These Peanut Butter Oatmeal Balls are the easiest energy balls to snack on. All you need to make these oat balls 3 wholesome ingredients in less than 15 minutes.
What Are Oatmeal Balls?
Oatmeal Balls, also called oatmeal energy balls or oatmeal energy bites, are bite-size raw balls made of oats, nut or seed butter, and unrefined sweetener. You can make healthy Low Calorie Protein Balls, super tasty Banana Oat Balls or my very simple No-Bake Peanut Butter Oatmeal Balls.
Some oatmeal balls also include dried fruits, chocolate chips, or flavors like vanilla extract and cinnamon.
Oatmeal energy balls are perfect for a post-workout snack to quickly refuel on carbs and proteins.
They are also great for fixing a sweet craving and a healthy snack on in the morning or afternoon.
Ingredients and Substitutions
These balls can be prepared in just about 15 minutes as long as you have the right ingredients. All you need to make no-bake peanut butter balls are:
- Natural Peanut Butter – it means a fresh jar of creamy peanut butter with no added oil or added sugar. Almond butter also works.
- Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats or quick oats or 50% of each. All oat options work but give different textures.
- Maple Syrup – Use natural maple syrup or brown rice syrup for low-GI energy bites. Other options are agave syrup or coconut nectar.
Allergy Swaps
You can use this recipe and adapt it to any food allergy you have. Below I listed some options for you to try:
- Gluten-Free – pick certified gluten-free oats or use quinoa flakes or puffed quinoa instead of oats.
- Sugar-Free – a sugar-free liquid sweetener works well like Monk fruit syrup.
- Nut-Free – use seed butter instead of peanut butter like sun butter, tahini or pumpkin seed butter.
- Low-Carb – swap the oats for a mix of almond flour, sliced almonds, and shredded coconut. Use a sugar-free sweetener, or try my vegan cookie dough bites.
How To Make Peanut Butter Oatmeal Balls
Start by adding all ingredients into a mixing bowl and stirring with a spatula to combine them together.
Your peanut butter might be a bit hard, not runny which can happen if your jar has been opened for a while and stored at room temperature.
Then, microwave the peanut butter with the liquid sweetener for 30 seconds in a microwave-safe bowl.
Stir the peanut butter maple syrup mixture until it is smooth and creamy.
If your peanut butter is already runny, pour it directly into the mixing bowl and top it with the maple syrup.
Rolling Energy Bites
You can place the mixing bowl in the fridge for 20 minutes to make the balls easier to roll. Or, lightly oil your hands with coconut oil.
Then, scoop about 1 1/2 tablespoon of batter and roll into a ball between slightly oiled hands to prevent the batter from sticking to your hands.
Place each energy bite on a plate covered with parchment paper or in a sealed container.
Repeat until all the energy balls are formed.
Transfer the oatmeal energy balls into the fridge in a sealed jar or cover the plate with plastic wrapping to prevent the peanut butter bliss balls from drying.
Adding Flavors
You can tweak these peanut butter oatmeal balls by adding simple ingredients to create a range of flavors.
The best additions are one or two of the below:
- 1/2 teaspoon of Vanilla Extract.
- 1 teaspoon of Cinnamon.
- 1/4 cup of Chopped Nuts like walnuts, pecans, or almonds.
- 1/4 cup of Dark Chocolate Chips
- 1/4 cup of Seeds like pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, or hemp seeds for a boost of protein.
- 1/4 cup of dried fruits – chopped apricots, dried cranberries, dried raisins.
Making Protein Oatmeal Balls
To add protein to this simple recipe, you can add one of the below ingredients:
- 1/4 cup of Hemp Seeds.
- 1/4 cup of Chia Seeds.
- 1/4 cup of Flax seeds or ground chia seeds.
- 2 tablespoons of protein powder – This dries out the recipe, and you will have to add water or almond milk to make the dough comes together.
Alternatively, you can try my Vegan Protein Balls.
Step-by-Step Video
Frequently Asked Questions
Below I listed the answer to your more frequent questions on these oatmeal energy balls.
Yes, you can replace peanut butter with fresh creamy almond butter.
Since almond butter is a bit thicker, microwave with the sweetener to soften for about 30 seconds in a microwave-safe bowl.
Then add the oats.
These 3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Oatmeal Balls can be stored for one week in the fridge in an airtight container.
Yes, you can freeze no-bake peanut butter balls for up to 3 months in a sealed jar.
Thaw at room temperature or in the fridge.
Yes, the best way to up the protein content of these energy balls is to add high-protein seeds like chia seeds, hemp seeds, or flaxseed.
Protein powder will work as well, but it dries out the recipe making the balls fragile and crumbly.
Use my no-bake protein ball recipe for higher-protein oatmeal balls.
Yes, absolutely up to 1/4 cup of your favorite dried fruits or chocolate chips add a lovely flavor and texture to the energy bites.
Many kinds of cereal are gluten-free and oat-free like puffed quinoa, puffed buckwheat, or quinoa flakes.
All these gluten-free options work very well as a swap for oats in the same ratio.
More Energy Balls Recipes
Below I listed some more energy balls recipes for you to try.
Did You Like This Recipe?
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Peanut Butter Oatmeal Balls (3-Ingredient)
Ingredients
Base Oatmeal Energy Balls
- 1 ¼ cups Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats
- ½ cup Peanut Butter (Unsalted) - fresh, creamy, no added sugar, no added oil
- ¼ cup Maple Syrup - or Rice Syrup
Flavor 1: Chocolate Chips
- ¼ cup Dairy-Free Dark Chocolate Chips
- ½ teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
Flavor 2: Carrot Cake
- ¼ teaspoon Cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- ¼ cup Grated Carrots
- ¼ cup Chopped Walnuts
Flavor 3: Trail Mix
- 2 tablespoons Cranberries
- 3 tablespoons Chopped Almonds
- 1 teaspoon Chia Seeds
- 3 tablespoons Dairy-Free Dark Chocolate Chips
- ¼ teaspoon Cinnamon
Instructions
- Before you start, if your peanut butter is not creamy (maybe you opened the jar a while back), then pour it into a microwave-safe bowl with sweetener. Microwave for 30 seconds to soften. Stir and then use in the recipe.
- In a large mixing bowl, add all the base ingredients: old-fashioned oats, fresh runny peanut butter, and sweetener. Or, if you are making any of the 3 recommended flavors, also add in the suggested ingredients.
- Use a spatula to combine all the ingredients until it is sticky and forms a dough. If too dry, add 1 or 2 more tablespoons of maple syrup.
- Optional: refrigerate the oatmeal balls mixture for 20 minutes to set the dough. It will make it easier to roll into energy bites.
- Remove the mixture from the fridge. slightly oil your hands with coconut oil before shaping each energy ball to prevent the batter from sticking to your hands. Scoop out about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough and roll within your hands to shape energy balls.
- Place each oatmeal ball onto a plate covered with parchment paper.
Storage
- Keep rolling until you form about 10-12 energy balls. Enjoy immediately or store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.
- The oatmeal balls can be frozen in an airtight container. Remove from the freezer 3 hours before serving, and thaw them at room temperature until soft.
Hello! I’ve made these now more than once! They are ssooo good!! I’ve never been a huge fan of Peanut butter- But these are amazing! I was looking for a recipe called “Peanut Butter Chews” but these did great!!
Thank you!!!
My 4 year old and my 5 year old helped make these (we only used the main 3 ingredients) and they ate 1/4 of the recipe before we even made them into balls! So they’re a hit! Thanks for the quick, easy, healthy treat!
Thank you!! I know, it’s dangerously good
Delicious . Didn’t last long in our house!
I literally just made these in only a few minutes. I can’t stand to eat oatmeal but these oat cookies were so simple and easy but most importantly so delicious. Can’t wait to try the other recipes. Thank you!
Can you use pb2? If so how?
I didn’t try that option but it could work I guess!