A few weeks back, friend of mine challenged me to make a healthy energy bar recipe. The "challenge" was indeed challenging as most energy bars use either oatmeal, whey, and/or a LOT of sugar. The recipe turned out great, and is packed with ingredients like flax, goji berries and dark chocolate. So not only are these energy bars tasty, they also boast impressive health benefits.
CHOCOLATE GOJI ENERGY BARS
CHOCOLATE GOJI ENERGY BARS
***Contains SOY***
1 1/3 cup Red Square Power Flax + Soy Protein cereal <*if not follwing a gluten free diet, you may substitute Red Square cereal with 1 cup quick oats, + 1/3 cup flax seeds>
2/3 cup organic almonds, chopped (use "s" blade in food processor)
1/2 cup dried organic goji berries
2 tsp. poppy seeds
Combine above ingredients in a large mixing bowl and set aside.
Preheat oven to 170 F
Next, in a small saucepan combine
15 dried pitted organic dates
1 cup water
Bring dates and water to a boil, and continue boiling until excess water has evaporated and dates are mushy. Remove from heat and add
1/4 cup + 2 tsp light agave nectar <*liquid honey may be used, however will be much sweeter>
Add date/agave mixture to dry ingredients and mix together. (Mixture will be slightly sticky). Once thoroughly combined,transfer to metal baking pan and press flat with wooden spoon. Should be approx 1/2 inch thick, and as evenly spread as possible. Place pan in oven and bake for 12 minutes. Turn off oven and allow bars to sit in warm oven for an additional 5 min.
Remove pan from oven, and cut into 2" x 3" squares. With a fork, carefully remove bars from pan and flip over. Place pan back into warm oven for an additional 5 min to set.
In microwave, melt
40g- 85% cacao extra dark chocolate <*I used Godiva, however ingredients say "may contain traces of milk & wheat", so if you are very sensitive to either ingredient, you may want to use alternative chocolate>
Make sure you stir the melting chocolate every 20 seconds as chocolate burns very quickly.
Once chocolate is melted, add
3 tsp light agave nectar <*liquid honey may be used, however will be much sweeter>
1 tsp organic "only peanuts" peanut butter (no sugar added)
Remove bars from oven and top with chocolate.
Store bars in the fridge to preserve.
