Easy Double Chocolate Cherry Energy Balls

Who says a healthy snack can’t taste like dessert? These Double Chocolate Cherry Energy Balls are hands down my favorite of all the energy ball recipes! They’re rich, chocolatey, packed with chewy bits of cherry, and have just the right amount of crunch. Made with wholesome ingredients, they’re a sweet little treat that also delivers some staying power. Even better? They’re ready in just 15 minutes!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

If you’ve been around here for a while, you know I’m all about snacks that taste amazing but are made with real ingredients. These Double Chocolate Cherry Energy Balls are one of my favorite combinations of flavors and textures. Between the double chocolate, sweet-tart cherries, and satisfying crunch, they’re hard to resist!

A few more reasons to love them:

• Ready in 15 minutes: No baking and very little prep. Just mix, roll, and enjoy!
• Double the chocolate: Because one kind of chocolate just isn’t enough!
• Cherry goodness: Sweet, chewy bites of cherry pair perfectly with rich chocolate.
• Satisfying snack: A combination of healthy fats, carbohydrates, and protein helps keep you fueled between meals.
• Family-friendly: A wholesome snack that feels a little like sneaking dessert into snack time.

Trust me, these are dangerously easy to pop in your mouth one after another. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

If you like this energy ball recipe, you’ll love my Apple Cinnamon ones made with fresh apples.

Chocolate Cherry Energy Ball Ingredients

Nut Butter

Just the word butter makes my mouth water! And when it comes to nut butters, there are plenty of options to choose from. Almond, peanut, cashew, or even sunflower seed butter will all work in this recipe, so use your favorite.

I personally love almond butter in these energy balls, but peanut butter is a pantry staple in our house, so I often reach for that instead. Nut and seed butters are also a great source of healthy fats, which help keep you feeling satisfied. A little healthy fat goes a long way!

Almond butter is high in monounsaturated fats. Monounsaturated fats help to lower LDL (“bad”) cholesterol and raise HDL (“good”) cholesterol. 

WebMD, Health Benefits of Almond Butter

Double Chocolate

To emphasize the chocolate, this recipe is doubling up on the chocolate for a rich and scrumptious snack.

Chocolate Chips

As if you needed more reasons to eat chocolate (also in moderation). Here are a few health benefits of eating dark chocolate, according to WebMD’s article, Chocolate: Is it Good For You?:

• Contains Minerals, Antioxidants, Flavonoids
• Cardiovascular support
• Helps protect cells from inflammation
• Boosts morale and Energy

With this in mind, go for chocolate chips that contain 60-70% cocoa, or higher. Additionally, this means that it contains less sugar. Undoubtedly, I can attest to it boosting morale, who doesn’t feel better eating chocolate?

If you keep a dairy-free diet, then choose dairy free chocolate chips.

Cocoa Powder

Have you ever noticed two different types of cocoa powder at the grocery store? Natural and Dutch process? They’re both made from cacao beans, but there’s one important difference in how they’re processed.

Natural cocoa powder is made by grinding cacao beans into a paste, extracting the cocoa butter, and grinding the remaining solids into powder. It has a lighter brown color and a slightly fruity, more acidic flavor. It’s also the most common type you’ll find at the grocery store.

Dutch process cocoa powder starts the same way but has one extra step: alkalizing. The cocoa powder is washed with a potassium carbonate solution to neutralize its natural acidity. This creates a darker color and a smoother, more mellow, earthy chocolate flavor. Some Dutch process cocoa is heavily alkalized to create black cocoa powder, like the kind used in Oreo cookies.

According to Serious Eats, this alkalizing process changes both the flavor and acidity of cocoa powder.

So, which should you use?

Either type of cocoa powder will work in these Double Chocolate Cherry Energy Balls since there’s no baking involved. However, I prefer natural cocoa powder.

Why? Natural cocoa powder generally retains more of its naturally occurring antioxidants, including flavanols and other polyphenols. Dutch processing can reduce some of these beneficial compounds, depending on how heavily the cocoa is alkalized.

Since I love getting as much nutritional goodness as possible from my ingredients, natural cocoa powder is my first choice!

One more thing: If you’re baking, the difference matters beyond flavor. Natural cocoa powder is acidic and can react with baking soda to help baked goods rise. Dutch process cocoa is neutralized, so recipes often pair it with baking powder instead.

Honey & Oats

Oats

Whole grain oats are both a good source of carbohydrates and fiber. They are easy to add into smoothies and these delicious chocolate cherry energy balls. If you need a few other reasons to add oats in your diet, here are some more, according to Hrefna Palsdottir’s article, “9 Health Benefits of Eating Oats and Oatmeal“:

• Rich in antioxidants, helping with anti-inflammatory and anti-itching
• Helps with a healthy gut
• Aids in lowering blood sugar levels

Honey

Being that honey is nature’s sweetener, it also has many health benefits. According to the Mayo Clinic, Honey aids in several categories, including suppressing coughs and reducing risks of heart disease.

Studies suggest that honey might offer antidepressant, anticonvulsant and anti-anxiety benefits. In some studies, honey has been shown to help prevent memory disorders.

Mayo Clinic

Cherry

Without doubt, cherries and chocolate go together like Thelma & Louise. Since cherries are on the tart side, they are perfectly balanced with the rich slightly sweet taste of chocolate. This recipe calls for the use of dried cherries, which are chewy and concentrated with that tart taste.

Mix Ins

At last, this is my favorite part! You can really make these balls your own with your favorite mix ins. Here are few other tasty additions to cherry and chocolate:

• Almonds
• Coconut
• Cinnamon
• Orange Zest
• Vanilla

How to Make Energy Balls

Being that energy balls are the easiest snack to make, you can have a tasty healthy snack in just 15 minutes! All you need is a bowl and a cookie scoop (if you have one), or a spoon will work too.

1. Start by whisking together almond butter, honey, cocoa powder, and almond extract.
2. Next stir in the rest of the ingredients.
3. Roll into balls and refrigerate.
4. Enjoy!

More Energy Ball Recipes

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