Superfood Trail Mix Bites are a no-bake, easy to make, nutritious, and healthy superfood snack that can be made gluten-free too.
This energy ball recipe is made with healthy seeds and nuts, all the trail mix essentials. Protein-packed energy bites are great for any time of the day.
When busy families are on the go, eating nutritious foods can be a challenge. Often we resort to pre-packed options. These are often not the best choices.
Most times they are filled with unhealthy ingredients, even some you cannot pronounce. This DIY trail mix recipe contains superfoods, nuts and seeds. You CAN pronounce all the ingredients, and they are easy to find too. Healthy snack balls are made in minutes.
RECIPE and INSTRUCTIONS for these trail mix energy balls can be found at the bottom of the post.
Have you ever made homemade granola bars? So much better than store-bought. YOU can customize them with all your favourite ingredients.
I even have a chewy version too. Perfect for after school, taking on hikes or just when you need a pick me up.
What Do You Put In Trail Mix Bites?
These little bites are a powerhouse of nutrition, and even if you don’t have time for breakfast, these will help prevent you from skipping the most important meal of the day. Easy to pop a couple of these in your mouth as you run out the door.
You will need:
- oatmeal
- nut butter
- coconut oil (affiliate)
- agave nectar or honey
- cacao nibs (affiliate)
- pumpkin seeds (affiliate)
- goji berries (affiliate)
- chia seeds (affiliate)
- pistachios (or other nuts)
Feel free to swap in other nuts or seeds if you like. Other options would be:
- flaxseeds
- hemp seeds/hemp hearts
- sesame seeds
- sunflower seeds
- cashews
- walnuts
- pecans
- Brazil nuts
- almonds
- pine nuts
This superfood mix is easily customizable. Looking to make it gluten-free? Be sure to use gluten-free oats. I like to use old-fashioned oats since they have more texture. Honey is a great alternative to the agave.
Is Trail Mix Healthy?
Nuts and seeds are the primary ingredients providing the protein element. Homemade trail mix recipes are the best since YOU can control what goes into them.
Portable, nutrient and calorie-dense. Traditional trail mix also includes dried fruit such as raisins, cranberries, banana chips, apricots and more. Dried fruit is used since it has a longer shelf life and is more portable.
The more nuts and dried fruit in your trail mix, the better. It’s totally possible to overdo it even with the healthiest blends.
Candies or chocolate chips are a frequent addition. These offer little nutritional benefit. Dark chocolate is packed with powerful antioxidant compounds and needs to be at least 70 percent cocoa.
Eating nuts and seeds daily is an easy way to get nutritional benefits including reduced risk of heart attack, cardiovascular disease, inflammation, hypertension, and diabetes.
The serving size for most trail mixes is ¼ cup, which is about one handful.
How To Make Homemade Superfood Energy Balls
This is an easy no-bake recipe. Even the kids can help with this.
- Combine the dry ingredients is a bowl.
- Heat the nut butter, coconut oil and agave in a small saucepan.
- Combine the wet and dry ingredients together, forming into balls.
- Place in a sealed container, and keep in the fridge until ready to eat.
Once you have the ingredients mixed together, you will have to work rather quickly so the mixture does not dry out. If this happens it makes it very difficult to squeeze into balls. You may also want to rinse off your hands a few times throughout the process.
Take a few minutes to make a batch of these superfood mix energy protein balls. You can snack nutritiously all week long without added chemicals and preservatives.
Looking for more healthy recipes using nutritious ingredients?
Homemade muesli recipe is better than store-bought. If you love Alpen cereal, this is BETTER!
Oatmeal donuts are baked and packed with LOTS of healthy ingredients. Who says you can’t have donuts for breakfast?
Kefir oatmeal pancakes are hearty and packed with protein. They are freezer friendly too. Make a batch up on the weekend, and easily warm up on busy weekday mornings.
Hemp heart cookies are perfect for Valentine’s Day. Gluten-free and dipped in dark chocolate.
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Healthy Trail Mix Energy Balls
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups oatmeal (you can also use gluten free oats)
- ¾ cup nut butter
- 1 tablespoons coconut oil
- ¼ cup agave nectar (you can also use honey)
- ¼ cup cacao nibs
- ¼ cup pumpkin seeds
- ¼ cup goji berries
- ¼ cup chia seeds
- ¼ cup pistachios (crushed)
Instructions
- Combine all dry ingredients into a bowl, mix, and set aside.
- In a saucepan heat the nut butter, coconut oil and agave nectar (or honey).
- Cook over medium heat, mixing often until the ingredients melt together.
- Remove from heat and pour over dry ingredients.
- Quickly mix together using a large spoon, spatula or your hands.
- Working quickly, so the mixture does not dry out, grab a handful of mixture and squeeze firmly into balls about the size of walnuts.
- Place in a sealed container and keep in the fridge.
- Snack…and ENJOY!!
Nutrition Information
Notes
Once you have all the ingredients combined, you have to work quickly to make the balls before the mixture dries out.
You may want to rinse your hands a few times during the process.
Kari
Gloria these are the perfect healthy snacks to load up my little one’s lunch box now that he is in after care and will be staying at school until late afternoon.
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
I love these little energy balls too. Perfect for a quick and healthy snack.
Natalie
You used pistachios in these energy balls… sooo good! And you added so many healthy goodies inside. I must make these balls asap! Thanks for the idea and another great recipe Gloria.
Gloria Duggan | Homemade & Yummy
Thanks so much Natalie. I know you will not be disappointed with this recipe. Hope you give it a try soon.