Last week, we introduced you to January’s Tasty Tuesday series: Going, Gluten, Gone– a journey into finding yummy gluten-free treats that satisfy your sweet tooth without totally busting your New Year’s Resolutions. We started with a super light and beautiful Lemon Almond Ricotta Cake {check it out here if you haven’t already seen it!}.

This week, we found a recipe that combines two of my favorite things: chocolate & breakfast!

chocolate-dessertThese Chocolate, Banana and Almond Butter Bites had us at butter- almond butter that is! With actually no butter at all, these raw gluten-free bites are equal parts scrumptious and easy to make. Not only do the bites take less than 10 minutes to prep, there’s no baking required!

While intended as a sweet treat, they also have a ton of protein, making them a perfectly portioned snack to ease that afternoon sugar craving {or if you’re like me, that I-just-woke-up-and-want-a-treat-for-breakfast craving!}. Did we mention that they have the most delicious cacao & coconut crunch coating {with a little kick of cayenne!} on the outside?

gluten-free-chocolate-dessertChocolate Almond Butter Bites {Gluten Free, Raw, Vegan}

Ingredients*

For Bites:
1 cup of raw almonds
1 very ripe banana
1 date, pitted & mashed
1 tablespoon of cacao powder
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon of almond butter
a pinch of salt
1/2 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup shredded coconut for coating outside
2 tablespoons cacao powder for coating outside

For Cacao Crunch:
1/4 cup of almonds
1/4 cup of cacao nibs
a pinch or two of salt (preferably, himalayan pink sea salt)
a pinch or two of cayenne (optional)

Directions

Place 1 cup of almonds into the food processor (blender works!) and pulse until finely ground.

To avoid the mess of cleaning out the blender, combine almonds and the rest of the ingredients for the bites in a bowl and mix with a fork or hands.

Take mixture and form bite sized balls by rolling in between the palms of your hands. Set aside on plate or baking sheet and freeze for 30-45 minutes.

almond-butter-dessert

While bites are in the freezer, make the cacao crunch. Place all of the ingredients into food processor or blender and pulse several times until a fine texture with a bit of chunkiness.

Remove bites from freezer and roll in crunch mixture. You might need to give the bites a roll between your fingers to get them sticky, then roll them around on the plate with the crunch mixture. Do this until they are all coated. If you want to make them pretty and add variety to the bites, you can also coat some with cocoa powder and some with shredded coconut!

Place them back in the freezer for about 20 minutes and enjoy!

*This recipe only makes about 8-10 bites so if you plan to freeze some for later, double the recipe. You can keep these bites in the fridge for a couple of days {if they’re not all gobbled up by then!} or in the freezer for later snacking.

chocolate-almond-butter-bites

These bites are perfect for a pre or post-workout protein fix and are really great to grab for a breakfast on-the-go. They taste a bit like the most delicious energy bar you’ve ever tried and while they’re definitely not a slice of cake or a cookie, they’re a delicious and healthier option when your sweet tooth is screaming for some suga’!

original photography for apartment 34 by Aubrie Pick // art direction + styling by apartment 34 // original recipe adapted via What’s Cooking Good Looking 

What do you think?

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10 Comments

  1. I will be making these! They look like the right food to help fuel me between meals. I don’t eat (cannot) eat bananas, what to sub….?
    I sometimes use applesauce/dates— suggestions would be ever so lovely. I really enjoy your writing (as a past SF dweller -now a deep freeze transplant to upper mid-west) I adore reading about my home state-and SF.

    1. Aw thanks, Cindy!! How about Greek Yogurt, pumpkin, sweet potato, or avocado?

  2. Wow! Those look devine. I love making things like this and will definitely be trying these out.

  3. Can’t wait to make these! I wish you had a Pin It button on your photos, though so I could easily save and come back to this. Just a thought 🙂
    Thank you for sharing!

    1. We actually do have a pin it button Renee – when you roll over an image it should show up in orange in the top left corner! Please let us know if you don’t see it!