Superfood High Protein Cacao Bites

A slightly crunchy nutrient dense bite sized treat with hints of chocolate, caramel, and vanilla make them the perfect healthy and addicted snack!
I have a variety of bite sized ball recipes on my blog and I usually just make them for taste, throwing whatever is in reach that I love into the food processor praying to the bliss ball God that they turn out OK. These, on the other hand have a purpose. Don’t get me wrong, I love adding copious amounts of nut butter and coconut butter to my bites; but this time I wanted every ingredient that I added into the food processor to have a nutritional benefit and serve a purpose for my body and mood.

Maca powder, besides cacao powder and turmeric, is one of the top three things I cannot live without in terms of superfoods. I’ve noticed that the more I have incorporated it into my diet on a daily basis, a few times a day, especially during the time of the month, I am pretty symptom free- no cramps or body pain, and I have more energy overall. Just by adding a few teaspoons here and there into my smoothies, oats, chia puddings, every single morning seems to have really helped in balancing out my hormones. Here is what I love about it, besides the taste:

Increases energy and stamina
Can help balance your mood (anxiety, depression, mood swings, stress)
Help relieve menstrual pain (cramps, body pain)
Balance hormones

Let’s talk cacao powder. It is such a win win situation, where you can have this deep rich chocolate taste/fix with no sugar AND so many health benefits. I love Philosophie Cacao Magic, because it doubles as my protein blend. It has 10 grams of protein and no added sugar and is filled with hemp protein, chia seeds, maca powder, vanilla, cacao nibs etc. The ingredients are clean, makes me feel good from the inside out and gives me such a burst of energy. Cacao powder is said to boost your mood, also high in antioxidants, iron and magnesium, the fiber in cacao helps aid in digestion. Raw cacao powder is my go to usually after a tough workout or when I am feeling in a bit of a funk, the kind where you just can’t snap out it, not matter what. I usually add a few tbsp. into my smoothies and it gives me that natural burst of energy that I am looking for.

Collagen powder is something new that I have been incorporating into my routine for the last 6 months and I have noticed a huge difference not only in my digestion, my skin, but in how strong and healthy my hair has become. I swear it grows inches overnight. As someone who suffers from SIBO and leaky gut, I truly believe that the collagen peptides I have been using on a daily basis has helped heal my stomach and brought relief to many of my digestive systems. It also contains a good amount of protein in each scoop.

I’ll bore you with one more! I normally add chia seeds, but have recently started to use ground flaxseeds because I have noticed that my body has an easier time digesting them. Flax is very high in both soluble and insoluble fiber which help improve digestive health and help gut inflammation ….so in other words help get things moving and keep your bloating down!

So, all of these thoughts went through my head as I tried to think of a nutrient dense snack and of course I wanted it to taste super satisfying. I didn’t add in any extra sugar, because there isn’t any need to. These are rich in chocolate and the maca gives them a hint of caramel. I tend to stay away from adding extra sugar into my snacks such as dates, honey, or maple syrup because I prefer to “sweeten” them up with things like cinnamon, vanilla, and almond milk!