Healthy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Energy Bites {Video Included!}

 
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!

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!

Oh my goodness… 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 Healthy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Energy Bites!
 

HOW TO MAKE HEALTHY PUMPKIN 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.

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 pumpkin energy bites are too!
 

 
These snack 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 crave pumpkin chocolate chip cookies all the time during the fall like me, these are the perfect solution for avoiding that sugar rush — and for sneaking in some protein too! They’re lightly sweetened, with a cozy pumpkin and cinnamon taste, and packed with rich chocolate flavor.
 

 
So fuel your workouts, satisfy those afternoon snack attacks, and curb your chocolate and pumpkin 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 healthy pumpkin energy bites!

Healthy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Energy Bites

© Amy's Healthy Baking

Yields: 30 energy bites

These easy and healthy snack bites are full of protein, cozy pumpkin, and lots of rich chocolate flavor! They're also great for on-the-go breakfasts. They'll keep for at least four days if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

5 from 1 vote

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Ingredients 

• 1 cup (100g) old-fashioned oats (gluten free if necessary and measured like this)
• 2 scoops (60g) PlantFusion vanilla bean protein powder (see Notes!)
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp Truvia (or adjusted to taste – and see Notes!)
• 1 cup (244g) pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie mix!)
• 2 tbsp (28g) miniature chocolate chips

Instructions

• 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.

Notes

IMPORTANT PROTEIN POWDER NOTE – READ BEFORE BEGINNING: This recipe was specifically designed for Plant Fusions's plant-based protein powder. Not all protein powders absorb equally, so if you substitute a different plant-based protein powder, you may need to add more protein powder if the mixture is too wet or a bit of milk (any type will do) if it's too dry.

 

Do not substitute whey-based protein powder; the mixture will be too sticky to roll into balls.

 

For more information and substitution tips, see my Protein Powder FAQ page.

 

OATS ALTERNATIVE: Quick cooking oats (also called "instant" or "one minute" oats) may be substituted for the old-fashioned rolled oats. Do not substitute steel-cut oats.

 

SWEETENER NOTES + ALTERNATIVES: As of September 2016, I now prefer to make these with ⅛ teaspoon of liquid stevia in place of the Truvia. (It's one of my favorite sweeteners, 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 to compensate for the added liquid.

 

PUMPKIN PURÉE NOTE: Use regular canned pumpkin purée (also called 100% pure pumpkin). I don’t recommend substituting pumpkin pie mix! It contains added sugar, spices, and other ingredients, so it can behave differently in recipes.

 

GLUTEN FREE OPTION: Use certified gluten free old-fashioned rolled oats or certified gluten free quick cooking oats.

 

DAIRY FREE + VEGAN OPTION: Use vegan friendly miniature chocolate chips. (I like these!)

 

{gluten free, vegan, clean eating, low fat, low calorie, higher protein}

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?I'd love to hear what you think of it in a comment below! If you take a picture, tag @amys.healthy.baking on Instagram or use the hashtag #amyshealthybaking.

View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points

You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡  The Ultimate Healthy Soft & Chewy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
♡  Healthy Flourless Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Protein Cookies
♡  Healthy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Muffins
♡  Healthy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies
♡  Healthy Pumpkin Spice Latte Energy Bites
♡  Healthy Snickerdoodle Energy Bites
♡  Healthy Oatmeal Raisin Energy Bites
♡  Healthy Dark Chocolate Blueberry Energy Bites
♡  …and the rest of Amy’s healthy energy bite recipes and healthy pumpkin recipes!