Date Free Berry Banana Energy Balls (Gluten Free, Vegan)

This recipe features free samples from Pereg Natural Foods

No matter what time of year it is, homemade energy balls are always hiding out in my freezer. During fall and winter, I experiment with fun flavors like pumpkin spice and caramel apple bliss balls. Now that spring has (supposedly) arrived, though, I wanted my gluten free snack to have a little extra spring in its step...which is where these bright and "berry" delicious Date Free Banana Berry Energy Balls come in!

These vegan energy balls are gluten free, refined sugar free and as easy to make as they are easy to eat. Mashed frozen berries give these energy bites a tart flavor and a slightly pink color that’s perfect for spring while mashed banana and Pereg Natural Foods' coconut flour add extra sweetness and a pillowy texture. Throw in some puffed rice cereal for crunch and goji berries (or another dried fruit) for a little chewiness and you'll be in snacking heaven, whether you love crunchy, creamy or chewy.

This is also the ideal bliss balls recipe if you want an energizing healthy snack but can't tolerate dates or want a lower sugar option. I love dates and all of the energy balls recipes I’ve shared on the blog so far involve some amount of dates. A few weeks ago, though, I was low on dates and high on energy ball cravings...so I whipped up these banana based energy bites instead and can attest that they are just as delicious as energy balls with dates.

Ready to learn how to make energy balls that will give you extra spring in your step? Start by gathering the following ingredients. This will make around 12-15 gluten free energy balls depending on how large you like them!

Ingredients for the Berry Banana Energy Balls:

1 ripe banana, mashed
1/4 cup rice flakes
2 tbsp coconut flour (I used this one from Pereg Natural Foods)
2 tbsp alternative flour (I used Pereg's Teff flour, but any gluten free flour should work!)
1/2 cup puffed rice cereal
1 large defrosted frozen strawberry, or several small frozen strawberries 

Drop of vanilla extract

Optional: Handful of dried goji berries or other dried fruit 
Optional: beetroot or goji berry powder for extra color (I used this one)

How to Make Energy Balls:

Just like with my other bliss ball recipes, making these vegan energy balls is super easy! Begin by mashing your ripe banana in a bowl along with your defrosted frozen strawberries (or any other berry of choice). You can use fresh berries instead, but I’ve found that defrosted berries are easier to incorporate into energy balls and offer a more colorful ending result (if you’re going for the Insta worthy food!). 

Next, add the rest of the energy bites ingredients, lightly pressing the puffed rice against the bottom of your bowl to crush them slightly. Mix until everything is well incorporated and roll them up into your vegan energy balls! If you use fresh berries, you might need to add a tablespoon or so of liquid to help the batter bind better, but your bliss ball batter should hold together easily. 

To help my energy bites set, I place them on a lined baking tray and place them in the freezer for at least 20 minutes. Then, I store my gluten free energy balls in a closed container in the freezer (though the fridge will also work as long as you eat them within a week or so). When I’m craving a snack, I just take out however many I need, let them thaw at room temperate for 5-10 minutes, and dig in! 

Like I hinted at earlier, one of the best parts about these no date energy balls is the texture. Coconut flour is one of my favorite gluten free flours to use in bliss balls because it often leads to a fudgy, light texture, and Pereg Natural Foods’ coconut flour is no exception. To learn more about Pereg Natural Foods, you can check out previous blog posts featuring them, like my six-ingredient sweet potato pizza crust recipe. I’ll just sum the company up by saying that they offer a variety of epic alternative gluten free flours, quinoa and snack bars that I love to incorporate into my daily eats. 

And, as usual, there are plenty of ways that these Banana Berry Energy Balls get eaten in my house! My personal favorite way to enjoy them is with vegan yogurt, berries, sunbutter and granola as a night snack, but these bliss balls also make for tasty pre or post workout snacks, an easy gluten free breakfast on-the-go or a healthy dessert with banana ice cream. 

If you’re living somewhere that has yet to apparently embrace Spring (in Minnesota, we just had our second snow storm...in April), these vegan energy balls are also the perfect way to get in the spring mood. You’ve probably heard the old saying, “April showers bring May flowers.” Well, if I'm showered in these gluten free energy balls all April, I can’t wait to see what gluten free goodies end up on the menu this May.

Like this post? Tweet me some love by clicking here: "Need a #glutenfree, #healthy snack perfect for Spring? Dive into my Date Free Berry Banana Energy Balls! #Vegan, #refinedsugarfree and super easy to make. Find the full #glutenfreerecipe here --> http://bit.ly/2qwb5gd"

*I received free samples of Pereg Natural Foods in return for editorial coverage consideration. However, I only feature products I honestly enjoy, and all opinions, recipes and photographs are my own. Thank you for supporting what helps support Casey the College Celiac!*


What's the weather like where you are? (Minnesota just got hit by a huge blizzard this past weekend...). What's your favorite healthy snack? Tell me in the comments!