Gluten Free Peanut Butter Oat Ball Recipe

Not only are these peanut butter oat balls gluten and dairy free, but they are high in protein and will keep you energized throughout the rest of the day.  They also only take about 15-20 minutes to bake.  To start off, here are the ingredients you will need to gather:

For the whole time I have been in school, I've always had trouble finding good snacks to put in my lunch that will be gluten free and keep me full for the rest of the day.  A few weeks ago, I was at my friends house, and she asked me if I wanted to try a "peanut butter ball" she had made.  At first I was hesitant, but when I tasted it I knew I wanted to make them myself, especially because they would be great for lunch.

• 1 cups of gluten free rolled oats
• Unsweetened flaked coconut (I only put about three pinches in mine, but the amount you put in just depends on how much you like coconut!)
• 1 cup of peanut butter (you will need more than this if you don't use the honey)
• 1/3 cup of honey (optional, I tend to leave this out due to the fact I do not like honey)
• 1/4 cup of chia seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1/2 cup of chocolate chips (use carob chocolate chips if you want it to be dairy free as well)

First you will need to break down the oats.  If you have a food processor or blender, I would recommend just throwing the oats and coconut mixture in and pulsing them until they are coarsely ground.  I on the other hand do not have either of those tools, so what I do is out the oats in a plastic bag and start whacking it with a crab mallet until the mixture is ground up (it works!).  Next what you want to do is just  the vanilla, salt, honey (if you choose to use it), chia seeds, chocolate chips, and peanut butter into the blender or food processor.  Again if you do not have an electric mixer, you can always just hand mix everything in a bowl, although that can get a little messy.  After everything is mixed, then the only step you have left is to roll the mixture into little balls, and freeze them until they are solid.  

That's all!  These tasty snacks or delicious and super easy to make.  I like to to store them in my fridge until I'm ready to eat them or bring them for lunch.  Regarding bringing them for lunch, I put them in a Tupperware box and sit them on top of an ice pack in my lunch bag.