This recipe is simple. It’s sweet. It’s loved by my whole family and a great snack to fill you up and hold you over between meals!
(In fact, Hailey used to wake up from her nap and immediately ask for one by name. That’s how addictive they are!)
So, what’s this delicious treat?
Healthy, Homemade Lara-Balls
I feel silly calling this a recipe because it is such a simple combo, but these snack balls, mimicked after the popular lara-bars, are delicious little grab-n-go snacks that we make on Sundays and eat all week long.
I’m certain there are a million variations, but ours are simple.
- 1.5 cups raw cashew pieces (I find these in the bulk bin)
- 3 cups pitted dates
- 1 Tablespoon natural peanut butter
This makes about 28 bite-sized balls, which is perfect for the week, as we each eat 2-3 at a time.
The process is simple and all you’ll need is your food processor.
[Tweet “These sweet homemade lara-ball snacks are so simple and delicious!”]
Start by adding the cashews.
Pulse several times until they turn into a roughly chopped mixture.
Then add the dates.
Again, pulse to combine until they form a mixture of uniformed pieces.
At this point you could go ahead and form them into balls (or bars), but I prefer to take it to the next level by adding in a spoonful of peanut butter and pulsing to combine.
Form into bite-sized balls (there will be about 28), and store in a mason jar or other airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Homemade Lara-Balls: Variations
- cinnamon and raisins
- chocolate chips
- vanilla extract and coffee powder
- shredded coconut
Hailey calls these Lar-bas or cookie-bas and is a big fan. Since they are just fruit and nuts, I am, too!
What’s your favorite quick-grab snack?
Sherry says
Hope there are some around next weekend. Yum!
Roya says
I love walking up and reading your blog every day : ) I’m always looking for healthy snacks for my 18-month old daughter and I think these look great, but she only has 5 teeth (no molars). Would she be able to manage these bars OK?
Brittany Dixon says
Thanks for the kind words, Roya! Hm, I’m not sure about your question though. The ingredients are blended up pretty well, but they are still pretty firm since they are kept in the refrigerator. The good news is that are tasty for moms, too, so if you make them and don’t feel comfortable with it, you can at them yourself. Let me know how it goes if you try them!
Urban Wife says
Thank you, thank you!!!! I’ve been waiting for this post all week long. I just love your idea of rolling them up. I used to make bars when I made my version but this is so much simpler. I can’t wait to stock up and make these. 🙂
Karen says
Those look so good! I usually get two larabars every week and will need to make these soon. I usually grab some trail mix if I am heading out the door or a larabar or kindbar. Have a great weekend!!
Chantal says
I have a Larabar Bites recipe on my blog! Same thing, different ingredients haha. I use almonds and chocolate chips in mine, with a bit of vanilla and salt. Delicious!
Brittney says
I’ve been making versions of these a lot lately too, and will have to try your recipe. Costco sells pitted dates in a huge tub, which is great! I do a PB/chocolate (cocoa powder) version, and then one with almonds, almond butter, cocoa powder, and shredded coconut so they taste like Almond Joy :). They are great for me to bring to work and snack on to keep my milk supply up!
Brittany Dixon says
Almond joy sounds like such a neat twist of flavors! Great idea!
Christina says
I have also been waiting with great anticipation for this recipe 🙂 Can’t wait to make these over the weekend, I think my 19 month old will love them! (she’s a huge fan of your greek yogurt bites!) Thanks for all the great ideas Brittany!
Lindsey says
Love these! I like making them in the summer cause it requires no oven to heat up the house. My husband requests these almost weekly!
Tiff @ Love, Sweat, & Beers says
Love homemade raw treats. So yummy! Surprisingly enough, the hubby loves them too.
Giselle@myhealthyhappyhome says
Love making these types of snacks! My favorite right now is a chocolate coconut one that I call German Chocolate Cake balls. Dates, walnuts, pecans, cocoa powder, and coconut! Yum!
Brittany Dixon says
Sounds like an AWESOME combo! Thanks for sharing!
Alison @ Daily Moves and Grooves says
I love little raw snacks like these! I recently made some similar to these except with prunes, dried cranberries, cashews, hemp and chia. But I love how simple yours are!
Lisa says
Yum! I’m definitely a larabar fan, but have to admit since general mills took them over, I’ve definitely cut back on buying them. I would just way prefer to buy my own, I liked supporting lara bars when they were smaller, but now not so much. I feel super rude saying that;)
Protein balls have actually been my favorite Snack as of late, I love how quick and easy they are!
Ashlee@HisnHers says
When you put Laraballs on your weekly eating plan I thought it was a typo! haha. I cant wait to make these! I’m allergic to almonds and all the recipes I see like this have them!
Ashley @ My Food N Fitness Diaries says
These look great! Larabars are one of my favorite bars, but they can get pricey, so this is a great homemade option!
jerrica says
just made these with almonds instead of cashews and they were delicious! i say were because my 3 and 1 yr old ate them as I was rolling them! good thing I only made a half batch 🙂
Erin @ The Grass Skirt says
Yum!!! I have been making balls like these for a few years because I failed miserably at getting them to look like bars. I called them Raw Balls though. Your name is much better and less…awkward. LOL. Have a great weekend! 🙂
Brittany Dixon says
Haha, I don’t know, the name raw balls is pretty amazing… 🙂
Danica @ It's Progression says
These look great! I love the ingredients list 🙂
Kelli H (Made in Sonoma) says
These look great! I haven’t made anything like these before because dates seem pretty expensive here to me, though I’ve really been wanting to make something like this.
Hannah @ CleanEatingVeggieGirl says
I cannot wait to try these! I am been getting bored with some of my snacks lately, so these sound like the perfect alternative.
kris says
I love that you made them bite-sized. Perfect for on-the-go moments!
Jan @ Sprouts n Squats says
Yum those look delicious!! I need to buy a better food processor so I can make things like this.
Matt @ The Athlete's Plate says
Love this!
klau says
How many calories?
Brittany Dixon says
I’m not sure. Since I don’t count calories I don’t calculate them. However, you could add up the calories in the amount of ingredients you use, then divide it by the number of balls you are able to make. I hope this helps!
Jazial - Foxy Fresh says
These look delicious! I’ll give the recipe a try really soon.
Neil Butterfield says
These sound and look delicious.