Recipe: Vegan No Bake Peanut Butter, Chocolate & Coconut Power Bites

It's important to keep your body energized throughout the day. That's why granola bars exist. It's also why grocery stores keep single-serve snacks by the checkout lines, most of which are filled with sugar and gross things that don't exist in nature. They're playing on your instinctive need to fuel yourself, and snack food companies take advantage of it by selling you junk you don't need so you're hungry again in an hour and buy more of their garbage. Well, that stops now! 

Granola bars are cool and slightly better but unless you're willing to dish out the $4-$6 it costs to buy a box of five or six of the good, natural ones, you've just been fooled. Yep. You're basically eating a candy bar. And ain't nobody got time to work the equivalent amount of time it takes to earn enough to buy a SIX DOLLAR BOX OF GRANOLA BARS ARE YOU CRAZY.

Your dollars are time tokens so stop wasting your time buying things you can make at home. Plus like everything you make at home these are way better than the ultra-processed store bought variety and you'll feel better about eating them. 

You can make them with anything you have in your pantry— just sub one (or all) of the first three dry ingredients for something else. The possibilities are endless! 

What you'll need:

• 1/2 cup non-dairy or dark chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries 
• 1 cup oats*
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/3 cup agave nectar**
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup ground flax seed***

*I used Trader Joe's Old Fashioned Oats for this recipe, but you can use whatever you have in your pantry.

**You can sub maple syrup or honey if you prefer. 

***wtf? Flaxseed is one of those things I kept hearing about but was like, whatever, hippies, keep that away from me because I'm just fine and I don't want your superfood. But then I smartened up a little (or a lot) and read about the benefits of adding flaxseed to your diet, especially if you maintain a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle. Flaxseed is a great source of protein AND fiber (two things that also happen to keep you full longer), AND it helps to alleviate depressive symptoms. So basically adding this to your power bites = happier you. It's cheap and you can find it pretty much everywhere now. Just do it, okay? You won't even taste it.

Throw all your dry ingredients in a bowl and mix that shit up.

I use this stainless steel mixing bowl for everything. Whatever. Don't judge.

Then add your wet ingredients: peanut butter, agave nectar (or whatever sweetener you're using), and vanilla extract, and mix it all again. Use a spoon or your hands if you want to lick them after because yolo.

Throw the mix in the fridge for 20 minutes to chill. It'll stick together better.

That tupperware with the red top is the tomato & zucchini soup I posted the other day!

When you pull it out roll it into balls. I use about a tablespoon of mix per roll to make about 15 power bites, but you can make them bigger or smaller depending on your preferences. You can also press them into squares or bars to ease you off store-bought stuff, or make stars or whatever your cold little heart desires.

Put 'em in tupperware and pop them in your fridge for the next time you OMG NEED TO EAT SOMETHING OR YOU'LL DIE or to eat as a post-workout snack. They're delicious and will keep you satisfied so you don't overeat grocery-store checkout-line junk throughout the day. 

You can throw some in to-go tupperware too to bring with you on errands. They travel well! I actually brought a few with me to Ugly Mugs, where I sit right now writing this article. Don't believe me? 

PROOF. CHURCH. WORD. I ate them except one when I decided to take this. Whatever.

Enjoy, fraaands.