Coconut Protein Bites

A few months ago I was working on a handful of recipes for one of my Oxygen magazine articles. It was a recovery themed article so my recipes had to include ingredients that would work well for a pre- and post-workout snack. One of the ingredients I wanted to include was Avocado. Maybe it was bold thinking but I thought I could come up with a lean protein bar with the creamy fruit. Every attempt was a fail. That's where Coconut Avocado Protein Bites come in. Note: Oxygen decided not to use this recipe in the article so you get to see them here on my blog instead!

These little snacks are found all over the internet and various blogs I frequent. So I thought, "why not give them a try." You can almost make protein bites with any flavor you'd like and they will still turn out tasting like candy. I know it's hard to believe, but my Coconut Avocado Protein Bites taste like candy too! If you've tried my Double Chocolate Mint Protein Bites then you'd know just how decadent these little balls of goodness can truly be.

Just last week we were snowed in with 35 inches of snow from our dear friend Nemo (or the blizzard of 2013 for those not in-the-know). That's right - 35 inches! I sure wish I had made an entire batch of these bites for our weekend indoors. On the bright side, we spent 2 hours on Saturday shoveling snow and 3 hours on Sunday shoveling some more snow. Not that it really mattered, our street had not been plowed until late Sunday evening so it's not like we could move our cars if we wanted to. Nevertheless we still shoveled and shoveled and shoveled to make sure our cars were clear of snow and we could move them the first chance we got. Whatever. That's what we get for living in NY, right? If you check Google and look up how many calories you can burn shoveling snow you'll see that our efforts were totally worth it! Apparently shoveling snow burns about 300 calories per hour!

Here's Rich looking pretty proud of his our pile of snow. It got about another foot taller, this photo was taken I believe on Saturday.

Rich Unhappy Shoveling

And here is Rich looking pretty pissed off that it is now Sunday afternoon and plows have yet to show up. Behind Rich is our street, full of snow. In front of Rich is his car all clear of snow.

This is me feeling pretty sweaty after shoveling for a while in the sun on Sunday. Good thing the sunglasses are hiding my makeup-less face!

And after we shoveled snow on Sunday, we decided to do a workout indoors - give it a try, it was a real lung burner!

For time: 20 hand-release pushups 40 walking lunges holding 25# weight overhead (I used my 26# kettlebell cuz that's all I had) 80 double unders 80 situps 40 jumping squats 20 hand-release pushups

Not sure how long it took me to complete this workout, maybe 10 minutes at the most.

What other ingredients would you like to try in a protein bite or protein bar?

Coconut Protein Bites

makes 4 servings - prep time: 40 minutes - cook time: none

Ingredients:

• ¾ C Oat Flour (if you can’t find oat flour, you can grind rolled oats in your blender or food processor)
• ¾ C Vanilla protein powder
• ¼ C Avocado mashed
• ¼ C unsweetened shredded coconut
• ½ tsp. vanilla extract
• ¼ C water
• dash of salt
• 1 tsp. powdered Stevia
• 1 tbsp. Carob Chips
• ¼ C Flax Meal (or ground flax seeds)

Instructions:

1. In a medium size bowl, combine oat flour, protein powder, flax meal, salt, stevia and coconut.
2. Add mashed avocado, vanilla extract, and carob chips to the dry mix.
3. Slowly add water while stirring. Batter should be slightly dry and not too sticky. If you add too much water batter will be sticky and you’ll have to add more flour and/or protein powder to balance it out.
4. Scoop about 1 tbsp. of batter in to your hand and roll in to a ball. Optional – roll bites in shredded coconut before allowing to set.
5. Place bites on a parchment lined tray or plate. Let set in fridge for 30 minutes.

Notes:

Be careful when adding water to this recipe. If you add too much water too fast you will have a very sticky ball to deal with. Add water slowly.

Nutrition per serving: Calories: 227, Total Fats: 8 g, Saturated Fat: 4 g, Trans Fat: 0 g, Cholesterol: 0 mg, Sodium: 90 mg, Total Carbohydrates: 19 g, Dietary Fiber: 6 g, Sugars: 4 g, Protein: 22 g, Iron: 1.4 mg

Moist Paleo Pumpkin Muffins

It's fall, what do you expect? Pumpkin is a fall staple and what better way to celebrate fall than to eat pumpkin! I was going to go with Pumpkin bars, but then I thought it'd be more fun to put the batter in muffin tins. Enter, Moist Paleo Pumpkin Muffins. Personally, I'm not a strict Paleo person. However, I do like to keep carbs and sugars to a minimum when I'm baking. For this recipe, the only carbohydrate source is the pumpkin. All other ingredients fall under the "paleo" or "grain-free" and sugar-free categories. I have to admit though, after an entire day of recipe flops, I was a bit skeptical about this one turning out ok. To my surprise these little suckers are quite moist and tasty! For something that has no butter, no oil, no flour, and no sugar - they are quite delicious and you'd really never know.

Have a muffin for breakfast or afternoon snack - they've got just enough protein to keep you feeling satisfied. Top 'em with some plain non-fat greek yogurt for a clever and delicious post-workout meal!

What's your favorite fall food? Have you ever felt a bit self-conscious about your cooking?

Moist Paleo Pumpkin Muffins

Prep time: 10 min. - Cook time: 18-20 min. - Makes 12 servings

Ingredients:

1 cup canned pumpkin or pureed pumpkin 1 cup Almond Flour 1/3 cup vanilla protein powder (I used a whey/casein/egg white blend) 1/4 cup chopped Walnuts (optional) 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon sea salt 1 teaspoon nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon all spice 2 tablespoons flaxseed meal 3 egg whites 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk 2 tablespoons almond butter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 tablespoons honey 2 tablespoons Nectresse or 2 more tablespoons Honey

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat muffin tin with cooking spray.

Combine dry ingredients (including pumpkin) in a large mixing bowl.

Heat honey and almond butter in microwave safe dish for about 30 seconds. Stir until smooth. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites lightly and add vanilla extract. Pour wet ingredients in to dry ingredients and mix until well combined.

Pour batter evenly in to muffin tin. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Nutrition facts provided by nutritiondata.com Nutrition per muffin: Calories: 114, Total Fats: 6 g, Saturated Fat: 1 g, Trans Fat: 0 g, Cholesterol: 0 mg, Sodium: 130 mg, Total Carbohydrates: 7 g, Dietary Fiber: 2 g, Sugars: 4 g, Protein: 8 g, Iron: 0.8 mg

Double Chocolate Mint Protein Balls

What's better than chocolate balls? Mint chocolate balls. Then again, that's only true if you like mint more than you like chocolate. I'm not sure which I like better but I do know one thing, these are amazing balls...or AMAZEBALLS! (Finally! A use for that word!)

Moving on. TGIF! That's right, it's Friday! Today is a rainy day here in NY but I'm not going to let the rain rain on my parade. I wish I could say that my Friday is going to be loaded with fun, relaxation and joy, but instead I get to say that my Friday is going to be spent at work, like the rest of the world. After work is a whole different story. Gonna grab a quick CrossFit workout, then straight home to catch new episodes of Say Yes to the Dress (yes, I'm one of those girls). And for dessert, a couple of Double Chocolate Mint Protein Balls!

Question of the day: What's your favorite thing about Fridays?

What's even more cool? These balls are grain-free, gluten-free, sugar-free and dairy free. You could call them Paleo if you want, I would.

Be careful making these balls, use only 1 teaspoon of mint extract, or else you may end up with a breath freshener instead of decadent treat.

Double Chocolate Mint Protein Balls

prep time: 15 minutes - cook time: none - makes 9 servings

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Almond Meal 1/4 cup Flaxseed meal 1 cup chocolate protein powder 1/4 cup extra dark unsweetened cocoa powder 1/4 teaspoon sea salt 1 teaspoon mint extract 1/4 cup cacao nibs 1/4 cup raw honey 1/4 cup water

Directions:

In a large bowl combine almond meal, flaxseed meal, 3/4 cup of the protein powder, sea salt, cocoa powder and cacao nibs. Stir with a large spoon until all ingredients are well dispersed.

In a microwave safe bowl, heat the honey for 15-20 seconds. Add extract to warm honey and stir. Then pour the honey mixture in to the dry ingredients; mix with a large spoon. Slowly add water and stir until batter gets sticky. Be careful not to add too much water. If batter is too sticky simply add a bit more protein powder.

Line a plate or cookie sheet with parchment. Place remaining protein powder in bowl. Scoop batter in to small 1-1.5 tablespoon size portions. Roll in to a ball in your hand, then roll in the protein powder for a nice chocolate dusting. Place balls on lined cookie sheet and allow to set in fridge for 20 minutes before serving.

Nutrition facts provided by nutritiondata.com Nutrition per serving: Calories: 119, Total Fats: 3 g, Saturated Fat: 1 g, Trans Fat: 0 g, Cholesterol: 0 mg, Sodium: 107 mg, Total Carbohydrates: 14 g, Dietary Fiber: 2 g, Sugars: 10 g, Protein: 11 g, Iron: 1.0 mg

Sweet and Spicy Granola Bars

OMG let me just start with one thing, these granola bars are off the hook. If you love homemade granola bars, which I know you do, you'll try these for sure.

Before I get in to the bars, I've been feeling stuck in a rut lately like there's not enough time in the day to get everything done I'd like to get done. Working all day then trekking through Long Island traffic to the gym is great and all, but getting home close to 8pm is not. Where's the "me" time?! You guessed it, there is none.

Solution = wake up at 6 am do 1 of 3 things every single morning: a) go for a run, b) do a workout on my back porch so I don't have to go after work, c) blog (like I'm doing now). If I do any one of these things before work that gives me time to do any one other item I choose including working on my freelance gigs, trying a new recipe, or lounging with Rich later in the evening.

Yesterday here's how it went. Wake up at 6 am. Put on my workout gear. Move all equipment I needed out to the back porch for a morning CrossFit WOD (I hate that acronym, I'd prefer to say workout). Then #getafterit is what I did. Though I was trying to be quiet as to not wake the neighbors from my box jumps or ball slams - I managed to make it work and I'm so glad I did. Rich even said he didn't hear a thing.

My plan is to get up early every day and get something done. Tomorrow I plan to get up for a run, Friday is either a morning workout or blog time, and saturday morning is another run since I won't be able to make it to CrossFit. That's my plan and I'm sticking to it! Now for the Granola bars...enjoy!

While at FNCE I stumbled upon the Magic Seasonings booth. They were sampling a handful of their salt-free/sugar-free seasonings and I fell in love with their "Sweet and Spicy" blend. Lucky for me they gave me a full bottle! So stoked! Last night it hit me, make granola bars with this stuff - so that's just what I did. With a little tip from thekitchn.com I tweaked my usual recipe and decided to try Brown Rice syrup as my binding/sweetening agent. It worked and these things are delish! Rich (my taste tester) says they taste like Pizza - I was like 'huh wth are you talking about,' then I tried them and said the same, lol. The chewy texture is my fav combined with the crunch of the nuts and sweet yet spiced flavor of the seasoning mix! Recipe for success! Ha! I won't be surprised if they are half gone when I get home tonight.

Question: Are you an early bird? What do you do before the sun rises?

Press firmly in to pan for a tighter bar.

Let cool completely before slicing in to 9 yummy bars.

Store in air tight container for at least 2 weeks.

Sweet and Spicy Granola Bars

prep time: 10 min. - cook time: 20-25 min. - makes 9 servings

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats 1/2 cup total dried cranberries and raisins 1 1/2 cups total raw cashews, almonds and walnuts 1/2 cup brown rice syrup 2 teaspoons Magic Seasoning Sweet and Spicy blend

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line 8 x 8" baking pan with parchment and spray lightly with cooking spray. Set aside.

In a large bowl combine oats, nuts and dried fruit. Pour syrup in microwave safe bowl, heat for 15-20 seconds. Mix seasoning blend in to syrup, then pour over dry ingredients. Mix well with a large spoon.

Pour batter in to baking pan. Press down firmly with wet paper towel or oiled hand.

Bake the bars for 20-25 minutes for a chewy bar. Bake for 30-35 minutes for a crunchy bar. When the bars come out of the oven, press them again using a wet paper towel. Allow the bars to cool completely in the pan before slicing. The bars will firm up as they cool. Remove the bars by pulling them out using the excess parchment paper. Place on cutting board and slice in to 9 bars. Store in air tight container or wrap them individually in saran wrap for a quick grab-n-go snack.

Nutrition Facts from Nutritiondata.com Calories 497, Calories from fat 294, Total fat 35g, Saturated fat 4g, Trans fat 0g, Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 34mg. Carbohydrate 41g, Dietary Fiber 6g, Sugar 16g, Protein 11g, Iron 2.8mg

Paleo Banana Nut Protein Bars

Sometimes you just want a nostalgic treat without the calories.  When I was a kid my mother made the most amazing Banana Nut Bread that I'll never forget.  There's nothing like slicing a piece of fresh Banana Bread straight out of the oven and topping it with creamy Vanilla Bean Ice Cream.  Nowadays tasty treats like the ones my mom made as a kid are found less than occasionally in my house.  Rich and I are both super nutty (you see what I did there, haha) about nutrition and eat the same clean foods every single day.

But after seeing a recipe online for Banana Nut Bread, I was inspired.  Why not make a healthy version that Rich and I can eat without feeling guilty.  Enter Paleo Banana Nut Protein Bars.

These things were awesome.  Of course they weren't as moist as Mom's original, but they were just as tasty.  We kept them in the fridge for a quick snack.  I kept finding Rich red-handed grabbing a taste with Trader Joe's Almond Butter.  What makes these even better is that they're grain free (which then makes them Gluten Free) and sugar free!

What's your favorite thing to top on your banana bread?  

Paleo Banana Nut Protein Bars

Prep time: 15 min. - Cook time: 20 minutes - Makes 6 Servings

Ingredients:

• 1 mashed banana
• 2 egg whites
• 2 whole eggs
• 1/4 cup flax meal
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• 3 scoops vanilla whey protein powder of your choice
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp. light coconut milk (I used Trader Joe's)
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, combine wet ingredients (banana, eggs, egg whites, coconut milk and vanilla extract) until smooth.
3. Add remaining ingredients to the wet mixture and combine well.
4. Pour batter in to a greased or lined baking pan (I used a 9 x 11 cake pan). Spread batter with spatula making sure it's distributed evenly in the pan.
5. Bake for ~20 minutes or until a knife comes out clean from the center.
6. Cut in to 6 squares and let cool on rack. Wrap individually for a quick grab-n-go snack. Best stored in the fridge.
 

Nutrition Information for Paleo Banana Nut Protein Bars via nutritiondata.com