Tag: healthy sweets

Banana Bread Bites – No Bake!

by laurapennington1, posted in FOOD!, Uncategorized

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After I ate lunch the other day, I really wanted something sweet.  I was looking around Pinterest for ideas, and I saw this pin for banana bread.

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Um, yum.  This looked so good, but most of the ingredients in it are things that I don’t eat (gluten, refined sugar, etc.).  Not only that, in all honesty, I was feeling lazy.  I didn’t feel like baking anything.  The problem was that now I was really craving banana bread!  So, I went through the cupboards and fridge and found some things to throw together that would satisfy my craving, but I wouldn’t have to make anything.  Wa-la!  No bake banana bread bites.

Wow, these things are tasty!  I could seriously eat a whole batch in one sitting – but I refrained…kind of…I left three. 🙂  Okay, so let’s get to this recipe.

BANANA BREAD BITES

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups gluten free oat flour (you could also use 1 cup coconut flour instead if you have an issue with oats)
  • 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1 small pinch of stevia
  • sprinkle of sea salt
  • 1/3 cup mashed banana
  • 1/3 cup almond butter
  • 2 Tbsp. Raw Honey
  • Optional add ins: 1/3 cup chocolate chips, 1/4 cup crushed walnuts
  • 3-4 Tbsp. Almond Milk

Directions

1.) Add all the dry ingredients (flour, cinnamon, stevia, and sea salt) to a large mixing bowl.  Mix together well.  Add the mashed banana, and stir in until well combined.  If you are adding in the chocolate chips and/or walnuts, add them now.  Mix well, and set aside.

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2.) Add the almond butter and honey to a small sauce pan.  Heat over low heat until melted together.  Add to the mixing bowl and stir to combine.  You will have a really crumbly mixture.

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3.) Add 1 Tbsp. of Almond milk at a time to the mixture until the mixture is a consistency that allows you to roll it into small balls that stay together.  I used 3 Tbsp. all together.

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4.) Use your hands to make small balls of the mixture.  Place in the refrigerator for 1/2 an hour.

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That’s it!  You’re good to go!  Banana bread craving satisfied without having to put in the work of baking any banana bread!

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You’re seriously going to LOVE these!  So delicious!  Enjoy!

Almond Oatmeal Bars

by laurapennington1, posted in FOOD!, Uncategorized

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I have a confession to make.  I am addicted to almond butter and honey…like “spoonfuls of almond butter straight out of the jar dipped straight into the jar of honey” addicted.  I decided to try to dignify my guilty pleasure by making a little sweet treat with these two ingredients — at least it gets me out of the jars. 😉

I’m glad I decided to do this, because the result is a healthy sweet treat that is REALLY easy to make!  Just 4 ingredients, with one of them being optional, and they are no bake.  Like I said, SO easy.

The best part?  Oh my gosh these things are good!

Okay, first, let’s look at some health benefits of the three main ingredients of these goodies.

OATS

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ALMONDS

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RAW HONEY

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Okay, so we see that we can feel pretty darn good about what we’re putting in our body here.  Keep that in mind, because once you taste these, you will think they are bad for you because of how good they taste!  I’m not kidding — they are AMAZING!!!

ALMOND OATMEAL BARS

Ingredients

  • 2 cups gluten free oats
  • 1/2 cup raw honey
  • 1/2 cup almond butter
  • semi sweet chocolate chips (optional)

Directions

1.) Place your oats in a food processor and process on high until they have a flour-like consistency.  Pour the ground up oats into a medium sized mixing bowl and set aside.

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2.) In a small pan, heat the almond butter and honey over medium heat until smooth.

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3.) Add the almond butter and honey to the mixing bowl with the ground up oats.  Stir until completely combined.

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4.) Line a pan or baking sheet with parchment paper.  Form your mixture into a rectangular shape on the parchment paper.  You want it to be about 1/2 – 3/4 inches thick.

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5.) Use a knife to score your rectangle into bars.  If you are adding the chocolate chips this is where you’ll do it.  I made three bars buy just placing chocolate chips on the bar.  I made another three bars by drizzling melted chocolate over them.  Lastly, I left three bars plain with no chocolate.

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6.) Place in the refrigerator for a minimum of 30 minutes to allow to firm up.  Once firm, cut along your score lines to create your bars.  Place in an airtight container.  You can keep these in the fridge or at room temperature for about a week…but I really don’t think they’ll last that long! 😉

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Oh my gosh, these are so good!

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Now I can get my almond butter and honey fix in a bar, so I don’t have to feel like such an animal eating it straight from the jar!  Enjoy! 🙂