing nutrition facts on the site. The nutrition calculators available are not 100% accurate, and we never want to publish anything that might be misleading. But many of our readers love the My Fitness Pal nutrition calculator, so feel free to try that for an estimate. I hope that helps, and I hope you enjoy these! : )
We love these energy bites! I have made them a handful of times, unfortunately my food processor burned up while making these about a month ago. It was a newer Kitchen Aid model! I was hungry for them again and tried making the date mixture with our Nutri-Bullet and even added extra honey to the date mixture, and the Nutri-Bullet now broke due to the fact that it overheated while trying to combine the date mixture. Any suggestions as to what I can do to still enjoy these treat without breaking another small appliance?
Oh no, so sorry both of those appliances broke! I’ve never had this problem! :( I have a cuisinart food processor, and it works great for these. You could try chopping the nuts and the cranberries, then using a mixer to blend everything, but the texture may be off. Otherwise, I can’t really think of a substitute. Sorry, I hope this helps!
I’m a Thai people so I don’t understand what is “Chopped Dates” ?
Could you please translate more by giving me a picture what is it?
I find from google there are many kind of this.
Many thanks
Oh I know the meaning of DATES now ,
I find only this word DATES, so I know it.
Made these, very good, steamed the dates a little to softened an make them easier to blend, works for me.
Oooh, what a great tip, thank you for sharing!
These look like the perfect snack on the go! Definitely putting this on my Pinterest for future use. Can’t wait to try it!
Thanks Brooke, we hope you love them! :)
what is the amount of protein each ball provides?
Hi Patty! We’re sorry but we are unsure of the nutrition facts/amount of calories in this recipe. We currently are not publishing nutrition facts on the site, as the nutrition calculators available are not 100% accurate, and we never want to publish anything that might be misleading. However, a lot of our readers love the My Fitness Pal nutrition calculator, so feel free to try that for an estimate. We hope that helps!
Omg I just made these and they are FANTASTIC!!!!! I added raw unsalted pumpkin seeds and mini chocolate chips !
Fantastic! Omg yummy I just made these!!
Thanks Patricia, we’re thrilled that you liked these! :)
I would really like to know the nutrition facts of these if it is possible for you to work it out?
Hi Ema! We’re sorry but we are unsure of the nutrition facts/amount of calories in this recipe. We currently are not publishing nutrition facts on the site, as the nutrition calculators available are not 100% accurate, and we never want to publish anything that might be misleading. However, a lot of our readers love the My Fitness Pal nutrition calculator, so feel free to try that for an estimate. We hope that helps!
Will these hold together without the honey, or will I need to sub another liquid? Trying to make them compliant for Whole30 (so no agave, maple, rice syrup, etc). Thanks!
Hmmm, that’s a good question Navah, we haven’t tried these without one of those liquids. But, we think you could add some mashed banana, a little apple sauce, or some pureed dates (maybe two)? We hope that helps!
I can’t get them to stick together to form a ball.. ideas?
Hi Tracy! You might need to add a little extra honey. You could also try adding just the tiniest amount of water. We hope this helps!
I don’t like dates, figs, raisins or anything along those lines. What can I use to substitute?
Hmmm, we’re guessing you don’t like tart dried cherries or apricots either? Your best bet might just be to leave the dried fruit out and add extra oats and nuts. We hope you enjoy these!
Actually I do like dried cherries and dried apricots. Thx for the suggestions.