For our first snack recipe this go around, with pumpkin spice season starting, I wanted to make another delicious pumpkin spice-flavored snack to enjoy. But I also wanted to keep our snack healthy, so making these delicious protein balls is a great way to combine both ideas.
While the exact macros will vary depending on the ingredients you use, each ball should contain about 7g of protein, 9g of carbs, and 2g of fat, with only about 80 calories per ball, making this a very great snack to enjoy before a workout or when you need some energy while you study for your first test.
Speaking of ingredients, I didn’t realize that the powdered peanut butter I bought also contained cocoa powder, so my pumpkin balls turned out a bit browner than I wanted, but they should look more pumpkin-like if you use regular peanut butter powder. Also, if you want to use real peanut butter, you can substitute out the water and peanut butter powder with ¼ cup or so of peanut butter. But of course, peanut butter is higher in fat content than its powdered form so just keep that in mind if you want to keep it lower in calories.
But regardless of its exact macros, this snack is a great way to celebrate the pumpkin spice season while keeping your calories low and protein intake high while you enjoy the last vestiges of summer.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup protein powder (vanilla or unflavored is best, but you can also use peanut butter or chocolate flavor if you wish)
- 1/2 cup powdered peanut butter (or you can substitute with more protein powder)
- 1-2 tsp pumpkin pie spices (cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, mace, and/or cloves)
- 1/2 cup water/milk
- 1-2 tbsp honey/maple syrup
- 1 cup instant/rolled oats
- Some chocolate chips and/or nuts for decoration (optional)
Step 1: Mix Together Ingredients into Even, Sticky Dough
First, in a large mixing bowl, add in your protein powder, powdered peanut butter, pumpkin pie spices, water/milk, honey, and oats, and give this a stir with a rubber spatula until it forms into an even, sticky dough. If you need to, you can add in some more protein powder if it’s too wet or some more water if it’s too dry.
Step 2: Scoop & Roll Dough into Balls
Then, when your dough is ready, use a cookie scoop or spoon to scoop out a bit at a time and roll it between your hands to form it into a ball. If you need to, you can wet your hands in between to keep the dough from sticking to them.
Step 3: Chill Rolled Balls In Fridge for At Least 1 Hour
Once your dough is shaped into balls, place them on a baking sheet and place it in the fridge for 1 hour, or until the balls are hardened.
Step 4: Add Any Decorative Pieces if Desired, & Enjoy!
Once they’ve hardened, if you want to make them pumpkin-shaped, you can use some kitchen twine to give the balls some ridges and then you can add a chocolate chip or nut on top to act as a stem. Then, transfer to a ziploc bag or airtight container and you can store it in the fridge for around a week and with that, your Pumpkin Spice Protein Balls are ready to eat.