These are strange times, and being confined to my apartment means that I am constantly trying not to graze all day. I often find in times of stress and uncertainty I turn to baking. There’s something so comforting about the process and the treat at the end. However, afternoon sweets do not gel with our health-kick as we try to maintain the healthier lifestyle we set out at the beginning of the year. Enter these Cashew Cranberry Protein Balls, that are delicious little sweet kicks that can be served up without the guilt.
They are packed with protein (we’ll talk about that in a minute), nuts and dried fruit. Full disclosure: they are calorically denser than some of the other protein balls I’ve made because of the addition of cashews, and you can swap them out for equal part oats if you like.
When it comes to protein powder, I’m not going to claim to be an expert. In our house, we use BPi Iso HD Chocolate Brownie. It’s lower in carbohydrates than others we tried with 25 grams of protein and 120 calories per scoop. It’s also 100% whey isolate. These are things that are important to my husband and his PT. More importantly to me, it’s one of the best tasting protein powders we’ve managed to find. The flavour is close to a chocolate marshmallow milkshake and I’m pretty happy about that.
Given that I used cashews and almonds which are both very high in calories, I opted for a zero-calorie sweetener in this. I used Walden Farms Zero Calorie Pancake Syrup but you could easily use regular maple syrup if you have it on hand or honey. Whatever is in your pantry.
These pantry protein balls couldn’t be easier
This type of protein ball is also incredibly easy to make. All you need to do is whiz it up in a food processor or blender until it’s finely chopped and well combined.
Once all the ingredients come together, with clean hands pick up a small handful (about palm size) and squish together until firm. Roll the mixture between your hands until smooth and then set on a tray.
For best results, I normally wrap the cashew cranberry protein balls with glad wrap and leave them in the fridge to firm up slightly. Today, however, I did not. I went straight in because being locked down all day is hard.