My Uber Healthy Protein Granola Bars

Protein Energy Granola Bars

Makes 12 Servings

I got this recipe from my new friend Andrea, who I met last weekend along with Nicole Wilkins at Jennifer Hendersshot's Phat Camp. After one of the most grueling workout days of my life (close to 4 hours’ worth of intense cardio & weight training intervals) I was in desperate need of carbohydrate fuel. Unfortunately, I am unable to eat very much prior to working out, so I had basically nothing left in my tank when the day was done. Andrea gave me one of these bars for the drive home. Not only was it delicious, but also SO nutritious and full of tons of my favorite ingredients!

She modified it from the initial version that included egg whites as she is experimenting with a Vegan diet and added the coconut and chia seeds. I than switched things up again to increase the protein content by adding whey protein powder and a bit of flavor with the vanilla – I add this to ALL my baked goods because it makes everything taste so much better!

You can modify the size of the bars if you want more condensed nutrition by using a smaller 8x8 pan. You’ll need to increase the baking time as they come out much thicker.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup canned Pumpkin
2 cup Unsweetened Almond Milk (or whatever type of milk you prefer, this has the least calories)

½ cup Unsweetened Applesauce
1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

1 1/2 cups Large Rolled Oats

2 scoups Vanilla Whey Protein Powder (I use Promasil of course!)

½ cup ground Flaxseed

¼ cup Chia Seeds

½ cup Unsweetened Shredded Coconut

1 tbsp Splenda or Stevia Powder

2 tsp Cinnamon

1 ½ tsp Baking Powder

½ tsp Salt

Instructions:
1.       Preheat oven to 325`F. Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper (this is necessary or the bars stick to the bottom of the pan - trust me!!).

2.       Mix together pumpkin, almond milk and applesauce. 

3.       In a separate bowl combine oats, protein powder, flax, chia, coconut, stevia, cinnamon, baking powder and salt.

4.       Add wet ingredients to dry and mix well to completely combine.

5.       Pour batter into prepared pan. Allow batter to sit for approximately 1 hour to allow chia seeds and oats to absorb some of the liquid. This makes for more cake-like bars. If you want gooier bars you can put them in the oven right away.

6.    Bake for 50-60 minutes until starts to brown, the center is dry and the edges pull away from the side of the pan.

7.       Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes in the pan, then invert onto rack and cool bars completely. Cut into 12 pieces.

Nutritional Information:

134 calories, 14g carbohydrate, 4.6g fiber, 6.2g protein, 6.5g fat (2.4g saturated), 42.7g sodium

AMAZING BAR OPTIONS!!
These bars are so versatile, you can easily swap out many of the ingredients to create new taste senations or hit different nutrient profiles. If you try something new please let me know in the comments section so I can give it a try!

1. Chocolate Coconut Bars:
      * swap Vanilla for Chocolate Whey Protein Powder
      * swap regular Almond milk for Unsweetened Chocolate Almond Milk
      * swap Vanilla for Coconut Flavoring
      * add 1/2 cup Cocoa Powder to dry ingredients
2. PB&B Bars:
      * swap Pumpkin for Mashed Banana
      * add 1/2 cup PB2 or Peanut Flour
      * omit Coconut
3. Banana Bars
     * swap Pumpkin for Banana
     * omit Coconut
4. Berry Bars:
    * swap Pumpkin for 1 jars Berry Flavored Baby Food
    * swap regular Applesauce for Unsweetened Berry Applesauce
    * swap Vanilla for Strawberry Flavoring
    * omit Coconut
5. Good-Fat Avocado Bars:
    * swap Pumpkin for Mashed Avocado

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