Nutty Chocolate Protein Bars
For months Little B took ballet lessons on Saturdays. They are now over, including the flashy, chaotic shows. It was quite an ‘experience’, but is now over. I will reserve my opinion about the experience, but suspect she has more enthusiasm for other activities. I personally am looking forward to getting back to more weekend hikes. We have standard food we take on hikes and overnight trips – nuts, peanut butter, jerky, cheese, boiled eggs. They are convenient, energy-building and filling, but with all the summer hiking in our future I wanted to add some variety. The idea for these bars sprung from here. The chewiness and nuttiness reminds me of a candy bar you find at the store – rhymes with tickers. After sufficient bar chilling occured Little B tentatively took a small first bite, then proceeded to eat an entire bar and asked for some in her lunch the next day. Score! This is significant, because in her worldly 4 3/4 year old brain anything mommy suggests is immediately suspect. These bars are a tiny bit sticky at room temperature, but what protein bars aren’t? They hold together well when wrapped in foil or plastic wrap, so score again! It is easy to add them to the hiking food mix, and quite a treat when taking a break looking over water and mountains and whales. Yep. The whales are pretty spectacular. And so is everything else. I am going to experiment with less sticky bars, but these easy-to-make snacks are great for dealing with hunger when you want to spend your time focusing on life and love and nature. Even ballet.
Nutty Chocolate Protein Bars
1 ounce bittersweet chocolate
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons Da Vinci sugar free syrup, any flavor
1 Tbsp Nutiva Stevita
1 cup whey protein powder, vanilla flavor
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cup mixed raw nuts, finely chopped
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut
Line an 8×8″ baking pan with nonstick foil. In a medium microwaveable bowl, melt the chocolate and butter on half power about 1 minute or until melting and softened. Stir until smooth and blended. Add in the cream, syrup, sweetener and protein powder.The mixture will be stiff and sticky when well blended. Stir in the nuts and coconut – you may need to use your hands to get it all mixed in, but then they would already be ready for putting it in the pan. Firmly press the mixture into the bottom of the foil lined pan using the back of a spoon that is lightly coated with oil or butter, or just use your hands. Chill at least two hours or until firm. Cut into eight large bars or 16 snack squares. Store in refrigerator or freeze.