My family tried to eat all of these Chocolate Oatmeal Protein Bites before I had a chance to photograph a single one.

That should tell you how popular they are in this house!

I’m always on the lookout for healthier snacks for our family. While I love the convenience of store bought bars, they typically don’t have the quality of ingredients I want on a daily basis. They also get quite expensive after a while!

These Chocolate Oatmeal Protein Bites are a great alternative! They are made using ingredients you most likely have on hand, they have a good amount of protein and the fiber from the oats will work to keep you full until the dinner hour arrives.

Here are the ingredients you’ll need:

• Rolled oats – your oats will need to be rolled (not steel cut).
• Protein powder – I use the Four Sigmatic peanut butter flavor for these, but your favorite protein powder will do!
• Maple syrup is our sweetener, but honey would most likely work just as well.
• I used a combination of peanut butter flavored protein powder and almond butter itself, but you could switch to any protein powder and nut butter combination you chose.
• By mixing coconut oil and chocolate chips, you’ll achieve a delicious crackle affect for the chocolate layer.

I put them in the freezer for about two hours to set and then kept them in the fridge for quick bites the rest of the week. Keep in mind coconut oil (and chocolate!) can melt at room temperature or when kept out too long, so you’ll want to eat these directly out of the fridge or freezer.

I found this recipe made 10 servings (or bites), but you’ll make less if you make the layers larger.

Enjoy!