Energy balls: the healthy snack

Riding the raw food wave, these small vitamin-packed balls, from the other side of the Atlantic, are reinventing the concept of healthy snacks, and have seen chocolate bars being relegated to the recesses of kitchen cupboards. Hugely popular with sportspeople, they are today attracting a wider audience of all ages.

 

Healthy and very quick to make, energy balls (also known as power balls) are ideal for staving off hunger pangs: they provide the body with an instant boost thanks to the amount of vegetable proteins, vitamins and minerals they contain. The fact that no cooking is required enables, amongst other things, the nutrients of the various ingredients to be preserved. 

 

The recipe? Easy!  Depending on personal taste, just blend dried fruits and nuts, oil-rich purée, cereals and/or superfoods such as goji berries, chia seeds… The raw ingredients are then shaped into small balls of the desired size. The final step: the balls are coated in matcha tea, cocoa, sesame seeds, spirulina, ground almonds or coconut, to play with colours and textures. From the other side of the Atlantic, this trend is providing Chefs with inspiration. 

 

English Chef Jamie Oliver has come up with a super-delicious energy ball recipe with Medjool dates, puffed brown rice, pumpkin seeds and turmeric.