Quick, easy, packed with good things – you can’t ask for more than that – these treats will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week.
If they didn’t taste so good.
At our house, they’re all gone long before the week is up!
Crunchy Coconut Balls
*1/4 cup cashew (or soy nut or almond) butter
* 1 Tbsp. honey
*1/2 cup Rice Krispies cereal
*2 Tbsp. nonfat dry milk
*1/2 cup shredded coconut
1. Combine cashew butter and honey with a fork. Add cereal and dry milk, mashing well with fork. Form 3/4 inch balls and roll in coconut, pressing firmly.
Makes 10 balls
Nutter Butter Nibblers
*1/2 cup crushed pretzel sticks
(crush them in the bowl with a potato masher or put them in a zip loc back and roll over them with a rolling pin a couple of times)
*1/3 cup mini chocolate chips
*1/2 cup peanut butter
*1/4 cup nonfat dry milk
*1 Tbsp. honey
1. Place half the pretzels in medium bowl; add chocolate chips, peanut butter, dry milk and honey. Mix well with hands or fork. Form 3/4 inch balls and roll in remaining pretzels.
Makes 10 balls.
PBJ Crunchers
*1/2 cup peanut butter
*1 cup Rice Krispies cereal
*1/4 cup nonfat dry milk
*2 Tbsp. grape jelly
1. Combine peanut butter, cereal and dry milk in a medium bowl with hands or fork, mashing well. Spread jelly over top of entire mixture and mix in slightly. Form 3/4 inch balls.
Makes 12 balls.
Cocoa Chewies
*1/3 cup tahini
*1 Tblsp. cocoa
*2 Tblsp. honey
*1/4 cup currants or raisins
*1/4 cup mini chocolate chips
*1 cup Rice Krispies cereal
1. Combine tahini, cocoa and honey with fork. Add currants, chocolate chips and rice cereal, stirring until well combined. With oiled hands, form 3/4 inch balls. Freeze at least 15 minutes.
Makes 12 balls.
You can mix these up using different combinations of your grandkid’s favorites.
Use Cocoa Puffs instead of Rice Krispies or peanuts in place of cashews. You might also toss in a few of these nutritious extras:
* Sesame seeds add a soul-satisfying crunch and they boast more protein than any nut, along with iron, vitamin E, phosphorus, niacin and thiamine
* Sunflower seeds burst with vitamin E, magnesium and selenium. Kids love them.
*Dried cranberries, cherries, raisins or dried fruit bits add natural sweetness, fiber, potassium and add “chewiness”. I’ve been finding packages of dried fruit bits at the dollar store – Great price!
*Whole grain cereals add crunch plus fiber, vitamins and minerals.
*Nut butters are high in monounsaturated fats and vitamin E – you can substitute any one for the other- try peanut, sesame, soy nut, cashew or almond.
