With no sugar or fat and just pure carbs and protein, these Chocolate Protein Balls are the most perfect post-workout fuel you will ever find! Easy, simple ingredients, no bake and great for a dessert or snack too!
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I’ve switched around my daily routine recently and started working out first thing in the morning instead of around noon. So my post-workout meal is now my usual breakfast oatmeal.
This might not sound like too much of an issue, but hitting the macros has been a bit challenging. Read on to know why.
What a post-workout meal should look like:
High in carbs, Moderate in protein and Low in fats.
The carbs help restore the energy (glycogen stores) you used up while working out, the protein repairs your muscle, and low fat ensures you digest the food quickly to get the most benefit out of that meal.
High fat would slow down that digestion.
The problem with protein bars:
While they do have the protein you need, and the good carbs too, they’ve got a fair amount of fat as well.
Its either that, or the high sugar; The few bars I did find on the market that had low fat, had too much sugar.
Other protein ball recipes?
After spending hours not being able to find a good bar, I started looking at homemade protein bars or balls.
Every recipe out there calls for some form of nut butter – almond butter, peanut butter, the works – or syrup – maple, honey, corn – to bind the ingredients together.
All that fat!
My recipe for protein bliss balls:
- Rolled Oats
Provides the good complex carbs, with some fiber too. And they’re whole grains so no trash.
P.S. Half of it is processed in a food processor to make oat flour. - Protein Powder (no fat or sugar)
Unflavored, with no sweeteners or fats. I used Quest Nutrition Multi-purpose mix. - Unsweetened Cocoa
No sugars, high in fiber - Unsweetened Almond Milk
This binds the ingredients together. There’s no oil/butter, no peanut butter, no almond butter, no fat added whatsoever. - Vanilla Extract
- Monk Fruit Sweetener
A natural sweetener – I used Llinea Monk Fruit Sweetener – with no sugar at all. You can add less or more depending on how sweet you want them to be.
Would 11/10 recommend Llinea you guys!
This combination of ingredients aligns perfectly with the macros you need in your post-workout meal. These energy balls give you the energy, the protein and the deliciousness while still being healthy!
Since the recipe uses unsweetened cocoa instead of chocolate, these perfect post-workout protein balls have a nice chocolate-y flavor, but are still sugar free and fat free.
To make this recipe even more perfect, use gluten-free oats and make this GF.
There’s also no milk used, just almond milk, so these beautiful energy-boost bites are also dairy free and vegan!
And if that wasn’t enough, these perfect little protein balls are are super easy to make. Just process half the oats in a food process to make oat flour, combine the dry ingredients, stir together the wet ones, mix everything together and then shape the balls.
Real goals here!
These protein balls are also without chocolate chips or peanut butter, but if you want something with these, here’s a recipe for my Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Brownie Energy Bites
Perfect Post-Workout Chocolate Protein Balls (Sugar-Free & Fat-Free)
Ingredients
- ½ + ½ cup Rolled Oats, 90g
- 1 scoop Unflavored, Unsweetened Protein Powder, about ⅓ cup
- ¼ cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
- ¼ cup Almond Milk
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- ¾ or 1 tsp Monk Fruit Sweetener, = ¼ or ⅓ cup Sugar, for dark or sweet
Instructions
- Place ½ cup oats in a food processor and pulse for about 30 seconds or until oats turn into an oat flour.
- Transfer oat flour to a bowl, add remaining ½ cup oats, protein powder and cocoa and combine.
- In a small bowl, whisk together almond milk, vanilla extract and sweetener.
- Pour in wet mix into the dry and mix until uniform.
- Place bowl in fridge for 30 minutes to chill (so that its easier to roll).
- Lightly dampen palms of your hands. Use a small cookie scoop or spoon to scoop the dough, and shapr into balls using the palm of your hands.
- Store in the fridge or freeze in a sealed container until ready to eat!
Notes
- Fridge: 2 weeks in an airtight container.
- Freezer: 3 months in a freezer-safe resealable zipper bag.
- Quest Nutrition Multi-purpose Mix Protein Powder
- Llinea Monk Fruit Sweetener
- Servings: 8 2” balls | Serving size: 1 ball
- Calories: 62kcal
- Fat: 1.1g | Saturated fat: 0.1g
- Carbohydrates: 9.9g | Fiber: 2.3g | Sugar: 0g
- Protein: 4.7g
Hey! I'm Haylee
Google Software Engineer
I use my passion for baking (and eating) to create healthy, high-protein, good-for-you and diet-friendly desserts and sweet treats that are actually delicious.
Come join me in Hayl's Kitchen and let's eat high protein, sweet and guilt free!