My kids love sprinkles. I frequently include sprinkles in new foods I introduce to them because the colorful bits help them get excited about trying unfamiliar items. Thus, when I saw some fun monster sprinkles, I knew I wanted to prepare my kids a new food that utilized the sprinkles.
One thing that came to mind, because of the green jimmies in the sprinkle mix, was pistachios. I decided to make some Chocolate Pistachio Protein Balls, but I renamed them Monster Protein Balls because the name is fun and fitting.
Ingredients
(Inspired by this recipe.)
- 1 ½ cups roasted, shelled pistachios
- ⅓ cup dark chocolate chips
- 1 ½ tablespoons rolled oats
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ⅓ cup almond butter
- ¼ cup honey
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- A couple tablespoons monster sprinkles (see note below)
Instructions
Place the pistachios in a food processor. Blend until finely chopped. Remove a couple tablespoons of the finely chopped nuts and reserve for use on the outside of the protein balls. Add the chocolate chips and rolled oats to the food processor and blend with the nuts until finely chopped and distributed throughout the nuts.
Add the cocoa powder, almond butter, honey, and vanilla extract to the nut mixture. Pulse the food processor until evenly mixed. The mixture should be moist enough to form balls, but dry enough that the balls retain their shape. If it is too dry, add a little more honey. If it is too moist, add a few more oats. Roll into balls.
In a shallow dish, mix the reserved finely chopped pistachios and the monster sprinkles. Roll the protein balls in the sprinkle mixture, then eat immediately or refrigerate to maintain freshness. Yield: 12-15 protein balls, depending on their size.
Notes
I’ve made protein balls before, but my kids have never really appreciated them. Granted, never have the balls been green and had eyeballs! After I ate one of these and told my girls that they tasted like brownies, my oldest two were eager to try them. They were a hit!
If you don’t have access to monster sprinkles, you can easily make your own mix using edible eyeballs, green jimmies, and purple jimmies. Though these can be made any time of year, I think they would be especially fun as a Halloween treat.
I’m not exaggerating about these having a flavor like brownies. They really do! The satisfying crunch you get from the sprinkles and chopped nuts on the outside is a bonus. I used salted pistachios, and I could definitely taste the salt from the pistachios on the outside of the protein balls. This wasn’t bad but was noticeable. I will try unsalted pistachios next to see if the flavor is just as great without the extra salt.
Have you tried any fun foods lately? I’d love to hear about them!
