Hooray for No Bake Low FODMAP Peanut Butter Brownie Bites! Easy-to-make, even easier to eat, these plant-based energy balls are one delicious and nutritious low FODMAP snack!
Today we're throwing it back to my grad school days. This recipe is inspired by one of several that I created back when I was juggling IBS (before the low FODMAP diet), my nutrition thesis, two jobs, and a three-hour commute. Yay!
With a jam-packed schedule, I frequently turned to easy-to-make recipes that could be packed for 16-hour days away from home. Luckily, my then-boyfriend (now husband) Al gifted me a food processor (similar) for my birthday and I quickly discovered the amazingness of oatmeal energy bites.
Some call them energy balls, I prefer to call them bites, but whatever you call them, there are hundreds of variations out there. They're super popular because they're easy-to-make, many are no-bake, and can be customized based on your taste preferences and nutritional needs.
Today's version uses rolled oats, peanut butter, cocoa powder, maple syrup, chia seeds, and mini chocolate chips for a yummy chocolate-y peanut butter combination. With the help of a food processor, I can have a batch whipped up in a matter of seconds and, if I'm in a hurry, the balls rolled up and in the freezer in about 10.
Shopping List
Add these ingredients to your shopping list to make one batch of these Low FODMAP Peanut Butter Brownie Bites.
- Rolled oats - 1 cup (use gluten-free rolled oats for gluten-free)
- Unsweetened peanut butter - ½ cup (I use Smucker's Natural)
- Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips - ¼ cup
- Pure maple syrup - ¼ cup
- Cocoa powder - 2 tablespoons
- Chia seeds - 2 tablespoons
- Salt (optional) - ¼ teaspoon
Low FODMAP notes
In this section, I share FODMAP info for some key ingredients. Please refer to the Monash FODMAP app and the FODMAP Friendly app for more information.
Rolled oats are low FODMAP in servings of up to ½ cup (52 grams). Larger amounts contain higher levels of fructans and GOS.
In the US, Quaker® Old Fashioned Oats-both regular and gluten-free-were previously Monash Certified low FODMAP in 40-gram (about ½ cup) servings. The organic version was also certified low FODMAP in smaller 32-gram (⅓ cup) servings. As of spring 2025, it appears that Quaker® no longer participates in the certification program.
Peanut Butter in the United States is considered low FODMAP in servings of 2 tablespoons or 32 grams. Double-check labels and avoid products containing higher FODMAP ingredients like molasses or high fructose corn syrup. My go-to is Smucker's Natural Peanut Butter.
Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips appear to remain low FODMAP by ingredients in servings of 1 tablespoon. They were previously laboratory-tested and certified low FODMAP by FODMAP Friendly. However, Enjoy Life has chosen to no longer pay for the licensing (link opens in new tab) required to maintain and carry the low FODMAP-certified label for its qualified products. You can find these chocolate chips in many grocery stores, usually in the natural or health foods baking section.
Cocoa Powder is low FODMAP up to 1 tablespoon (8 grams) per serving. My go-to cocoa powder is Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa Powder.
Chia seeds (black or white) have a low FODMAP serving size of 2 tablespoons (30 grams). Larger servings contain high amounts of fructans.
Storage
You can store these peanut butter brownie bites in the fridge, however, I prefer to keep them in the freezer. Not only will they last longer (let's be real ... they're gone before they could spoil), but they also tend to be less sticky when kept in the freezer.
I find they never really freeze too hard, so I can easily grab and enjoy right out of the freezer or pack a couple to take with me. (They do get a little sticky if you hold them in your hands too long. That's why I like to keep them bite-sized, hence the name: "bites". ) 🙂
Substitutions
- Peanut free? Sunflower seed butter works well in this recipe. Using the low FODMAP data from the FODMAP Friendly Food Program for sunflower seeds (low FODMAP serving = 30 grams), the amount used in this recipe should still be low FODMAP.
Similar recipes
- Low FODMAP Oatmeal Raisin Energy Bites
- Low FODMAP Chocolate Strawberry Overnight Oats
- Low FODMAP Lemon Raspberry Overnight Oats
Pin it for later
Recipe
No Bake Low FODMAP Peanut Butter Brownie Bites
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 18-20 1x
- Diet: Low Lactose
Description
Hooray for No-Bake Low FODMAP Peanut Butter Brownie Bites! Easy-to-make, even easier to eat, these plant-based energy balls are one delicious and nutritious low FODMAP snack!
Ingredients
- 1 cup rolled oats (use gluten-free rolled oats for gluten-free)
- ½ cup unsweetened peanut butter (I use Smucker's Natural)
- ¼ cup Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup (plus more depending on the consistency of peanut butter)
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- ¼ teaspoon salt, optional
Instructions
- Place oats and peanut butter in a food processor. Pulse until the oats are coarsely ground and just mixed with the peanut butter. A handful of times should do the trick.
- Add chocolate chips, ¼ cup maple syrup, cocoa powder, chia seeds, and (optional) salt. Pulse until well mixed. If the mixture seems too dry - the consistency will vary depending on the peanut butter used - pulse in more maple syrup a tablespoon at a time until the desired, slightly sticky, easy to roll, consistency is achieved.
- Using clean hands, grab a small amount of the mixture, press it together between your hands, and roll into a roughly 1-inch sized ball. Place the ball on a parchment-lined pan and repeat with the remaining mixture.
- Once finished, place in the freezer until no longer sticky. Transfer to a freezer-safe container for storage. You can store them in the fridge, but I like to store them in the freezer until I'm ready to enjoy a bite or two. When ready to eat, let thaw (if frozen) for a minute or two before enjoying.
Notes
Serving Size: For me, this recipe makes roughly 18-20 small bites. Nutrition information is based on 1/18th of the recipe. Based on ingredients, I would recommend no more than two bites per serving (or 1/9th of the recipe) until you have tested and know your FODMAP tolerance.
Peanut Butter: I recommend using "natural" peanut butter made with just peanuts (and maybe salt). A low FODMAP serving is 2 tablespoons or 32 grams.
Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips: A personal favorite for years, these chocolate chips are certified low FODMAP by the FODMAP Friendly program, but you can substitute other low FODMAP chocolate chips.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: Snack
- Method: No Bake
- Cuisine: American
Pin it for later
Jessica says
This looks delicious! Chia seeds normally need to soak in some kind of liquid to pass well in the digestive tract. Do we need to soak them before or do they become softer and more gelatinous once they’ve been mixed in the rest of the ingredients? Thank you!
Em Schwartz, MS, RDN says
Hi Jessica, Great question — chia seeds do usually become softer and form that gel-like texture when they absorb liquid. In this recipe, I find there's enough moisture from the peanut butter and maple syrup for the chia seeds to soften a bit once everything is mixed together, especially if you let the bites rest for a little while before enjoying. That said, they don’t get quite as jelly-like as they would in something like chia pudding. If you're sensitive to whole chia seeds, you could try soaking them in a bit of water first, draining off any excess, and then mixing them in. Hope that helps! -Emily
Rita Haider says
I am visiting my daughter out of state and decided to make these as a surprise when she gets home from work. She is the one on a low FODMAP diet. Anyway, I was down to adding the cocoa powder and can't find it. I know I should have gotten all ingredients out prior to beginning the recipe, but just expected to find them. I texted her at work, she just ran out. So I substituted vanilla------they still came out easy and delicious. Thanks for the recipe.
Dorian says
These are great!
I’ve recently started on the FODMAP diet to figure out what foods bother me. I saw this recipe as a sweet treat and decided to make it.
I made several batches so my mother could grab a few from the freezer whenever she had a craving.
On one batch I pulsed the oats aline, before adding the peanut butter so that the oats were broken down more.
I’m particular about peanut butter but this has a subtle peanut butter flavor which I really enjoy.
The recipe is so quick and easy. Pop them in the freezer and pull them out when you want!
Em Schwartz, MS, RDN says
Thanks for taking the time to share, Dorian! Thrilled you enjoyed them. 🙂 -Emily
Amy says
These are fantastic! I swapped the peanut butter for peanut butter powder and added a splash of oat milk. Perfect!