I love protein/power ball recipes. They are almost always no-bake, easy recipes that are a whole lot healthier than the prepackaged stuff you buy at the grocery store. Plus, all the ingredients are all-natural… you know what’s going in them…. so there’s no preserves. 🙂
These taste just like the LARABARs you find at the store. Feel free to make substitutions for different flavor combinations. For example, instead dried cherries, use dried blueberries, appricots or cranberries. Instead of peanuts, use cashews. Just make sure you use the same ratio of fruit/date mixture to nut mixture.
My next combo will be “blueberry muffin” with dates, dried blueberries, cashews, and lemon zest. Yum! Or you could do a “PB&J” version with dates, fresh cherries, peanuts, and 1-2 tablespoons of creamy peanut butter. The flavors are endless!
Let me know your favorite and enjoy!
Process your dates and cherries in a food processor.Remove the dates and cherries, and process the nuts.Combine all ingredients together in a bowl.Press together with your hands and roll into one inch balls.
One of my favorite pictures. She loves to swing!
Cherry Orange LARA Power Balls
Prep time:
Total time:
Serves: 15-20 balls
Ingredients
1/2 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup seedless/pitted whole dates
1 cup peanuts
1 tsp. finely grated orange zest
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
Instructions
Place the dates and cherries in a food processor. Blend until it becomes like a paste. Transfer the blended dates and cherries to a bowl.
Add the nuts to the food processor and pulse until chopped fairly small (but not too much, not nut flour. You want texture). Add the nuts, along with the cinnamon and orange zest to the fruit paste. Use your fingers to knead the nuts into the paste.
Roll into one-inch balls or you can mold them into individual bars wrapped in cling wrap. Refrigerate the balls after making to maintain freshness and let the form set. If you find your Lara bars are a bit crumbly add a few tablespoons of warm water and process again.
Armed and ready for our first road trip, my mom had these delicious oat cakes ready to go.
Last week my mom, her friend Jenni, Harper, and I went to the 2015 QuiltCon in Austin, Texas. QuiltCon is the international show and conference of the Modern Quilt Guild. Basically there were lots of modern quilts, which was cool to see.
One quilt was even made out of Goodwill clothes. Care to guess how much they were asking for it? $12,000!!!! Talk about pure profit for that quilter!
Below are just a few of my favorites from the show. More info about QuiltCon HERE.
The Goodwill quilt. It was made out of clothes all purchased from Goodwill. The asking price was $12,000!Close up of the Goodwill quilt.Best in ShowThe “Conan” quiltPretty quilting on this one.
I recently got interested in quilting and am in the process of making Harper a baby quilt, so I thought it would be fun to tag along with my mom and Jenni. I’m still a rookie, but hope to be making lots of quilts soon!
Mom and Jenni take their quilt show road trips very seriously, especially when it comes to nice hotels. Every year when they go to the quilt show, they stay at the Four Seasons. Usually the quilt show is in Houston.
Harper was excited and said, “I don’t always spend the night in hotels, but when I do I make sure it’s really fancy!” lol. We ended up staying at The Four Seasons Austin, which was a really good decision. Not only does the hotel back up to miles of hiking trails along Lady Bird Lake, it was also just one block away from the Austin Convention Center which is where QuiltCon was. That was a life saver for me as it allowed me to go back to the hotel every 3 hours to feed Harper or let her take a nap.
Mommy said no jumping on the bed!Just a little tummy time and cartoons to start my day!
Want to know the best part of the trip?? The food! Austin is is known for their outstanding restaurants and dining, and while we didn’t eat out, The Four Seasons had some amazing cuisine.
For dinner we dinned at Trio Restaurant. Unfortunately I didn’t get a picture, but I ordered the Purple Potato Gnocchi with caramelized broccoli, broccoli puree, manchego cheese. My mom got the Jumbo Lump Crab Cake with pickled peach, spicy mayo and house mustard atop salad greens. Jenni got the stuffed pork chop. To finish it off, we all ordered room service: cheesecake in a jar topped with fresh berries! All extremely delicious!
The next morning lived up and perhaps surpassed dinner’s menu. Harper was slow to rise, so I ordered the Bircher Swiss Muesli via room service. It was the best swiss oatmeal I’ve ever had! It had vanilla yogurt, oats, raisins, diced green apples, and grapes. Yum!
Mom and Jenni ate downstairs at Trio Restaurant again. Mom ordered the Egg White Frittata with spinach, goat cheese, and oven-dried tomatoes, while Jenni got the Trio of Pancakes: banana-blueberry, gingerbread, and oatmeal pecan.
Four Seasons Austin Bircher MuesliFour Seasons Austin Egg White Frittata
As I sit here drooling about the food I’m writing about, lets talk about these oat cakes. The best way I can describe them is as a cross between a muffin and scone. You cook the oat cakes in a muffin pan, but unlike a light and fluffy muffin, they are dense and thick like a scone.
Oats, whole wheat pastry flour, pure maple syrup, golden flaxseeds, and coconut oil make up the wholesome ingredients included, which make these great to snack on.
These oat cakes are nothing like anything you’ve ever had, but if you’re like me, you’ll love them! At first you may think you overcooked them because they are pretty dense… a lot like a hockey puck, lol. Don’t worry, they are just loaded with oats and made to taste this way. I seriously could eat one of these instead of a chocolate chip cookie every day.
Enjoy!
Oat Cakes
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 12
Adapted From: “Super Natural Every Day: Well-Loved Recipes from My Natural Foods Kitchen” by Heidi Swanson
Ingredients
3 cups / 10.5 oz / 300 g rolled oats
2 cups / 8 oz / 225 g whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 tsp. aluminum-free baking powder
2 tsp. fine-grain sea salt
1/4 cup/ 1.5 oz / 45 g golden flaxseeds
3/4 cup / 3 oz / 85 g chopped walnuts or pecans, lightly toasted
1/3 cup / 2.5 oz / 70 g extra-virgin coconut oil
1/3 cup / 3 oz / 85 g unsalted butter
3/4 cup / 180 ml maple syrup
2 large eggs
Instructions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F with a rack in the top third of the oven. Butter a standard 12-cup muffin pan. (You can also use a 24-cup mini muffin pan. Just shorten the bake time by 10 minutes).
Combine the oats, flour, baking powder, salt, flaxseeds, and walnuts in a large mixing bowl.
In a medium saucepan over low heat, combine the coconut oil, butter, and maple syrup, and slowly melt together. Stir just until the butter melts and sugar has dissolved, but don’t let the mixture get too hot. You don’t want it to cook the eggs on contact in the next step.
Pour the coconut oil mixture over the oat mixture. Stir a bit with a fork, add the eggs, and stir again until everything comes together into a wet dough. Spoon the dough into the muffin cups filling them completely.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the edges of each oat cake are deeply golden. Remove the pan from the oven and let cool for a couple minutes. Then, run a knife around the edges of the cakes and tip them out onto a cooling rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.
As mentioned, I write a Resident Recipe column for our monthly neighborhood magazine. This month’s article features Lisa, a personal trainer who made these wonderful oatmeal bars – a healthy version of chocolate chip oatmeal cookies. An excerpt from the article is below:
As a personal trainer and class instructor at the Frisco Athletic Center, Lisa understands the importance of eating healthy.
While living in Fort Lauderdale and working for a cooking show at the time, Lisa was determined to find a healthier alternative to chocolate chip oatmeal cookies that her kids could enjoy. After experimenting on her own, she perfected this recipe for oatmeal bars. Unlike a traditional cookie, these bars contain neither butter not eggs. Instead, they are loaded with whole grain oats and skim milk. Lisa’s cookie alternative is a tasty and good-for-you recipe that you don’t have to feel guilty about eating.
Fortunately for my husband and me, we were able to try some of Lisa’s oatmeal bars and absolutely LOVED them! Lisa used to sell her bars when she lived in Florida and I can see why people would buy them … they are delicious! Enjoy.
Lisa’s Oatmeal Bars
Serves: 20-24 bars
Ingredients
4 cups old-fashioned oats
2 cups packed light brown sugar
1 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup skim milk
3/4 cup canola oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 tsp. lemon juice
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Mix dry ingredients together. Add liquid to dry ingredients with wooden spoon.
Spread mixture into a 9×13-inch greased baking pan. Bake for about 24 minutes.
Notes
*Substitutions for chocolate chips: Golden raisins Dried cranberries and white chocolate chips Butterscotch chips
If you have an obsession with LÄRABARS, you’re going to love these! LÄRABARS, the all-natural fruit and nut bar is know for its simple and pure ingredient list. Usually each bar contains about 4 ingredients: nuts, dates, fruit, and spices. Since the ingredient list is so simple, I went on the search to duplicate them.
These homemade coconut cranberry raw bars are winners for sure! The recipe, from Raw Food Society BC, is super easy to make and very tasty.
As an athlete (okay, not really – I’m a runner that runs for fun), I always like to have wholesome granola bars as a snack. Most granola bars are loaded with tons of carbs and too much sugar. The great thing about these homemade LÄRABARS is that they are packed with protein (almonds and cashews) and get their sweetness from the coconut and dried cranberries.
Enjoy and happy working out to all of you!
Homemade Coconut Cranberry LÄRABARS Ingredients
1/2 cup almonds
1/2 cup cashews
1 cup dates
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 cup shredded coconut
2 Tbsp. coconut oil
Directions
1. In a food processor combine the nuts, dates, and cranberries.
2. Process until the dough is sticky and the pieces of nuts and fruit are all similar sized pieces.
3. Add coconut oil and process to combine. Add the shredded coconut and pulse until just combined. Be careful not to over-process at this point.
4. Shape into equal-sized, or roll into bite-sized balls and wrap in parchment paper or plastic wrap.These raw bars should keep in the refrigerator or freezer in an airtight for up to a month.
Who in this world doesn’t like fried mozzarella sticks???? Actually, I can answer that question: my Dad. Dad doesn’t like any any cheese except for on pizza and in “cheese”cake. He’s so funny!
To my excitement, and hopefully yours, I discovered a healthy version to the infamously fatty, yet delicious fried mozzarella sticks… Baked Mozzarella Sticks from Cooking Light. With only 91 calories, 5g of fat, and 7g of protein, these are the most healthy and delicious cheese sticks I’ve ever heard of! As a kid, my mom would take my sister and me to Sonic where we would order two slushees and mozzarella sticks. As I got older and started eating healthier, I discovered the nutritional flaws with Sonic’s delicious cheese sticks.
As most of you may know, baking rather than frying foods, will instantly cut fat and calories. My cheese sticks saved 17g of fat and over 350 calories when compared to Sonic’s! In addition, my stomach doesn’t feel bad because these mozzarella bits are virtually grease-free! (As I’ve gotten older, I can’t handle fried foods anymore or else I’ll get sick.) In addition, the flavor is great, and the panko crumbs add a nice “crunch”. Marinara sauce is optional, but a great addition. Take a look at these nutritional stats comparing my mozzarella sticks versus Sonic’s:
If you’re not convinced to make these yet, I don’t know what will. They would also be a healthy and quick after-school snack for kids now that most schools start back tomorrow. The kids won’t have to wait long either…you can make these in less than 20 minutes. Let me know what you think and enjoy!
Heat Panko crumbs in a skillet over medium-high heat for 2 minutes, or until browned.
Dredge 1-inch mozzarella pieces in egg.
Roll cheese sticks in Panko crumbs.
Place on a cookie sheet, coated with non-stick cooking spray.
Bake for 3-4 minutes at 425 degrees F, or until cheese is softened.
Serve warm with marinara sauce.
Baked Mozzarella Bites Ingredients 1/3 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs) 3 (1-ounce) sticks part-mozzarella string cheese 1 egg, beaten Cooking Spray 1/4 cup marinara sauce (such as Newman’s Own Marinara)
Directions 1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. 2. Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1/3 cup panko to pan, and cook for 2 minutes or until toasted, stirring frequently. Remove from heat, and place the panko in a shallow dish. 3. Cut mozzarella sticks into 1-inch pieces. Working with one piece at a time, dip cheese in egg; dredge in panko. Place cheese on a baking sheet coating with cooking spray. Bake at 425 degrees F for 3-4 minutes, or until cheese is softened and thoroughly heated. 4. Pour the marinara sauce into a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on HIGH 1 minute or until thoroughly heated, stirring after 30 seconds. Serve with mozzarella pieces.
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