Cheerios™ Energy Balls (and how to Give a Box for Free!)

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #GiveABox #CollectiveBias

My family was so lucky to end up coincidentally having both my mother and my mother in law visiting us at the same time earlier this month. Being a military family, we are always so far away from our families (the closest ones, my parents, are over 1,700 miles away!), so it is such a treat to be able to spend quality time with them in person. And as I am sure you can all imagine, the kids are definitely spoiled when the grandmothers are both in town!

As we all knew would happen, the trip ended all too quickly and the grandmothers had to go home. My kids were devastated and have been moping around the house ever since. But I had a stroke of inspiration while walking the cereal aisle at Walmart; something to cover the miles and bring smiles to everyone. The Cheerios™ Buy a Box, Give a Free Box campaign would save the day! Have you heard about it? Prepare to have your mind blown!

These specially marked boxes (which are exclusive to Walmart) will have this cute little sticker with a unique code inside. By going online and entering the code, you can email a coupon for a free box to the recipient of your choice. Genius, right?! And what better way to feel connected with Grandma than to eat your favorite cereal and know that she is also eating it and thinking of you?

The kiddos are already making plans to have Skype dates with Grandma, sharing breakfast and catching up on life. My little one wants to make sure that Grandma has yarn so that they can create Cheerios™ necklaces together while on the phone. It is absolutely adorable!

Cheerios™ have always been a family favorite, from the time that I was a child and have continued to be so for my kids as well. Our personal favorite flavor is Honey Nut, so we decided to use it to create a fun new snack.

These energy balls are perfect for after school or to grab and enjoy on the go.

In a large bowl combine 1 ½ cups Cheerios™ (any variety would work great), 1/3 cup peanut butter, ½ cup shredded coconut, ½ cup dried cranberries and 2 Tbsp honey. Mix well until all ingredients are evenly coated.

Form into small balls and place on a wax paper covered baking sheet. Place into the refrigerator and allow to harden for 30 minutes to an hour.

It is best to consume the energy balls on the same day, otherwise they may lose their crunch. I don’t generally have to worry about that as my kids gobble them up and they are gone before I know it!

So make sure to go get your specially marked boxes of Cheerios™ and spread the love. Click here for more info on the Buy a Box, Give a Free Box campaign. (PS, below is a photo of where I found my box at Walmart. Just be sure to look for that sticker!)

As you may have heard, some select boxes of Cheerios and Honey Nut Cheerios produced over two weeks in July at the Lodi, California plant, have been recalled due to a wheat allergen. This recall only affects consumers with Celiac disease or a gluten-sensitivity. To learn more about the recall, and if your product is affected please go to: http://blog.generalmills.com/.