Dragon Power Balls

It’s amazing how big the protein bar business has become. You can walk into any well-known grocery store and there will be aisles and aisles of bars to choose from.  That being said, I have had a hard time finding brands that I really like the taste of their products and have ingredients that I’m excited to taste.

This recipe is very forgiving. Don’t worry if you don’t have all the ingredients or want to substitute some. The most important ingredient is the Dragon Magic Mix. One of these yummy balls will provide you energy for hours!

They are also fine to leave out of the refrigerator for several hours so you can put them in your backpack and go exploring knowing that you have fuel when needed.

•  ½ cup sprouted buckwheat groats (read more below for the benefits!) 
• ½ cup sunflower seeds (soaked)
• ½ cup pumpkin seeds (soaked)
• ¾  cup Dragon Magic Mix (magical must have ingredient! Purchase Dragon Magic Mix & read about here
• ¼ -½ cup raw honey, maple syrup or sweetener of choice
• 2 Tablespoons raw almond butter
• 2 Tablespoons coconut butter
• 2 Tablespoons spirulina
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
• ¼ cup fresh flax meal
• 1/8 cup raw cacao nibs
• 2 Tablespoons bee pollen
• ½ cup goji berries

DIRECTIONS:

Soak the sunflower and pumpkin seeds for 2-4 hours. Place the soaked seeds in a food processor with Dragon powder, sweetener, almond butter, coconut butter & spirulina. Process the ingredients until well mixed. It’s up to you if you want to keep some chunky seeds or blend the seeds until they are smooth.

Empty the processed mix into a bowl. Add to the bowl buckwheat groats, coconut flakes, cacao nibs, flax meal, bee pollen and goji berries. Mix with your hands until well blended.

Roll into the ball size of your choice (I roll mine into the size of a golf ball, using an ice cream scoop). Adding green spirulina tends to make the balls have a brownish color. If you want to make them look prettier, then add one more step and roll the outside of the balls in additional coconut flakes.

Store the energy balls in the refrigerator in an airtight container and they will keep up to 2-3 weeks.

Buckwheat groats: Has a confusing name and those not familiar with it assume it is wheat grain. Buckwheat is actually a seed of a flowering plant and is naturally gluten-free. It is a seed similar to quinoa, not a grain.

These triangular seeds can be used in many ways from turning into flour or keeping whole as a crunchy addition to granola or energy bars.  It works as a good binding agent and becomes gelatinous when soaked. It’s also a great source of fiber, manganese & copper.