It is officially Christmas Season and while you may still be recovering from the “damage” done during Thanksgiving, it’s time to face the exciting fact that we have just begun to tap into the season’s indulgence! ?? Parties, potlucks, family gatherings, and more will flood our calendars in the coming weeks and while this is exciting it can also be very stressful! While I LOVE and encourage the seasonal indulgence, I think we can all agree that it’s nice to have some healthier options in the mix that are just as tasty! ??Even better if there are sweets that can be labeled as “guilt-free”. I want to help take some of the stress off your holiday planning by giving you a recipe that is just as easy as it is delicious and healthy! I call them “healthier holiday buckeye balls” and would argue they are just as delicious as the real thing! The best part about them is that you can adjust the degree of “healthiness” as much as you’d like simply by modifying the ingredients to taste. Because, if you’re like me, it doesn’t take much for me to consider a treat “guilt-free” ?.
To give you an idea of how delicious these healthy holiday buckeyes are, I made one batch to bring to my in-laws for Thanksgiving last week and by the time we arrived at their place (a 1.5 hour drive) they were HALF-WAY GONE. I might add that my husband is a SUPER picky sweet eater, and even he couldn’t keep his hands off these buckeyes! ?? I am a sucker for sweets so anything I can do to justify consuming holiday treats in mass quantities is a winner in my book ?.
To make these protein buckeye balls, follow the recipe and instructions below BUT adjust ingredients & amounts to your desired consistency and degree of “healthiness”. For example, my recipe calls for entirely protein powder BUT I wanted my buckeyes to be a bit more of a treat than a healthy snack for our family gathering, so I halved the protein powder and substituted powdered sugar for the other half (because, it’s still the holidays) ?.  Regardless of how you modify the ingredients below, you will be popping these babies like they they are M&M’s! And then, if you want to “work them off afterwards”, check out my post on maintaining your fitness through the holidays ??!
Healthy Buckeye Ball Ingredients (pictured below):
- 1 cup steel-cut Oats
- 1/4 cup flax seeds
- 1 16 oz. jar creamy organic peanut butter (I use chunky because I like the crunch, but buckeyes are traditionally creamy)
- 3/4 cup vanilla protein powder (or half this with powdered sugar… or use ALL powdered sugar ?)
- 2 Tbsp honey
- 1 1/2 Cups chocolate chips (white, dark, or both)
- Optional Garnish (pretty sprinkles, cocoa powder to dust, etc!)
Healthy Buckeyes Recipe Instructions:
1. Pour Ingredients & Combine – throw all measured ingredients into mixing bowl (finishing with honey). Then, get out your electric mixer (or HANDS) and knead all ingredients together until fully incorporated. The consistency should be sticky enough to form a pressed ball, but not too gooey! Taste-test your mixture before proceeding to the next step so that you can adjust any of the ingredients to taste (I taste-tested mine and wanted a tad more powdered sugar ?).
2. Roll Mixture into Buckeye Balls – Line a baking sheet with wax paper and roll the mixture into about 1 inch balls with your hands (this should yield about 24 buckeye balls). Make sure to press hard so the balls do not crumble to the touch.  If they are difficult to roll, you may need to add some more peanut butter or honey!
3. Coat Buckeye Balls with Dark or White Chocolate– There are several ways that this can be accomplished, but the best way I have found to do it is with a spoon. Melt your chocolate coating of choice in the microwave in 30 seconds intervals, stirring between each (to avoid burning). It took me a total of about 1 minute 30 seconds to melt (you don’t want the chocolate to be TOO melted and runny)! Once melted, Drop the balls one at a time into the chocolate bowls and spoon melted chocolate on top. Then, carefully lift the balls with the spoon out of the chocolate and place onto the wax paper to cool!
4. Garnish, Cool, and Enjoy! Once all “healthier” buckeye balls have been coated, sprinkle with desired garnish and set in the refrigerator to cool for about 30 minutes. Ive attached a few photos of how I garnished my buckeye balls below – both with white and dark chocolate – but you can get as creative and festive as you’d like! Balls can be stored at room temperature after they set! Arrange on a pretty Christmas plate and ENJOY serving these babies to your friends and family! ?
I hope you will bring these delicious “healthier” Buckeye balls to your family and friends this season! Another suggestion is to make these yummy treats on Sunday and bring them to work each day as a healthy mid-day energy snack – because it’s the holidays and we all deserve to indulge a little (and if you want a few more healthy lunch or snacking ideas, check out my post on healthy weekday habits)! Also, because maintaining your overall health is way more than just physical – we all need a little TLC this time of year ?. Have a cozy weekend full of love, relaxation, and chocolate! ????.
Kelsie ?
