Spiriteds, we made it. We made it to the actual end of the school year and none too soon, considering K-Hubs and I may have accidentally checked out a few weeks prior. And excepting these Chocolate-Drizzled Matcha Energy Bites, we are the reason we can’t have nice things.
Toodle flat-out came to me and said, “Um, Mom, we haven’t practiced my spelling at all this week.” To which I blurted out, “Oh, are you still doing that?” Bless everything and lift up my high-achiever daughter. For her mother knows not what she does.
In another instance, after talking about life and her day and everything in between and staying up past her bedtime, Toodle said, “We still have to do 20 minutes of reading.” This time it was K-Hubs who replied, “You know, I feel like this family chat we just had for 30 minutes is basically auditory literacy with a verbal component and a 10-minute cushion. So I feel comfortable signing your reading log.” Toodle’s side-eye indicated she was not down with our foolishment. So, we suited up and read 20 minutes the traditional way.
Also, as we headed out to an end-of-school-year party, we realized we never went back to the library so Twinkle could graduate from the reading program she completed this school year. So we mad-dashed it to library where she put on the cutest tiny cap and gown, took bunches of photos, forgot her reading log at the front desk, and went to the neighborhood party. Priorities. We’ll be making another trip to the library today for her keepsake packet. Good grief.
Spiriteds, what is our adult malfunction? We LOVE to read with the girls. It’s one of our favorite family activities. For some reason, though, mid-May hit and it was bye-bye Morgan and K-Hubs. Lord, please send your spirit to our children, for we didn’t check their backpacks for over a week. But we did remember to make lunches every day. So I feel like that counts a little bit. God love all the teachers. May they have wonderful summers with nary a paper in sight to grade nor handwriting to decipher.
Now that school is out, we are jumping into the fun with camps, family movie nights, nature hikes, a few vacations, and all the snacks. I’m munching on these Chocolate-Drizzled Matcha Energy Bites even as I type this post. Seriously, they are so satisfying. And while they aren’t exactly crunchy, there is a bite to them. The melted chocolate doesn’t hurt either. It basically sends these Chocolate-Drizzled Matcha Energy Bites to next-level awesome.
So, aside from awesome flavor, what makes these bites so amazing? How about the fact that they are:
- Gluten-free, soy-free, dairy-free, and grain-free
- Vegan and paleo
- No-bake and ready in minutes
I played around with several versions of this recipe and strived (strove???) to find the most delectable, low-maintenance recipe I could muster. And these Chocolate-Drizzled Matcha Energy Bites tick those boxes. Simple, straightforward ingredients, no baking required, and they store easily in the fridge. They are the perfect foray into the world of matcha, if you are so inclined.
I used unsweetened shredded coconut and found that chopping them in my little chopper/dicer thingy made them easier to roll into bites. If you find finely shredded coconut, then you can probably skip this step. I also used an electric hand mixer, rather than my go-to blender, to blend everything together, which worked perfectly. Lastly, I chilled the mixture in the fridge for about 30 minutes. This made it much easier to work with. The coconut oil is pretty runny at first. So a few minutes or more in the fridge makes the mixture much easier to work with.
These yummo bites are how I plan to satiate snack attacks this summer and basically all year. They are also how I plan to nibble away while we read with the girls this summer. Because, just as we signed off on that last reading log of the year and Twinkle posed for her reading graduation photos, Toodle came home with a new reading log…for the summer…from the library. And Twinkle saw it and plans to sign up, too. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Berenstain Bears, here we come!
- 2 cups finely shredded coconut
- ½ cup almond flour
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
- 2 tablespoons matcha tea
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 3 tablespoons vegan and paleo-friendly chocolate chips (I like Enjoy Life brand)
- ½ - 1 teaspoon coconut oil
- In a large mixing bowl, combine shredded coconut, almond flour, maple syrup, 3 tablespoons melted coconut oil, matcha tea, and sea salt. Mix with an electric mixer on medium to high speed until ingredients, especially the coconut and tea, are evenly blended.
- Chill in refrigerator for up to 30 minutes and then roll into small bites.
- In a small dish, combine chocolate chips and teaspoon of coconut oil. Microwave for about 15 seconds at a time, stopping to stir chocolate chips and coconut oil together. Repeat until chocolate chips are melted.
- Drizzle melted chocolate over each energy bite. Store covered in refrigerator for 2-3 days.
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