Last week, I talked a little bit about my love for homemade nut milk, how it always tastes better than the store-bought kind, and how the amount of control I have over the process and ingredients makes it all worth the tiny bit of fuss. I’ve noticed that whenever I discuss making nut milk with anyone, the question of utilizing the leftover nut pulp is bound to come up. No one wants to throw it away, but not many people know what to do with it, either. I was in the same boat for years – sometimes, I would freeze the pulp for later use in place of almond flour in baked goods, which didn’t always work out because the pulp is not quite as dry as almond flour. Other times, I tried incorporating it into granola, but If I’m being honest, I often ended up throwing it away, not without some serious guilt. About a month ago, I opened up the question on instagram and got so many fascinating suggestions that went way beyond baking/granola: a base for stuffing, a thickener for smoothies, chicken feed, face scrub (!), and energy balls. I found the idea of pulp-based energy balls to be really compelling and set out to make both a sweet and a savory version. I’m really excited to share the results!
Both of these recipes are ‘kitchen sink’-style and can easily act as a pantry cleanout aid. The sweet bites are full of toasty notes from the nuts, seeds and coconut, chocolatey and energizing with the addition of cacao, and sweetened with dates. The savory ones remind be a bit of the raw falafel I used to make back in the day. There’s miso, tahini, and tamari, as well as invigorating spices, herbs and even seaweed. Both make for an amazing pick-me-up snack, easy to transport and a breeze to prepare. And I definitely won’t be throwing away any more nut pulp.
- 1 cup nut pulp, left over from making plain nut milk
- ¼ cup toasted unhulled sesame seeds, plus more for coating
- 2 tablespoons ground flax seeds
- 2 tablespoons sesame tahini
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon miso paste
- 1 tablespoon neutral coconut oil
- ½ tablespoon tamari
- black pepper - to taste
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika, plus more for coating
- 1 teaspoon turmeric, plus more for coating
- 1 tablespoon dulse seaweed
- 3 scallions - thinly sliced
- 1 garlic clove - minced
- 1 tablespoon chopped dill
- Mix all the the ingredients in a food processor or in a bowl by hand, until well combined. Roll into balls about 1-inch in diameter. Coat with sesame seeds, turmeric and/or smoked paprika, if desired. Keep refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- 1 cup mix of various toasted nuts and seeds, such as hazelnuts, walnuts, pumpkin, sunflower or sesame seeds, plus more for coating
- 2 large, soft Medjool dates - pitted and soaked in hot water for 10 minutes
- 1 cup nut pulp, left over from making nut milk
- 4 tablespoons raw cacao powder
- 3 tablespoons honey or maple syrup, or to taste
- 2 tablespoons almond butter
- 2 tablespoons tahini
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 1 tablespoon neutral coconut oil
- 1 tablespoon hemp hearts
- handful toasted coconut flakes or desiccated coconut
- 2-3 tablespoons cacao nibs
- ½ tablespoon mesquite powder
- ½ tablespoon moringa powder
- 1 teaspoon maca powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- matcha powder - for coating
- raisins - for decorating
- Place toasted nuts/seeds into the bowl of a food processor and grind into a meal. Drain dates and add them to the food processor with the rest of the ingredients. Process until thoroughly combined. Roll into balls about 1-inch in diameter. Coat in seeds and matcha, if using, and decorate with various nuts and raisins, if using. Keep refrigerated in an airtight container for up to a week.
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THIS. IS. PURE. GENIUS!!!!!!! I’m making the savoury one’s RIGHT AWAY. As You said, a great pantry cleanout ;). I’ve been making something similar, using also nutritional yeast and garlic – somehow a reminder to cheese balls I used to love in childhood ;).
Thank you, Gosia :) Your ‘cheese balls’ sound really good!
Just wanted to in tell you your photography is spectacular! Love reading recipes and posts but when the photos are great like this, it’s the icing on the cake :) Cheers!
Thank you so much Jen, that means a whole lot :)
These are absolutely visually stunning, kudos on the amazing photos! Very much looking forward to giving these a try over the weekend to send in lunches next week!
Thank you so much Deb!
Oh man, these look amazing! To up the nutritional ante on the savory bites, I’ll be adding some black pepper to the mix. The active components of black pepper and turmeric (piperine and curcumin, respectively) combine to make a powerful anti-inflammatory with all kinds of health benefits. Thanks for the inspiration!
Hi Kelly!
Thank you so much for pointing that out, I totally forgot to include the black pepper in the recipe, although I always make sure to use it alongside turmeric. Will update the recipe now :)
Do we need to dry the nut pulp before using?
Can’t wait to try these.
Hi Sandy,
Nope, you don’t have to dry the pulp, just squeeze out the liquid well when making your nut milk. Hope you enjoy them!
Hi Anya,
First time visitor here. But I already fell in love with what you have here!
Thank you for sharing this easy recipe. It is so delicious. I love a recipe with milk. This will definitely be on my to-try list in the near future. Thanks for sharing it with us 🙂
Jennifer”
Hi Jennifer! Welcome :) Thanks so much for your kind words and hope you like the bites.
good recipe..may i can try make this for my kids :)
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“Just to say “thank you” We all enjoyed your delicious food and the evening was everything we hoped it would be. Thank you so much.“
Can you make the savory with coconut pulp from making coconut milk?
Also,could you list the nuts for savory bites please.
Hi Annie,
I can’t say for sure if you can use coconut pulp in this recipe, since I’ve never tried it myself, but I bet it would work. You may have to increase the amount of tahini, if the pulp doesn’t stick together as well as nut pulp.
Are you asking what nut pulp I used for the savory bites? I believe it was a mixture of almond and pumpkin seed.
My favorite way to use up the nut pulp is to throw it into waffles or pancakes. I never measure, just throw a bunch into my normal recipe. It makes the waffles extra fluffy and light and adds a delicious flavor. Hope this is useful information to people wondering what to do with their nut pulp.
What an amazing idea! Thank you Amy.
Hi Anya.
Great recipe, Thanks for sharing. I’ll try this today!