by Molly 4 Comments
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The day has come!
Today is Kieran’s first day of first grade! At home. Womp Womp.
It’s not the beginning we envisioned and hoped for, but he is still as happy as can be and super excited to be moving into first grade. And we’re embracing that!
Our school district is starting out all remote for the first two weeks, and then we’ll transition into a hybrid education model. Meaning, Kieran will go to school for in-person learning, socially distanced style, two days a week and be homeschooled by me the other three days…all while I am working almost full time AND taking care of an 18-month-old. It’s going to be a lot. But I’m trying my darnedest to stay positive and hopeful.
My mantra over the past six months has been: THIS IS ALL TEMPORARY. And this is too. Kieran will experience school normally again some day. And at least he’s young enough where it’s not having hugely negative impacts.
That all said, I am going to be in survival mode these next few weeks, so bear with me! I often resort to snacking when busy seasons hit our household. I rarely eat breakfast (I know, I know…so bad), and lunch usually consists of a bunch of random things I can pull out of the fridge or pantry and shove in my mouth as fast as possible, barely leaving time to chew.
#momlife … except now it’s #homeschoolingandworkingmomlifewithonekidandababy
Hah.
So snacks it is! These no-bake blueberry oatmeal balls are just the thing I reach for in moments of hungry desperation. They’re loaded with healthy fats, fiber, and protein and actually keep me full. Plus, they’re flippin’ delicious. That always helps, right?
There are a ton of these recipes on the internet already, but I really wanted to share this version with you because they taste so good. They take minutes to make and will keep in the fridge all week long. So, if you’re like me, you can grab one or two when you really need a bite to eat and not spend any excess time prepping or cleaning up. And that right there is a major mom win.
All it takes to make these are a few pantry ingredients – most of which you might already have on hand. And substitutions are welcome here! You can use any nut butter or any dried fruit here. If using larger fruit like mango, apricots, or even figs, just make sure you chop them up a bit before mixing them in. Other than that, make these your own! I’m sure there are a million and one possible flavor combinations.
My kids love blueberries, and so I opted for dried blueberries here. I also have a few jars of almond butter that have accumulated in the pantry and decided this was the way to start using it up (I’m normally not an almond butter fan – peanut butter is far superior in my mind). It was the perfect flavor to go alongside the blueberries, oats, cinnamon, and vanilla.
I love these. My kids love these. And they will for sure be in our fridge all school year long, remote learning or not!
Best of luck to all the kids and parents starting school this year! Xoxo.
- Author: Molly
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 1 dozen 1x
Description
TheseNo-Bake Blueberry Oatmeal Protein Balls are the ideal back-to-school snack! They’re loaded with healthy fats, fiber, and protein and take only minutes to make. I love to prep a big batch of these on the weekend so we can enjoy them straight out of the fridge all week long. These are a lifesaver on busy working days!
Ingredients
Scale
- 1/2 cup smooth almond butter
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 1 tablespoons ground flaxseed
- Pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup old-fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup dried blueberries
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the almond butter, honey, chia seeds, flaxseed, salt, vanilla, and cinnamon until smooth.
- Fold in the oats and blueberries until well combined. The mixture will be thick.
- Form the mixture into bite-sized balls, about 1½ tablespoons each. If the mixture is too crumbly, add another tablespoon or two of almond butter until the mixture easily holds its shape when compacted together (all nut butters are different, so you may have to adjust accordingly).
- Place the formed balls on a small baking sheet or plate and place in the fridge to set up for at least 15 minutes before eating.
- Store the balls in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week.
Notes
- You can sub in any nut butter here. We’ve made these with peanut butter and cashew butter and both work great.
- Any dried fruit will work in place of the blueberries. Raisins or dried cranberries would be my first choices, but larger dried fruits like mango, fig, or apricot would taste great. Just chop them up a bit first before mixing in!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Category: snacks
Keywords: no-bake protein balls, no-bake oatmeal protein bites, blueberry oatmeal bites, blueberry oatmeal, quick and easy snacks, back to school snacks
