Lafawnduh Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie Balls

I love peanut butter.  I have been known to come directly home from the grocery store, leave the bags on the counter top, rifle through the bags until I find the jar, unscrew the lid, tear off the foil and inhale the sweet, salty scent for a long moment before eating it out of the jar, two full tablespoons, 190 delectable calories of healthy fats down the pipe.

Ask any endurance athlete what they have in their pantry and  I assure you peanut butter will be in there. It's a staple go-to because it's cheap, it can be slathered on just about any kind of carbohydrate, and it's a great source of protein for rebuilding muscles.  I don't want to leave out other nut butters like almond and walnut, peanut butters' delicious cousins.  They are all fantastic. 

The beautiful thing about nut butters is that there are so many health benefits to nuts and nut butters.  Nuts and nut butters contain healthful monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats and are a great source of protein without any cholesterol. And according to the Journal of the American Medical Association (Nurses Health Study), consuming nuts lowers Type II diabetes risk. So eating as few as 5 servings or 30 grams of nuts each week can cut risk by almost one third.

The Lafawnduh Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie Balls were born when I got a call from my close friend and ultra distance athlete Jason Jaksetic.  He is currently living in the mountains of Vermont training for several races and he informed me that he was eating organic peanut butter with a giant peanut butter chocolate chip

cookie as a spoon after watching Napolean Dynamite. I think that says it all.  This is a similar version to Jason's cookie spoon in the jar only CLEAN and with some additional nutritious benefits. Plus, my version won't give you a glucose crash and carbohydrate hangover like the one Jason had the next day...I took a few to the gym with me tonight and had them as soon as I was done working out. It was a great snack and kept me satisfied until dinner.

Music selection: I recommend making this recipe while listening to a little Orbital Halycon.  It takes about as much time to make these little beauties as it does for the song does to play through a couple times.  Maybe nine times for the balls to freeze.  Just enough time to catch Napoleon Dynamite. 

See the recipe by clicking below.

Lafawnduh Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie Balls 
Ingredients
4 scoops chocolate whey or soy protein powder
2/3 cup ground flax seed
4 tbsp natural peanut butter
1 cup water (add gradually)
2 tsp agave nectar or honey
2 tbsp unsweeted cocoa powder
1/2 cup rolled oats
Coating (optional):
2 TBSP chopped dark chocolate.

3 TBSP sesame seeds  *Bonus nutrition!  Not only are sesame seeds a very good source of manganese and copper, but they are also a good source of calcium, magnesium, iron, phosphorus, vitamin B1, zinc and dietary fiber.*

Directions
Mix 2/3 cup water and the other ingredients, except for the sesame seeds, in a large bowl and stir. If more water is needed add a TBSP or so at at time.  It is going to be VERY sticky!
Using a spoon take tablespoon sized portions roll them into balls and then roll them in a mixture of the the sesame seeds and dark chocolate.  I use a food processor to make it a nice fine layer.  Store the balls in fridge or freezer. Once solid, enjoy. 
Yields about 24 balls
Serving size: 1 ball
Calories: 72  Fat: 4  Carbs: 5 Protein: 6 Fiber: 2

Read more at Suite101: Nut Butter Nutrition Facts: Wholesome Nut Spreads Give Your Body a Nutritional Boost http://www.suite101.com/content/nut-butter-benefits-a49820#ixzz1E3Eev1zm