Exactly one month ago, I woke up, groggily reached for my iPhone, and just about fell out of bed. On the lock screen, a notification from Twitter read that I had received a tweet from @gooddaymelissa: Hi I’m a reporter with @GoodDaySac love your blog! Would you be interested in coming on our show?
No longer asleep after that adrenalin rush, I jumped out from under the covers, opened my laptop, and started browsing through the TV show’s website before typing out an excited response.
We exchanged emails, settled on a few recipes, and set the date for Saturday, November 8. Now fast forward to this past Friday, where I spent hours in my kitchen baking, staging ingredients, and whispering lines to potentially say to the camera. As my first real time on TV, I wanted it to go as smoothly as possible!
Bright and early on Saturday, I packed up my car and drove to the TV station’s building. After loading up my boxes onto a cart, I cautiously maneuvered it around the electrical wires on the studio floor to their kitchen set and began arranging treats on the counters.
One of the camera operators handed me a microphone, and just a few moments later (well, really more like 20 minutes… but the time flew by in there!), Cody, one of the anchors, walked over and started to chat with me about my blog and the skinny pumpkin pie smoothie I planned to make. The next thing I knew, the camera was rolling and we were live!
{If you can’t see the video player above, it’s also available here on the Good Day Sacramento website.} Half an hour later, Melissa, the anchor who originally contacted me, dashed over to film the second segment. She interacted with me as I talked about my peppermint drizzled chocolate fudge brownies, and she even ate an entire one at the end!
{If you can’t see the video player above, it’s also available here on the Good Day Sacramento website.}
Oh my goodness, you guys… That was the experience of a lifetime! Melissa, Cody, and the rest of the Good Day Sacramento family were so warm and welcoming. They immediately made me feel at easy and right at home.
And to everyone who watched, whether on TV, streaming live online, or either of those two video clips above… THANK YOU. From the bottom of my heart. I truly cherish every comment, like, and tweet that I’ve received from you. Your interest and support means the world to me, and it enables me to continue living this dream and turning my greatest passion into my livelihood. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
After the segments finished and I drove home, the adrenalin wore off, and I really needed a pick-me-up to stay awake the rest of the afternoon! Preferably something with chocolate… So I made these Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Energy Bites!
Healthy snacks really don’t get any easier than this. Just one bowl, one fork, and a handful of ingredients you probably already have at home! The only one you may need to purchase is the protein powder. I prefer Plant Fusion Vanilla Bean. (No, this isn’t a sponsored post—I just really like their products!)
I’m sensitive to the taste of whey, and for those of you like me, there aren’t any funky aftertastes from Plant Fusion’s at all, just pure vanilla flavor. Even better, it’s gluten-free and vegan friendly, so these energy bites are too!
These bites are fairly small. I rolled out 30 balls from the mixture, all less than 1” in diameter. They’re meant to be bite-sized and pop-able, ideal for grabbing whenever your stomach growls or a chocolate craving hits.
If you constantly crave pumpkin chocolate chip cookies like me, these are the perfect solution for avoiding that sugar rush and sneaking in some protein too! They’re lightly sweetened, with a subtle pumpkin and cinnamon taste, and packed with rich chocolate flavor.
So fuel your workouts, stop those afternoon snack attacks, and curb your chocolate cravings with these healthy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Energy Bites!
And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! ?) I’d love to see your energy bites and feature them in my Sunday Spotlight series!
| Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Energy Bites | Print |
- 1 cup (100g) old-fashioned oats (measured liked this and gluten-free if necessary)
- 2 scoops (60g) Plant Fusion Vanilla Bean Protein Powder
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp Truvia
- 1 cup (244g) pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie mix)
- 2 tbsp (28g) miniature chocolate chips
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the oats, protein powder, cinnamon, and Truvia. Stir in the pumpkin purée. Fold in the chocolate chips. Divide the mixture into 30 equal parts, and roll each into a ball.
September 2016 Update: I now prefer to make these with ⅛ teaspoon of vanilla crème stevia in place of the Truvia. (It's my favorite sweetener, and I highly recommend it! You'll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!) Any sweetener may be substituted for the Truvia. If using a liquid sweetener, reduce the amount of pumpkin purée by the same amount OR increase the protein powder by 1-2 teaspoons to compensate.
{gluten-free, vegan, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
Can you freeze these? For how long? Thanks!
I haven’t tried freezing these, so I’m not personally sure and don’t want to lead you astray. However, they’ll last at least a week if stored in the refrigerator. (I’ve had them last longer — at least 10 days!)
I’m so sorry I’m just now responding too. I had some family things I needed to take care of, but if you decide to try making them, I’d love to hear what you think of these energy bites Tara!
Hello! Would chocolate plant-based protein powder work well here too?
If it’s the same brand as the one that I used, then that should be fine! If it’s a different brand, then I recommend reviewing my Protein Powder FAQ Page before you try substituting it because different brands can behave very differently in recipes. (There’s a link to that FAQ Page at the bottom of the Notes section of the recipe — I know it can be easy to miss!)
I’m so sorry I’m just now responding too. I had some family things I needed to take care of, but if you decide to try making these energy bites, I’d love to hear what you think of them Ansley!