Written by Lauren Curl-Ferrell on December 15, 2021.
Buckeyes Are A Family Tradition In My Family
Needless to say, when I called my grandma and told her I was attempting to make buckeyes healthy, her one request was that I do "my best to keep the taste the same."
I did it. After a bit of trial and error, lots of recipe looking up online, and plenty of research, I found the best health high protein peanut butter buckeye recipe.
Buckeyes are a combination of a peanut butter nougat that has been dipped in chocolate. A buckeye should be soft, delicious, and hit the sweet spot. They're smaller in size, think protein ball, and less of protein bar.
They've always been a hit at every function I've made them for. So, to have a healthier alternative is a win for me.
The Ingredients
NB Pure Plant Protein+ - Low carb plant-based protein powder which is made with only the best ingredients, including pea protein, flax seed and chia seed. Has 25g of protein per scoop!
Peanut Butter - I prefer peanut butter in this recipe, but feel free to use any nut or sun butter. Just make sure it's creamy. If it's not creamy, give it a little blend to chop up the nuts.
Maple Syrup - Always my go-to favorite sweetener. You can substitute honey, but my favorite taste was the maple!
Flour - I like to keep it gluten free. The best combo I used to create the perfect taste was 1/2 almond flour 1/2 coconut flour. It made the best sweetness and nutty flavor!
Vanilla Extract - for a little bit of that sweet warm taste.
Salt - skip this if your peanut butter is salted or if you're cutting back on the sodium!
How To Make High Protein Buckeye Balls - Peanut Butter and Chocolate Protein Balls
The step by step here is like two steps. Mix everything and then dip in chocolate. But let's break it down.
Mix the protein, peanut butter, maple syrup, flour, vanilla extract, and salt in a large mixing bowl with your hands until it forms a dough like consistency.
Then roll the dough into small quarter sized balls. The dough will be sticky so make sure to go into it with damp hands. It'll help keep the dough from sticking to you!
Refrigerate the balls for about 15-20 minutes.
While they're cooling, warm up your chocolate in a pan. I like to put water in one pan, then place a smaller pan on top of that with the chocolate chips into it. Melting chocolate chips to a dip consistency is an art. Use low heat and melt slowly. If you're having trouble, add in a small bit of shortening to help!
Pull the balls out of the refrigerator and stick some toothpicks into them. Dip each ball into your melted chocolate.
Then drizzle the remaining chocolate on the top.
Storing
You can store these for up to 6 months in an air tight container in the freezer. Or up to a week in the refrigerator in an air tight container.
These have never had time to make it to the freezer in my house. They're so good!
Recipe Breakdown
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Chill Time: 15-20 minutes
Total Time: 20-25 minutes
Enjoy these year round for an on the go protein snack that can be customized to suit any allergy and taste!
Ingredients
- 2 scoops NB Pure Plant Protein+
- 1 cup peanut butter or any creamy nut butter
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup almond flour
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
For the chocolate dip:
- 1/2 cup of chocolate chips
Instructions
- Mix all your ingredients minus chocolate into a medium to large sized mixing bowl until it forms into a dough consistency.
- Roll into quarter size circumference balls.
- Refrigerate for 15-20 minutes
- Melt some chocolate
- Stick toothpicks into the balls once they're out of the refrigerator and dip the bottoms into melted chocolate.
- Drizzle remaining chocolate on the top of the balls.
- Enjoy!
