Our recipe for Energy Balls + Annie makes them on live TV!

Last week, my daughter and I had the opportunity to appear on the CW Iowa live morning show to talk about Real Food 4 Kids. It was a blast, the anchors were so gracious, and they gave us 10 whole minutes of airtime! They inquired about our passion for teaching kids about REAL FOOD and during that time, Annie made a batch of Energy Balls on TV!  That's right - it took less than 10 minutes to make a delicious and nutritious snack with just 7 ingredients. Did you know that many popular granola bars have more than 30 ingredients? 

We thought you might want the recipe so your kids can give them a try!  In addition to making a delicious snack, preparing a recipe provides so many other benefits! 

  • Teach lifelong lessons! Your child will have to eat every day of her life. Learning to cook when she's young will set a foundation for the future.

  • Learn some math and science! There are lots of fractions and reactions involved in cooking.

  • Foster independence! The payoff is HUGE when they kids learn to make their own food!

  • It's an activity in itself! Sure, you could do a craft project, build Legos, or watch TV. Why not view time in the kitchen as an activity?

Energy Balls

  • 1 cup oats (use Gluten Free if you need to)

  • 2/3 cup unsweetened coconut (it can be hard to find unsweetened, Trader Joe's has it for a reasonable price)

  • 1/2 cup ground flaxseed

  • 1/2 cup peanut butter (you can substitute sun butter, almond butter, etc. I often use sun butter in the classrooms to avoid peanut allergies)

  • 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (you could substitute dried fruit if you want)

  • 1/3 cup honey

  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (the imitation stuff is completely artificial!)

Mix all of the ingredients in a medium size bowl with a spatula. Then, you can roll them into little balls; I use a small ice cream/melon baller to make them uniform. They refrigerate well (unless they get eaten right away).  Very popular with my family, students, faculty, and staff that I've worked with.  Enjoy!

If you missed the show live and want to check out the segment, here's a link to see it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRf3_nzo9wg

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