My Gluten-Free Vegan Peanut Butter Sesame Seed Balls are an easy and healthy recipe to make with only 5 clean, real food ingredients. They're the perfect plant-based snacks that are ready in less than 10 minutes and are dairy-free, soy-free and contain no refined sugar!
Estimated reading time: 32 minutes
Gluten-Free Vegan Peanut Butter Sesame Seed Energy Balls
Table of Contents
Why You'll Love This Recipe!
My top 3 favorite reasons:
- Perfect For Meal Prep: Make a batch to enjoy throughout the week!
- No Special Equipment Needed: You only need a mixing bowl and less than 10 minutes!
- Made with Only 5 Clean, Real Food Ingredients: They are 100% gluten-free + vegan!
Karielyn
Jump to RecipeYou can feel good about making my Peanut Butter Sesame Seed Ball recipe because it's a healthy recipe is made with nutrient-dense, clean ingredients that you probably already have on hand and is plant-based, gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free, no-bake, soy-free and contains no refined sugar.
"Feel good about what you eat..."
- Karielyn Tillman
Ingredients
Here are the healthy, real food ingredients I used to make this recipe. Try to buy organic if possible.
That's it! My Peanut Butter Sesame Seeds Balls are super easy to make!
Why This Recipe is Healthy
Here are "5 Fast Facts" of the primary ingredients in this recipe so:
- You know what is in the food you are eating
- You know that the ingredients are nutrient-dense and are nourishing your body
- You will feel good about what you eat
Peanuts (Peanut Butter)
- excellent source of vitamin E
- high in folate
- contains tryptophan which helps fight depression
- good source of fiber
- excellent source of vegan protein
Maple Syrup
- contains manganese and zinc
- super high in antioxidants
- helps with inflammation
- ¼ cup contains more calcium than the same amount of milk
- ¼ cup contains more potassium than a banana
Coconut Flour
- highest dietary fiber found in any flour at 58% RDA
- 14% coconut oil
- 19% vegan protein
- gluten-free
- helps to promote blood sugar health
Sesame Seeds
- high in calcium at 35% RDA
- excellent antioxidant
- lowers cholesterol
- reduces inflammation
- high in phytosterol
Himalayan Pink Salt
- contains 84 minerals
- unrefined, unprocessed, raw
- promotes stable pH balance in cells
- controls water levels in the body
- aids digestion and facilitates better nutrient absorption
How To Make This Recipe: Step-by-Step Instructions
Here is how to make this recipe and I'll show you with step-by-step instructions below.
- Step 1: Add all ingredients to a medium-size mixing bowl and stir until well combined.
- Step 2: Depending on the consistency of the peanut butter you use, you may need to add coconut flour (1) tablespoon at a time until you can roll the mixture into a firm ball.
- Step 3: Take out a tablespoon at a time and form into ball shape with your hands. Place the balls onto a plate or cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Step 4: Add the sesame seeds to a small bowl. Take each ball and roll it in the sesame seeds making sure the ball is completely covered, then transfer the balls back to the cookie sheet.
Put the cookie sheet in the freezer for approximately 15 minutes, or until they firm. Store the balls in the refrigerator or freezer in an airtight BPA-free container.
Frequently Asked Questions
No, not at all! You'll love how easy it is to make these no-bake energy balls without any special equipment.
No food processor, high-speed blender or oven needed here!
Just mix all the ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl and they're ready to enjoy!
Yes! Keeping healthy snacks on hand makes eating clean a breeze.
You can prepare these in advance and keep them in the refrigerator to enjoy later in the week.
They're perfect for an afternoon treat or after workout snack.
You can easily make these nut-free by substituting the peanut butter with sunflower butter.
You may need to adjust the coconut flour depending on the consistency of the sunflower butter. Start with a tablespoon at a time and only add more as needed to make a firm ball.
I used coconut flour in this recipe because it is good at absorbing excess moisture in a recipe.
However, since I based this recipe off my Peanut Butter Protein Balls, you could substitute it with a clean vegan vanilla protein powder starting with (1) teaspoon at a time until the mixture is firm enough to roll into a ball.
My go-to vegan protein powder is Sprout Living "Epic Vanilla Lucuma" because it's made with organic nutrient-dense, real food ingredients such as: organic yellow pea protein, organic pumpkin seed, organic sunflower seed, organic chia seed, organic cranberry seed), organic lucuma fruit, organic ceylon cinnamon, organic acerola, organic baobab fruit, organic vanilla bean, organic coconut crystals, organic heirloom red banana, organic jerusalem artichoke, himalayan pink salt, organic stevia leaf.
Karielyn's Expert Tips + Ingredient Substitutions
Here are some of my expert tips to make this recipe perfectly:
Peanut Butter. The consistency of your peanut butter will determine whether you will need to add coconut flour to thicken the mixture. Start with (1) tablespoon of coconut flour and continue to add (1) tablespoon at a time until the mixture is thick enough to roll into a firm ball shape. You can also substitute the peanut butter with cashew butter or almond butter and adjust the coconut flour as needed. If you need the recipe to be nut-free, you can substitute with sunflower butter.
Coconut Flour. This is only needed to firm the peanut butter (or cashew butter, almond butter, or sunflower butter) mixture. I used coconut flour instead of almond flour because it is good at absorbing any extra moisture in the recipe. Try not to use more than needed because the mixture will be overly dry.
Maple Syrup. I used this as the natural sweetener, and you can make the recipe using only a mixing bowl. However, you can also substitute the maple syrup with Medjool dates (about 1 cup or 10 large, pitted dates) but you will need to prepare the mixture with a food processor to break down the dates.
Sesame Seeds. This is one of the main ingredients in the recipe and I used it as a topping to give the balls a little crunch and extra nutritional value. You could omit them if you prefer, but you would basically have peanut butter balls (and there is nothing wrong with that!).
Himalayan Pink Salt. This is my salt of preference, however, feel free to use sea salt.
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Gluten-Free Vegan Peanut Butter Sesame Seed Balls
Ingredients
For the balls:
- 1 cup organic peanut butter
- ½ cup organic maple syrup
- ⅛ teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
For the add-in:
- 1-2 tablespoons organic coconut flour (add extra only as needed)
For the topping:
- ¼ cup organic sesame seeds
Instructions
- Prepare a plate or cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, then set aside.
Prepare the balls:
- Add all ingredients for the balls (not the coconut flour) to a medium-size mixing bowl and stir until well combined.
Add the add-in:
- Depending on the consistency of your peanut butter, you may need to add coconut flour. Add (1) tablespoon at a time until the mixture is thick enough to roll into a firm ball shape but add extra only as needed.
Assembly:
- Take a tablespoon of mixture from the bowl and roll into bite-sized balls with the palms of your hands and transfer to the prepared cookie sheet.
- Add the sesame seeds to a small bowl.
- Roll the peanut butter balls in the sesame seeds until they are completely covered.
- Transfer the balls back to the prepared plate or cookie sheet and place in the freezer for about 15 minutes, or until they firm.
- Store in an air-tight BPA-free container in the refrigerator or freezer until ready to serve because they will get soft and lose their shape if left out at room temperature.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition Information
Copyright Notice
The instructions, notes, and photographs for this recipe by Karielyn Tillman of The Healthy Family and Home™ website are copyrighted material. This copyrighted work is protected and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives 4.0 International License and the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA) and cannot be legally used without my written permission.
More Healthy Vegan Peanut Butter Recipes
- Healthy Peanut Butter Cups
- Peanut Butter Fudge
- Flourless Peanut Butter Swirl Brownies
- or my Real Food Vegan™ 14-Day Meal Plan Program with 42 plant-based vegan + gluten-free recipes made with clean, real food ingredients just like this one that you will love!
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