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We made it! It’s the end of the week, and it’s time for something sweet: healthy energy balls that taste like bites of gingerbread cookie dough. These Ginger Cookie Healthy Energy Balls are Monday kind of wholesome with a Friday kind of flavor. They’ve also been my saving grace this week.

Healthy Energy Balls with oatmeal, almond butter, coconut, and flaxseed. Tastes like a ginger cookie! Easy, no bake recipe that’s raw, vegan, high protein, and gluten free. Recipe at wellplated.com | @wellplated

After publishing my Summer Bucket List on Tuesday, I had a small panic attack that we are halfway through June and I hadn’t checked off a single thing on it. My theory that putting our hopes and goals into the universe is proving true because instead of spending my time on responsible things like work or cooking myself a proper breakfast, I’ve been scanning state park websites for campsite availability, calling locals farms to see when strawberries will be available for picking, and ordering straw hats.

Instead of “adult” groceries like vegetables and chicken, I walked out of the grocery store with three bottles of rosé, a basil plant, and a watermelon.

The summer bug bites hard, and I’m scratching!

While my January self might view my current disregard of meal planning and laundry washing as unwise, my June self is quite pleased with the look of her calendar over the next few months. She’s also very, very grateful to have a stash of Ginger Cookie Healthy Energy Balls in her freezer, because the only thing in her refrigerator right now is a half-eaten watermelon and an almost-empty jar of peanut butter.

No Bake Ginger Cookie Healthy Energy Balls — easy, high protein, and great for your skin! Raw vegan recipe with oatmeal, coconut, warm spices, and flaxseed. Naturally sweetened and no food processor required! Recipe at wellplated.com | @wellplated

The recipe for these healthy energy balls hails from my lovely friend Phoebe’s book, The Wellness Project. You may know Phoebe from her blog, Feed Me Phoebe, which is how the two of us “met,” first on the interwebs, then in person when I visited New York. In the book, Phoebe honestly, often hilariously, chronicles her yearlong experiment to regain her health and feel more, well, well. She tries everything from cutting out caffeine, sugar, and alcohol (at the same time!!), to supplements, to using all-natural beauty and home products, to drinking aggressive amounts of water. Every chapter describes a new regime she tests, her honest findings of what did/did not seem worth the sacrifice, and tips for those looking to try something similar.

Healthy Energy Balls. Easy, no bake recipe that tastes like a ginger cookie. Raw, vegan, and gluten free. Recipe at wellplated.com | @wellplated

A large driver behind Phoebe’s experiment is Hashimoto’s, a thyroid disorder from which she suffers and about which she talks openly throughout the book. Although I am fortunate enough not to suffer from chronic health issues myself, I still thoroughly enjoyed the book and found it relatable. Phoebe’s tone is fun, chatty, and honest, she presents research where it’s needed, and, best of all, she finds actual balance between extremes. Reading it felt as if I were sitting down for coffee with a friend.

No Bake Protein Balls – Spiced with ginger and good for your skin! Raw, vegan, and gluten free. Recipe at wellplated.com | @wellplated

In addition to sharing her story, Phoebe also shares recipes at the end of every chapter, including these ginger spiced healthy energy balls, or, as she calls them, “Beauty Balls.” Beauty balls. Doesn’t that sound wonderful? They’re high in fiber, antioxidants, and healthy fats, and their star ingredients—sesame seeds, almond butter, and flaxseed meal—are great for your skin.

How to Store and Freeze These Energy Balls

  • To Store. Store healthy energy balls in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
  • To Freeze. Place energy balls in an airtight freezer-safe storage container for up to 3 months.

Healthy Energy Balls – easy, no bake, and high in protein and fiber! Made with oatmeal, almond butter, coconut and flaxseed. Raw vegan recipe that’s naturally sweetened and gluten free. Recipe at wellplated.com | @wellplated

These Ginger Cookie Healthy Energy Balls are also vegan, raw, gluten free, no bake, and naturally sweetened. The good girl gang is all here, and they still taste like ginger cookie dough. On a Friday, Monday, or any day, I couldn’t ask for more!

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Ginger Cookie Healthy Energy Balls

4.90 from 19 votes
Healthy Energy Balls that taste like ginger cookies! Easy, no-bake recipe with oatmeal, almond butter, and flax. Raw, vegan, high protein, and gluten free.

Prep: 15 minutes
Total: 25 minutes

Servings: 24 balls

Ingredients
  


Instructions
 

  • Add all of the ingredients to a large mixing bowl: oats, almond butter, coconut, flaxseed, sesame seeds, maple syrup, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and salt. Stir by hand with a wooden spoon or spatula, until the mixture is incorporated and sticky. Place the bowl in the refrigerator for 10 minutes, or until the mixture is firm and easy to shape.
  • With damp hands, take 1 tablespoon of dough and shape it into a compact 1-inch ball (squeeze a little as needed) and place it on a plate. (Keep a bowl of water by your side, since the mixture is easier to handle with damp hands.) Repeat with the remaining batter. Enjoy immediately or store in the refrigerator for 2 weeks or freeze for 3 months.

Notes

  • *If you prefer not to use maple syrup, you can swap raw honey or 1/3 cup chopped Medjool dates. If using dates, puree them in the bowl of a food processor along with the almond butter first, then add the resulting paste to the bowl with the other ingredients.
  • Store in the refrigerator for 2 weeks or freeze for 3 months.
  • Recipe swap—make them chocolate: Replace the spices with 2 teaspoons cocoa powder to make these full-fledged raw chocolate “cookies.”

Nutrition

Serving: 1ballCalories: 102kcalCarbohydrates: 8gProtein: 3gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 2gSodium: 56mgFiber: 2gSugar: 3g

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Erin Clarke

Hi, I'm Erin Clarke, and I'm fearlessly dedicated to making healthy food that's affordable, easy-to-make, and best of all DELISH. I'm the author and recipe developer here at wellplated.com and of The Well Plated Cookbook. I adore both sweets and veggies, and I am on a mission to save you time and dishes. WELCOME!

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67 Comments

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  1. Oh my goodness yum! These look delish, I love any dessert with ginger (gingerbread cookies, gingerbread loaves, ginger candy), and now I can feel good eating my dessert :) And you will not regret taking advantage of summertime for a second. I haven’t made a bucket list yet, but you’ve inspired me to do so!

    1. I hope you enjoy them, Erica! And I’m glad to hear you’ll be making a summer bucket list! I’d love to hear what you decide to add to it. :)

    1. Hi Karen, chia seeds and flaxseed meal actually act differently in energy balls, because chia seeds are a little less moist. If you want to experiment, I think you could go half and half. If the energy balls seem too dry, you can just add a little more almond butter or maple syrup. I hope you enjoy!

  2. These sound delicious, although I can tell you right now that I would cut the amount of cloves in half, even without trying the recipe, just because I know that neither my husband nor I likes a strong clove flavor.  For us ¼ t is a lot of cloves.  (I would taste them with the lesser amount and add more if it would work for us.)  I applaud your June self for taking time for the important stuff, including creative grocery shopping…

  3. Dear Erin,
    I’ve been meaning to tell you this for a while now, but today’s post pushed me over the edge.  Your blog is hands-down the most well-written food blog out there!  I follow several crafty chef bloggers, but I always enjoy reading your posts the most.  Your pictures are splendid and your recipes are wholesome and delish.  Your writing, however, is stellar!  It is fun, engaging, and full of catchy little phrases.  Thank you for putting in the time and effort to make it that way.  Now I’m gonna make some ginger cookie energy balls… mmmm.

    1. Evelyn, I am absolutely blushing! Thank you so, so much. I really love to write and put careful attention into that aspect of my blog, so to know that it is appreciated means so much. Have a wonderful weekend and thanks again!

  4. I’m unable to eat nuts, but can have seeds. How do you think this recipe might work with sunflower seed butter? Thanks!

  5. What delicious looking energy balls! There aren’t enough ginger recipes out there! :)

  6. These look so yummy! I love the ginger cookie flavor idea.
    And I know what you mean about the to-do list. Ah, well. We just do the best we can!

  7. I agree with Evelyn’s comment above! Spot on ;-) I love your Blog Erin. I’m off to the grocery store for the couple of items I don’t have to make these ‘beauty balls’. Love that normally I would have all these ingredients on hand – I already know I’m going to love them – and will be making them often. Thank you!

  8. Ginger is one of my new favorite “superfoods”! These look like the perfect snack, thanks for the recipe!

  9. Thank you sweet Erin!! This post is just the best. I would sit down with you for an 8 hour coffee with you any day :) Love you and appreciate all your wonderful support xoxo

    1. Phoebe, so happy for you and proud of this accomplishment! Congrats!! The book is wonderful, and I’m so happy to be able to share this delicious recipe with my readers. I will sit down for that coffee date with you anytime! xoxo

  10. Just made these and they’re pretty good! Definitely taste like dessert even though they’ve got clean ingredients. I do think they were just the slightest bit lacking in flavor. Next time I might try adding raisins or candied ginger or something along those lines. 4 stars

    1. Hi Sydney, those add-ins sound delicious! I’d love to know what you think if you try adding them in!

  11. Man, this woman knows her stuff. These are terrific. I doubled the recipe, knowing 15 would never do. Also, used the medjul dates. Really nice. I did add a little apple sauce to make them cooperate in the rolling process. Licking my hands at the end, just like a cat, was the best part. Thank you Erin for sharing your genius.Next time I’ll add protein powder. Jim D. Oldsmar FL5 stars

    1. Jim, I’m so glad you enjoyed these energy balls! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave this great review!

  12. My first attempt at something like this although I’ve seen many recipes. Perfect flavor for the fall season. They were super easy to put together!! I used some agave since I didn’t have pure maple syrup on hand, but just enough to help bind it together. The hardest part was mixing the ingredients. Then once chilled key is deff to keep your plans moist to roll the balls. They are delish though and would be great to keep in the freezer for road trips or nighttime snacks :)))5 stars

    1. Rebecca, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the recipe!! Thanks so much for taking the time to report back. :)

  13. Hi Erin,

    Do you think subsituting a couple tablespoons of molasses for some of the maple syrup would make it taste like a gingersnap? I’m mostly just curious because I have about 2 tbsp of molasses to use up. :)

    I love your recipes, by the way!

    1. Hi Anna, I wouldn’t do more than a few teaspoons because molasses is very strong. You can certainly experiment, adding more of the dry ingredients if the molasses makes the balls too soft. I hope you enjoy! And thank you so much—it makes my day to hear that others are enjoying recipes from my site!

    1. Hi Tracey, I haven’t made that substitution myself, but you could try swapping in some finely chopped nuts!

  14. I LOVE anything with ginger!  I have these pinned to try later!  That book sounds fascinating.  I don’t have any health issues, but I’d be curious to hear her perspective on all the different ways we hear that can improve our bodies and minds.

  15. Absolutely love these cookies! I would like to reduce the amount of maple syrup as I need to limit my total sugar/fructose intake. Can some water (or another low sugar ingredient) be substituted to get the mixture to stick? By adding some water, will I risk mold forming on the raw grains/seeds even if the cookies are refrigerated?5 stars

    1. Hi Deborah! I’d suggest adding more almond butter and would not recommend water as I think it would make the balls very runny (and might cause the issues you mentioned too). So happy you love these!!

    1. Hi Holly! I haven’t tried it without the coconut, but you could leave it out and slightly increase the oats if it seems too wet. I hope you enjoy if you decide to experiment!

  16. Thank you for sharing this recipe! I love it. I add crystallized ginger. My best batches were made with a moist, crunchy almond butter.5 stars

  17. Loved this recipe! I subbed the maple syrup for molasses, to make it more iron-heavy. Also added a small handful of candied ginger that had been sitting in my pantry begging to be used. Excellent balance of spices and textures, thank you for such a friendly, quick, and nutritious recipe!

  18. Do you think I could make a substitution for the coconut with 2 scoops vanilla protein powder if I want to have this with more protein?

    This may just be wishful thinking on my part since I have all the other ingredients..
    Thanks

    1. Hi Michelle! I have not tried adding protein powder to these, but you could certainly experiment. It may not be a straight swap for the coconut but you can give it a try and adjust the honey/maple syrup and almond butter if they’re not holding together. If you decide to experiment, I’d love to hear how it goes.

  19. Made these as written, so good. But I do have a hint for mixing, I mixed all the dry ingredients together and mixed the maple syrup and almond butter together. Then added wet mix to dry ingredients and mixed well. This insured that the spices were more evenly distributed as well as the almond butter and syrup. Thank you for another winner!5 stars

    1. I’m happy to hear that you enjoyed this recipe, Cheryl! Thank you for taking the time to share this kind review and your tip!

    1. I’m so pleased that you enjoyed the recipe, Jaya! Thank you for sharing this kind review!

  20. So yummy! Substituted a bit of the maple syrup with blackstrap molasses and added crystallised ginger as suggested by in some of the comments here. Thank you!5 stars

    1. Hi Hazel! I’m so excited to hear how much you enjoyed this. Thanks for sharing this wonderful review!

  21. Don’t have any coconut on hand. Maybe I could use a combo of oat flour, chopped walnuts, and crystallized ginger. Would that work? Thanks!

    1. Hi Nancy! I haven’t tried it without the coconut, but you could leave it out and slightly increase the oats if it seems too wet. I hope you enjoy it if you decide to experiment!

    1. Hi Ro Gard! I’ve never tried fresh ginger in this recipe, so you’d be experimenting. If you decide to play around with it, I’d love to hear how it goes!

  22. These are a revelation! I have so many dietary restrictions that I get a little down sometimes, but when I can have something like this, I don’t feel deprived at all! They do taste a lot like ginger cookies, which I LOVE, and the coconut adds a fun flavor and crunch (I didn’t use finely shredded). I did make a couple substitutions: Because oats don’t agree with me at the moment, I subbed 1/2 cup hemp hearts and 1/2 cup almond meal; I actually forgot the sesame seeds; and subbed honey for part of the maple syrup. I’d like to try molasses for part of the sweetener next time, for a gingerbread taste!5 stars

  23. I have made this recipe three times in the last two weeks. It’s that good! I substituted chia seeds for sesame seeds as that is what I had on hand. Otherwise, I followed the recipe as written.
    I have a new baby so these have been a lifesaver.5 stars

  24. I love that this looks so easy and quick to make. I am excited to try this. I am thinking of using honey instead of maple syrup. Thank you for sharing this! Looks really really good :)5 stars

  25. These were wonderful. I made them as a work snack to try to avoid buying store bought protein bars. So wonderfully tasty.5 stars

    1. Hi Crafty Girl, I haven’t tested it out myself but I know other readers have use chia seeds instead of the sesame seeds with great success! If you decide to experiment, let me know how it goes!

  26. Love these energy balls, nutrient dense snack and filling! I do intermittent fasting and am gluten free and they are a great way to provide variation to my diet as well as make sure I get enough calories. I didn’t have sesame seeds the first time I made them, so used chia seeds instead. Now I use half sesame, half chia.5 stars