Vanilla Almond Protein Truffles

If you are looking for a decadent protein packed treat these Vanilla Almond Protein Truffles are for you. They are delicious in a coat your mouth with rich chocolate almond buttery goodness kind of way. They contain ZERO calories from sugar because the stevia in the vanilla protein powder provides all the sweetness you need.

Never heard of stevia? It is a sweet herb that makes an excellent replacement for sugar because it has zero calories and zero glycemic index. You can usually find it in white powder or liquid form at the grocery store, but those are highly processed so you want to venture out to a health food store to get stevia in green powder form.

Vanilla Almond Protein Truffles are an excellent post work out treat. During a workout, your body sustains micro tears to the tissues, muscles, ligaments and tendons. When these tears are repaired after a workout the tissues become stronger and the faster they are repaired, the sooner you can work out again. The food you eat right after a workout is the fuel your body uses to reconstruct the damaged tissues so it is really important to eat good quality fuel after a workout. Plant based protein powder and almonds are an excelled source of protein to facilitate tissue repair. Coconut oil is an extremely healthy oil that contains high amounts of lauric acid which is a health promoting fat used by the body for energy and is not stored as fat. Raw cacao is full of minerals and antioxidants, but it also contains anandaminde which makes you feel good, tryptophan which is a mood enhancer and serotonin which helps you stay calm in stressful situations. Eating Vanilla Almond Protein Truffles after a workout will leave you in an excellent mood and excited for your next workout.

Vanilla Almond Protein Truffles are really easy to make and only have 7 ingredients: coconut oil, vanilla protein powder, almonds, cinnamon, vanilla, cacao powder and almond butter.

First mix the dry ingredients (protein powder, cacao powder, cinnamon and stevia if using) together in a bowl. I used Sunwarrior protein powder for this recipe which is already sweetened with stevia; if you are using an unsweetened brand add 1/2tsp of stevia to the mix.  Mix together the wet ingredients (almond butter, melted coconut oil and vanilla) in a separate bowl.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until mixed then place the mixture in the fridge to stiffen for about 30min. Once the mixture has reached a workable consistency, form 12 truffles and roll them in finely chopped almonds. Place the truffles in the freezer to set for at least an hour.

Once the protein truffles have hardened, you can store them in an air tight container in the freezer. As mentioned above, these truffles make a delicious post workout snack and they are best enjoyed straight out of the freezer because they start to melt if they are at room temperature for too long.

Prep time: 5min

Inactive prep time: 1hr and 30min

Serving size: 12 truffles

Ingredients:

• ½ cup protein powder
• ½ cup cacao powder
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp stevia *if using unsweetened protein powder
• ½ cup almond butter
• ¼ cup melted coconut oil
• 1 tsp vanilla (add ½ tsp if using plain protein powder)
• ½ cup finely chopped almonds

Directions:

1. In a small bowl mix together the dry ingredients, protein powder, cacao, cinnamon and stevia (if using).
2. In another bowl mix together almond butter, coconut oil and vanilla.
3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until mixed. Place the mixture in the fridge to stiffen for 30min.
4. Form the mixture into 12 truffles and roll them in the finely chopped almonds. Place in the freezer to set for at least an hour.
5. The protein truffles are best enjoyed straight out of the freezer because they tend to melt as the warm up.