Oatmeal Cookie Dough Balls with Dates

The vegan cookie dough bites are gluten-free, sweet, and nutty.  Enjoy them as a snack, dessert, or a treat for the kid’s lunch boxes.  They can even be made in advance and frozen for later.  For an extra special treat try the vegan cookie dough bites dipped in chocolate.  

For more bliss ball recipes try carrot cake bliss balls or apricot energy bites.

Ingredient notes with substitutions

The recipe calls for simple ingredients to make these healthy cookie dough balls, but please see the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and exact measurements.

Rolled oats - I mainly use old-fashioned rolled oats for this recipe, but quick oats can also be used since they will be blended into oat flour.  

The 2 cups of rolled oats can be substituted for 2 cups of store-bought oat flour.  Measure the flour by spooning it into the cup and leveling it off with the back of a knife. You may need to increase how much water you’ll need to get the right consistency.  I needed 6 tablespoons of water for store-bought oat flour vs the 5 tablespoons of water from the recipe using old-fashioned oats (rolled oats).

Dates - I use pitted Deglet Noor dates for these date cookie dough balls.  If your dates are not soft, soak them for 15 minutes, then drain. 

Peanut butter - I use natural peanut butter with salt.  If your natural peanut butter does not contain salt, you may want to add a pinch of salt to the food processor when you add the dates and peanut butter.  If you use nut butter with added oils and sweeteners, it may alter the taste and texture.

I also tested with cashew butter, which was much drier than my peanut butter and didn't require any chill time for the dough to firm back up.  I haven’t tested with sunflower butter for a nut-free version, but it should work if you enjoy the flavor of sunflower butter.

Vanilla extract - Add vanilla extract for the oatmeal cookie dough balls to taste more like cookie dough.

Chocolate chips - Add vegan chocolate chips to also make the date cookie dough balls taste more like cookie dough.  Mini chocolate chips work the best because of their size.

Tips

• If your natural peanut butter is just peanuts, you might want to add a pinch of salt to the mixture when you add the dates and peanut butter.
• How much water you’ll need depends on how dry your peanut butter and dates are.  If your dates are dry and firm you can soak them in water for 15-20 minutes, then drain. 
• Another tip is sometimes with natural peanut butter the bottom of the jar is a little drier than the rest, so you may need more water.  I needed 5 tablespoons for my vegan cookie dough bites.  You’re looking for a consistency that will hold together well. 

How to make oatmeal cookie dough bliss balls

If your dates are firm and not soft they may need to be soaked for 15 minutes to soften, then drained, and used as per the instructions in the recipe.  Even if the dates say pitted, check for pits anyway.

Pulse the rolled oats into a powder using a food processor.  It could take a minute or so, depending on how powerful your food processor is. 

Next add the dates, peanut butter, and vanilla extract: then puree until it turns into crumbles.  This step doesn’t take as long as turning the oats into a powder. 

Then add the water.  After adding the water, blend the dough until it forms a big clump in the food processor. If it’s not coming together then it’s too dry, add another tablespoon of water and try again. 

Pulse in the chocolate chips so they will incorporate into the dough, and not dirty another dish.  Alternatively, once the dough has formed after adding the water you can transfer the dough to a bowl and mix in the chocolate chips by hand. 

Scoop out a spoonful, use your hands to compact it, and roll it into a ball with your palms.  Refrigerate them until they’re firm and no longer sticky, which takes about 45 minutes to an hour. You can also freeze them for 20-30 minutes to set up.  Enjoy!

Related recipes

• Banana oatmeal cookies
• Vegan raspberry chocolate chip muffins
• Oil-free vegan carrot cake muffins
• Vegan banana bars with chocolate chips

I hope you enjoy the dairy-free cookie dough bites!  If you did feel free to rate the recipe and leave a comment.