Cookie Dough Balls (vegan + Gluten-free)

No-bake chocolate chip cookie dough balls dipped in dark chocolate for a healthy take on truffles. These little sweet treats are vegan and gluten-free, made with delicious ingredients like oats, tahini, maple syrup, and extra protein!

I’m not exactly a meal prep queen, but if there is one thing I will prioritize making on a Sunday to prepare for the week it’s a lil bite-sized sweet snack to have stashed in the fridge and bring me delicious joy after dinner all week. Some weeks it’s these almond pulp bites or maybe I’m craving a blueberry muffin week, but lately I’m in a COOKIE DOUGH mood and these balls have been Hitting. The. Spot.

I love them with the dark chocolate coating. I love them without the dark chocolate coating. What really matters is that doughy oat-y inside, plenty of mini chocolate chips, and that glorious salty-sweet balance.

These guys are made with good stuff like oats and maple syrup and plant-based protein, so definitely healthy-ish snacking status. But don’t get it twisted, they are absolutely decadent enough to qualify as a dessert-y truffle too. Just perfect in every way imo, I hope you love them too!

Ingredients To Make These Cookie Dough Balls

Nothing fancy, not too long of a list, and lots of options for simple swaps to make them work with what’s already in your pantry.

Dairy-free yogurt. You could use applesauce or pumpkin puree instead, but I opted for yogurt because a) it’s what I had on hand and b) if you use greek yogurt or a dairy-free variety that’s higher in protein (like Siggi’s) it will bump up the protein content of your cookie dough too.
Maple syrup. Or any liquid sweetener you like – agave, honey, etc.
Tahini. Or any nut or seed butter you like and have on hand. I love them with almond butter and SunButter, or peanut butter would be delicious too. Again, we like options.
Oat flour. I have plenty of grain-free cookie dough recipes floating around the blog, this time I wanted to keep things wholesome and use good ol’ oat flour. And it worked deliciously well!
Protein powder. I like an unflavored or vanilla variety, as minimal ingredients as possible. Or just use more flour if you prefer.
Vanilla extract and salt. No notes, no swaps, just important for flavor.
Mini chocolate chips. Bite-sized balls work best with mini chips for optimal chocolate distribution per bite, but full size will suffice too.

How To Make Vegan Gluten-Free Cookie Dough Balls

This recipe isn’t complicated, nor does it require any fancy or appliances or more than one bowl even. We are simply mixing the wet > stirring in the dry > adding the chocolate chips > scoop and roll > BOOM you got cookie dough balls. Or actually, let’s make it even easier: add the chocolate chips with the dry ingredients and save yourself an extra (and harder because the dough is thick now) step. I’m just here to make your cookie dough making life as easy as possible, that is my main mission.

Now you can stop right there. Refrigerate the balls. Snack happy. OR…you can melt some dark chocolate and dip the balls to coat and have an elevated cookie dough truffle experience. Like I said, I love both. But if you are going to chocolate coat, I have a few tips:

Use a dark chocolate without emulsifiers. Like sunflower or soy lecithin for instance, these ingredients cause the chocolate to be thicker after melting so it’s trickier to get a really think snappy coating. My favorite chocolate for coating is Hu Gems, made with just 3 ingredients and no lecithin, it melts down super smooth and coats super thin. If you can’t find a chocolate without, adding coconut oil to the melting chocolate will help to thin it out too.
Freeze the dough balls before coating. This will make the chocolate set much faster for less drips and mess.
Re-roll right before coating. The cookie dough balls may flatten out on the bottom, so re-roll right before dipping in the chocolate while they are still nice and frozen to hold the shape.
Use toothpicks instead of fingers or forks for dipping. The smaller the utensil you use, the more perfect the chocolate coating will be.
Add flaky salt or a chocolate drizzle or sprinkles. Getting a perfect chocolate coding is tricky, luckily toppings look cute and festive while hiding those imperfections!

Cookie Dough FAQs

Can I use other types of flour?

I haven’t tested with any other flours, but I do have an almond flour and a coconut flour cookie dough recipe you could substitute in this recipe instead.

What’s the best way to store cookie dough balls?

In an airtight container in the fridge is ideal, they will easily last a week or longer.

Can I up the protein content?

Yes, you can adjust the ratio of flour to protein powder. I wouldn’t exceed 1/2 cup protein powder or it may start to affect the flavor.

More Bite-Sized Recipes You’ll Love