It’s all things fall around my house. I love the smell of diffusing earthy and spicy essential oils. Baking good things with pumpkin and popping a hearty stew in the oven is heaven.

To me pumpkin means comfort.

These little energy balls are a little taste of fall in small bite, plus they give a great boost of energy without a bunch of sugar or processed ingredients.

You probably have all of the stuff in your pantry to make these awesome pumpkin energy balls. I take them on the go with me!!

Ingredients:

• Old fashioned oats-I like to use old fashioned oats because they create a chewier, heartier energy ball. Plus, I always have old fashioned oats in my pantry. You can use gluten-free oats if you need the energy balls to be gluten-free.
• Ground flaxseed meal—I love adding ground flaxseed to boost the nutritional value of the energy balls. Ground flaxseed adds fiber, omega 3 fatty acids, and protein. Make sure you use ground flaxseed meal and not whole flaxseeds.
• Chia Seeds—These little seeds are a loaded with nutrients and make a great addition to the energy balls. They add fiber, protein, healthy fat, calcium, magnesium, and antioxidants.
• Spices-Ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves add lots of fall flavor to the energy balls. You can also use pure essential oils—buy only one drop—they are powerful!
• Salt-A little bit of salt is all you need, but don’t skip it! It makes all the flavors pop and a little salt is actually good for most of us.
• Almond butter-The almond butter is the base of the energy balls and makes all of the ingredients hold together. If you don’t have almond butter, you can use peanut butter.
• Pumpkin-Make sure you use pure pumpkin puree, you can find it in the baking aisle in a can of almost any grocery store. The pumpkin will keep the energy balls nice and moist plus the flavor is amazing.
• Honey-Sweeten the energy balls with honey! The honey also helps the energy balls stick together.
• Vanilla extract-A little splash of pure vanilla extract is always a good idea!
• Mini Chocolate Chips-Mini chocolate chips are the perfect finishing touch to the pumpkin energy balls. The pumpkin chocolate chip combo is always a winner. If you don’t want to use chocolate chips, you can leave them out and add dried cranberries. Or add dried cranberries with the chocolate chips!

Recipe:

• 2 cups oats
• 2 tablespoons flax and chia
• 3/4 cup nut butter
• 1/2 cup pumpkin
• 1 tablespoon honey
• Splash of vanilla (or wild orange essential oil!)
• 1/4 mini chocolate chips

How to make energy balls:

• Mix together all of the dry ingredients to make sure the spices are distributed evenly.
• Add the almond butter, pumpkin, honey, and vanilla extract. Mix until all of the ingredients come together and a “dough” forms.
• Stir in the mini chocolate chips.
• Roll the mixture into balls, about 2 tablespoons per ball. You can use your hands or a cookie scoop to do this.
• Place the balls in an airtight container and chill in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

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