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Pregnancy is kind of weird. Don’t get me wrong, I love being pregnant, growing our little guy (who’s going to be gaining about 1/2 pound a week now!!) and feeling all the kicks, but some stuff is weird. Like…
Your stomach jumping up and down and side to side, kicking people and making them in turn, jump too…
Going from a state of total energy to total zombie is no time flat… and…
Braxton hicks contractions.
Yes, they started. Monday afternoon to be exact. I just thought my stomach was just feeling heavy again, but then when I touched it and it was rock hard + kinda numb feeling, I knew something was different. I asked a gal at my work to explain what they felt like to her when she was pregnant and it was exactly what I felt. A quick call to my midwifes the next day when they came back again that afternoon confirmed it too. Luckily there’s no pain and they go away once I get home from work and rest/sleep, so it’s not labor happening (PHEW!).
Braxton hicks aren’t bad, it’s just your body getting ready for the big event… practicing. Practice makes perfect right? If so, keep on practicing body!
See… kinda strange but all good. 🙂
I’m still feeling super tired every afternoon/evening, and now I’m starting to go crazy over treats. The lemon poppyseed muffins are dwindling away too quickly. I made a batch of no-bake cookies for my brother’s birthday and proceeded to eat spoonful after spoonful of batter before it set into an actual cookie. The neighbor brought over some scones to share with Jacob and I – three of them. He let me have two, him one. Very sweet, huh? 🙂
My sweet tooth is getting out of control!
I needed something that was snacky but still made me feel good after eating them too. Something not too sugary, but would still give me my sweet fix. A bit of protein and fats would be nice too for a more balanced sweet treat.
What’s a girl to make?
Balls. And a lot of them.
The secret weapon in here are chickpeas. Yes beans and I still can’t stop eating them!
Beans, peanuts + peanut butter, a touch of maple syrup, chia seed and chocolate chips. Sounding pretty good huh? It is pretty dang good! Don’t just take my word for it. Pull out your food processor and make a batch. Then try to hide them from your husband in the back of the fridge because you really want to keep them all to yourself.
Do it.
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Protein Balls
Makes about 25 ballsIngredients
- 1/2 cup dry roasted peanuts
- 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 3/4 cup natural peanut butter
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/3 cup chocolate chips
- 2 tbsp chia seed
- Pinch of sea salt
Directions
- Combine the peanut and chickpeas in the food processor. Pulse until both turn into a fine crumble. Add in the remaining ingredients. Pulse until fully combined.
- Roll mixture into balls, allow to refrigerate for 20-30 minutes to set, then devour!
- Keep extra balls in the fridge.
It’s so hard to stop at one, but since they’re packed with goodies it’s okay to eat a ton! <– my awesome attempt to rhyme
Have you ever added beans to a sweet treat?
I have a couple other times, but hadn’t yet to any I don’t bake. These were great!
Heather
Alright, I made ’em! Used a mixture of nuts instead of peanuts and the store was out of chia seeds. Also used local, raw honey because the only maple syrup we had was the fake maple/pancake syrup. In any case, we like how they turned out! I told my husband they had a “secret ingredient” and told him what it was after he had one. He has a huge sweet tooth and liked these even though they aren’t super sweet. They have a bit of a garbanzo flavor in the background, but it’s not unpleasant at all. I’m going to see how they handle being frozen and then thawed. Will definitely make them again when I have chia seeds. Thanks for the awesome recipe 🙂
Awesome, so glad they are hubby approved too! Not always an easy thing
I am endlessly fascinated by these! They remind me of a less sweet Larabar. I have all of the ingredients except the peanuts and the chia seeds. There’s a health food store 30 feet away from my front door and I’m strongly considering popping over there when they open to see if they have those two items! Will report back if I make them 🙂
I’ve actually made a sweet hummus of sorts I dubbed pumping pie hummus. Actually here’s the link for the recipe because I think you would like it 🙂
http://ohonemorething.wordpress.com/2010/01/07/we-are-gathered-here-today/
I’ve also made Katie’s snickerdoodle and blonde batter dip with chickpeas. Your recipe sounds delicious and something my dad would love (he loves peanut butter cookies and vegan no-bake treats!). Thanks for sharing!
xo, to you and your love bug 🙂
That sounds delish, thanks for sharing the link!
Those balls look fab.
Those look SO good! I love how you use chickpeas in them! 😀