Name: Nut-Free Snack Balls
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 15
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 3/4 cup quick oats; 1/2 cup sunflower seed butter, such as Sunbutter; 1/2 cup crisped rice cereal, (use brown crisped rice cereal if you can find it); 3 tablespoons honey; 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed; 1/3 cup chocolate chips, optional, for coating

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These Nut Free Snack Balls are made with just five wholesome ingredients and make a quick, healthy snack or treat in a lunch box.

A small white bowl filled with nut-free snack balls, topped with a layer of chocolate, sit on a white marble countertop. — Nut-Free Snack Balls are safe for kids who are allergic to nut or peanuts.

Having a batch of snack balls in the fridge just makes my life easier: Everyone can grab them for snacks, lunch boxes, and even two-bite desserts (one if you’re my husband).

Yet so many recipes for snack balls and bites contain nuts or peanuts in some form, either whole nuts or nut butter.

So I wanted to create a nut-free snack that was safe for kids who are allergic to nuts or peanuts–or for kids (like my fifth grader) who each lunch with a buddy who is allergic and take a nut-free lunch to school every day.

You might also like: Nut Free Chocolate Chip Oat Bars

The ingredients needed to make easy nut-free snack balls - chocolate chips, pats, and rice crispies cereal. — You can use either old-fashioined or quick oats in this recipe.

An Easy Nut-Free Snack from 101 Healthiest Foods for Kids

This recipe comes from my brand new book, The 101 Healthiest Foods For Kids, which is a handbook on the best foods to fuel your child’s body and mind, with 26 easy recipes you can make with your kids, and advice for some of your most common kid-feeding questions.

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A cookbook titled "The 101 Healthiest Foods for Kids" sits on a wood table, The cover art features healthy fruits and vegetables.

Ingredients for Nut-Free Snack Balls

Sunflower Seed Butter such as SunButter: I find SunButter in the “natural foods” section of my grocery store. It comes in a few different varieties, but I choose the natural, unsweetened kind.
Oats: Quick oats work best in this recipe. You can use old-fashioned oats but they will be chewier.
Ground flaxseed: Make sure you are choosing ground flaxseed (or grinding it yourself in a coffee grinder) to get the health benefits of the seeds.
Crispy rice cereal such as Rice Krispies: Use brown crisped rice cereal (such as Barbara’s Brown Rice Crisps) if it’s available. You can also use crushed Rice Chex or another mild-flavored crispy cereal.
Honey: This obviously provides sweetness. You could also swap in maple syrup or agave.
Chocolate chips: These are optional, for melting and coating one side of the snack bites.

Get More: All My Top Posts About Packing Lunches

All the ingredients needed to make nut-free snack bites, separated out in small ramekins: chocolate chips, sunflower seed butter, honey, crisp rice cereal, ground flaxseed, and quick oats.

FAQs about Nut-Free Snack Balls

Are these safe for kids with peanut allergies?

Yes, but be sure to check labels on all of your ingredients to be sure they are nut- and peanut-free.

My kids don’t have allergies. Can I use peanut butter?

Yes. If allergies aren’t an issue for you, feel free to swap in another kind of seed or nut butter. I’ve made these with natural peanut butter many times.

How do I store these nut-free snack balls?

These are best kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

A small bowl filled with nut-free snack balls, small bite-sized snack balls coated with milk chocolate. Jars of chocolate ships and oats sit on the counter next to the bowl of snack bites.

I don’t have flaxseed. What else can I use?

You could substitute extra oats, cereal, or another seed like sunflower seeds. If you need these to be nut- and peanut-free, check labels carefully, since some seeds are processed on the same equipment as nuts and peanuts.

What’s the best way to make these evenly-sized?

I highly recommend a cookie scoop like this for making uniform snack balls.

A while bowl filled with small bite-sized nut-free snack balls with a chocolate coating.

How to Make 5-Ingredient Nut-Free Snack Balls

Nut-Free Snack Balls

Yield: 15

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Chilling time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

If you need a nut-free snack for your kids, these 6-ingredient snack balls are the perfect solution! Healthy ingredients are quickly tossed together for an easy snack.

Ingredients

3/4 cup quick oats
1/2 cup sunflower seed butter, such as Sunbutter
1/2 cup crisped rice cereal, (use brown crisped rice cereal if you can find it)
3 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
1/3 cup chocolate chips, optional, for coating

Instructions

In a small bowl, combine the oats, sunflower seed butter, rice cereal, honey, and flaxseed and mix until incorporated.
Roll tablespoon-size portions into balls. If the mixture is too sticky, add a bit more cereal or oats. If it's too dry, add a bit more sunflower seed butter.
Place on a plate lined with parchment paper and freeze for at least 30 minutes. Store in the freezer or refrigerator.
Optional: In the microwave, melt the chocolate chips in a small bowl, heating for 30-second intervals and stirring until melted. Dip one end of each snack ball into the melted chocolate and place on a parchment-lined plate. Place in the freezer until the chocolate sets, then transfer to an airtight container in the refrigerator.