Healthy Power Bars

Healthy Power Bars

I searched everywhere to find a healthy bar I could grab on the go.  They either had ingredients I have never heard of, which means I don't eat it, or peanut butter.  And I would rather shove razor blades under my fingernails that eat peanut butter.  Okay, that was a bit graphic, and I get that it makes me un-American and probably a communist, and I'm okay with that.  I will eat peanuts, Thai peanut sauce etc. but really, why squish up a perfectly good peanut and make "butter" out of it.  Enough ranting.

So on I searched for a good recipe and finally I gave up and made up my own.  I never seem to follow a recipe anyway, so no big deal.

My family is gobbling them up and loving them.  Yay, me!  I hope you enjoy them too!  So here you have it.  What to eat on hectic days when there really isn't much time to eat.  These healthy power bars are low in calories, low in fat and low in sodium.  Maybe they will keep you going and prevent you from delving into something unhealthy.

Healthy Power Bars

The Chef In My Head

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp cardamom 

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup quick organic rolled oats

1/2 cup any flavor organic flax cereal

1/4 cup organic applesauce

3 T brown sugar

1/4 cup honey

1 well beaten egg

2 T oil

1/4 cup of chopped pecans, or walnuts

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1 cup dried berries, your choice

1/3 cup goji berries

1/4 cup chia seeds

Line a square 8 X 8 baking pan with aluminum foil, spray lightly with cooking spray.  Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In a medium bowl, combine cinnamon, cardamom, flour, oats and cereal.  Add to this the applesauce, brown sugar, honey, egg and oil.  Combine well.  Add to this the nuts, sunflower seeds, dried berries, goji berries and chia seeds.

Transfer mixture to prepared baking pan.  Smooth top with the back of a spoon.  Bake in oven for about 30 minutes, watch for too much browning.  Remove from oven, allow to cool and lift the bars with the foil and cut into pieces.

Put bars into individual snack sized baggies and refrigerate.  

Grab and go!!

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Fresh Applesauce in 10 Minutes!

Delicious Applesauce!

I typically buy large bags of apples and then supplement with a variety of seasonal apples such as Honey Crisp (our son Collin's favorite).  We do quite a bit of juicing vegetables with fruit for healthy drinks, a great way to get all your veggies and fruit in one drink.  Since we always have an abundance of apples I wanted to try my hand at homemade applesauce.  Thankfully, I ran across our buddy Alton Brown's 10 Minute Apple Sauce.  It appealed to me for obvious reasons; it only takes 10 minutes to cook and because I could do it in the microwave.  It's 100 degrees outside, no need to make it hot inside too.

Alton's recipe called for cognac or brandy.  I had Pomegranate Liquor on hand and loved the idea of combining it with the fresh apple flavor.  It was spot on and delicious!  Super fast applesauce, served hot or chilled for later use!

Fresh Applesauce in 10 Minutes!  adapted from Alton Brown

The Chef In My Head

Serves 1 quart

3  large Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, and quartered

3 large Honey Crisp apples, peeled, cored, and quartered

1 C unfiltered apple juice

2 T Pomegranate Liquor

2 T unsalted butter

3 T Honey

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

In a sealable microwave-safe container, combine apples with all other ingredients.  Close lid, leaving one corner of lid open to allow steam to escape.  Microwave on high for 10 minutes.

Using a hand blender or potato masher, blend to desired consistency.  Serve hot immediately or chill for later use.

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