Lord, I hope not! My husband is a Michigan grad, and he may never touch them again if he thought they had anything to do with the "Buckeyes!" They are his favorite confection, and it was him that introduced me to them!

Then again...maybe I *should* tell him that. They are a *lot* of trouble to make!

Kristine, you do not cook the TVP at all. Melt your unsweetened chocolate. Mix in the peanut butter and sweetener to taste. Then mix in TVP. It will not soften, but will stay crisp like rice krispies.I put them in silicone minimuffin pans, refrigerate them, and then pop them out. They make great treats and kids love them.

I will definitely try that, thanks! I might make it into more of a protein bar, since I have a huge container of chocolate protein powder to use up.

Thanks for the ideas. (Sorry it took so long to answer but our computer died.) I think I'll try making them with some mixed nuts. Also what is TVP? I know I've seen it posted before but I haven't had my coffee yet and for the life of me can't figure it out.

TVP is textured vegetable protein. It's made from soy flour. It's often used as a vegan substitute for ground meat. The nutrition facts for 1/2 cup dry according to fitday: 56 calories, 0 g fat, 8 g protein, 7 g total carb - 3 g fiber = 4 g carb.

If you can find TVP, you HAVE to try it in the peanut butter balls!! I whipped up a batch last night, and it was amazing! I could have sworn that the last time I tried munching dry TVP, it was like gravel. Hard as rocks. That's why I wondered if it needed to be cooked first. But this really is like rice crispies in the chocolate! Ever had a Watchamacallit bar? That's what the taste and texture was like.

Thanks for the tip, Soobee - this one's a keeper!

Kristine, what was the final recipe you used? Did you add the chocolate protein powder?

Is the TVP available in most supermarkets? I'm wondering if it's in the fridge section or if it's a shelf product?

Bob's Red Mill makes TVP, and you'll find it in the health food section right alongside their flaxseed meal, almond meal, etc.

I wasn't going to post the recipe because it needs a few tweaks, but here's what I did:

...oh, and these weren't peanut butter balls, by the way. I was going more for a bar. Omit (or don't melt) the coconut oil, add a bit more protein powder, and you'll have the consistency to make balls. Using chunky PB instead of smooth would help, too.

1/4 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup peanut butter (I used smooth)
2 oz unsweetened baking chocolate
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 30-g scoop chocolate protein powder
1/2 cup TVP
sweetener to taste - sweetzfree (splenda) was all I had on hand.

Melt together the first three ingredients in the microwave, stirring frequently during heating until smooth. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Pour into a wax-paper-lined 8"x8" baking pan and chill until firm. Cut tic-tac-toe style into 9 pieces.

It came out a tad too chocolate/splenda bitter, and it could use a lot more TVP crispiness. Next time, I'm going to decrease the chocolate to 1.5 oz, double the TVP, and combine some stevia with the splenda.

I entered the nutrition info into fitday with the above changes and it looks like this, per piece: 199 calories, 16 g fat, 10 g protein, 7 g total carb - 3 g fiber = 4 g net carb.

This was sort of half way between candy and a protein bar. I added the coconut oil because I really wanted it to solidify in the fridge. You could make it more candy-like by eliminating the protein powder (obviously) and cutting back the coconut oil, or more protein-bar-like by increasing the protein powder. There was room to stir in more.

I'd love to compare similar recipes and results.

Do you guys and gals in the US find Bob's Red Mill to be ridiculously expensive? Here in Canada, it is, but I wonder if that's just because it's imported. For Canadians, you can get all of those BRM "low carb dry goods" w-a-y cheaper at health food stores and Bulk Barn.

You have got to try pork rinds dipped in peanut butter. It's one of my favorite snacks. Also hummus is very good on pork rinds too.

Just for my $0.25CAD worth from out here on the Pacific Coast, yep, BRM is pretty pricey, though it varies from store to store depending on their markups and volume. But yeah, I can get just about any BRM product, organic or not, bulk or store-brand or local packer, at a MUCH better price.

for those in my neck of the woods, raley's carries tvp in the bulk bins, as well as flax seeds, and wheat bran. i get tons of wheat bran at .79 cents a pound

Kristine,

If you have a Food Basics near you that is where I by my BRM products from and they are far less expensive than at the Health food stores and the Fortinos that are both near me.

Example: Flax meal is $2.67 a bag