Almond Joy Bites

These are a great breakfast option. Especially an on-the-go breakfast option. These are also a great option when your kids get home in the afternoon, buzzing around you like an angsty fly, looking for a place to light. You know this scenario: They want food, they keep opening and closing the fridge Mom-I'm-hungry-ing and asking about dinner. You just got home, and while things are prepped, they aren't cooked yet. So point them at these Almond Joy Bites, let them have one or two and then send them out of the kitchen so you can have a moment of peace to get dinner together. Or, better, you enjoy the Bite, and let THEM make dinner!

Feel free to use a different nut or nut butter if you'd rather. Feel free to add in different dried fruit, or toast your oats before adding to the food processor. Feel free to sprinkle with flaky salt or cocoa powder. The sky is the limit on variations!

These freeze well and you can easily double the recipe.

Almond Joy Bites

Yield: 35 - 40 bites 

Ingredients

1 cup almond butter, well stirred (or you can start with 2 cups whole sliced or slivered almonds and make your own as step one)

3/4 cup pitted dates

1 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut

1 cup oats, quick or old-fashioned

1/3 cup ground flaxseed meal

2 T maple syrup

1/2 tsp almond extract

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons mini chocolate chips, preferably dark chocolate

3 T cacao nibs

Directions

If you need to start with making the almond butter, put 2 cups of almonds in a large food processor. Process, scraping sides occasionally, until the butter is the consistency of natural peanut butter. (The exact timing for this will vary depending on your processor and on whether you begin with whole, sliced or slivered almonds.) You should end up with approximately 1 cup of almond butter.

Add to the almond butter the dates, coconut, oats, flax meal, maple syrup, extracts and salt. Process with longer pulses until well blended and starting to pull together into a moist blobby dough. I know that isn't a great descriptor, but you'll be able to see it start to pull and stick together. You don't want it dry and crumbly, and you don't want it a gooey mess. You may have to add 1 - 3 Tablespoons water to help get the proper consistency. When it is done, you'll be able to press your finger in, and when you pull it out, the hole remains but minimal dough sticks to your finger.

Turn the mixture into a medium bowl. Add chips and cacao nibs, stirring well.

Using a small cookie scoop, make 1-inch balls, rolling them into a ball shape with your hands.

Place in air-tight container and refrigerate until serving. You can also freeze for longer storage.