Carrot Cake Balls

These carrot cake balls are deliciously healthy no bake snacks that you can quickly prepare with simple ingredients and enjoy when you crave sweets or want to eat energy balls!  They are vegan and gluten-free. Great for kids too!

If you love my almond date balls or fig balls, I believe you’ll enjoy today’s carrot cake energy balls. They are nutritious, delicious and so easy to make!

These carrot cake bites are naturally sweetened with dates besides carrots. They are perfectly spiced just like my other recipes with carrots; carrot cake loaf, carrot bundt cake, carrot cream cheese muffins, carrot banana muffins and mini carrot cake.

Just like those recipes, these carrot balls have walnuts which pair so well with carrots. If you want to eat a healthy yet delicious snack, you should try these energy balls.

Ingredients you’ll need

You can find the exact quantities at the bottom of my post, in the recipe card.

• Carrot-One large carrot that is chopped in food processor is enough to make these balls. It is said it can increase fullness and by this way decrease the calorie intake. Here you can read the health benefits of carrots.
• Walnuts-They create the structure and pair well with carrots. The vitamins, minerals, fats and fiber in walnuts support healthy aging. You can read the benefits of walnuts by clicking the link. 
• Dates-I try to use soft and chewy dates such as Medjool dates to naturally sweeten these balls. Dates boost energy; you can read about the  health benefits of dates by clicking the link.
• Spices-Cinnamon and just a little ginger, nutmeg and cloves give the perfect flavor. If you want to leave out some spices, make sure it is not the cinnamon. Cinnamon adds a lot to these carrot balls.
• Desiccated or shredded coconut-You’ll need unsweetened coconut to cover these balls.

Step by step instructions

First I soak the dates in warm water for 15 minutes to let them soften. This may be shorter or longer depending on the softness of the dates. Once they are soft enough, I remove the pits by holding each date between my two fingers and pressing them.

While the dates are softening in warm water, I chop the walnuts in the food processor. I tried these carrot balls with finely grounded walnuts and finely chopped walnuts and I like finely chopped version. I check it in 5 second intervals so I can have control how big they are. It takes a maximum of 20 seconds in my machine.

If you want a smoother texture in your energy balls, you can chop the walnuts until they are finely grounded but make sure they don’t turn into walnut butter. I place chopped walnuts in a small bowl as I’ll use the food processor for chopping carrots.

Next, I peel the carrot with a vegetable peeler and cut into pieces. I chop them finely in the food processor.

Then I add the finely chopped walnuts and pitted dates on top and process them for 5-7 seconds until they are roughly combined.

I mix all the spices and add over the mixture and process for a few seconds until they form a paste. If you want to add extra spice, now you can but make sure you don’t overmix so the consistency stays still.

Finally I make 2 teaspoon (16 to 18 grams) balls. You can make 18 to 20 balls.

I place the desiccated coconut into a small bowl and roll each ball into it.

Enjoy!