Power Nut Bars
by Dr. Peggy Malone
This week’s recipe is awesome!!
I’m continuing with the trend from last week of making something that tastes sweet and delicious but is a good healthy choice.
These bars can be sugar-free, gluten-free and dairy-free if you use the cacao nibs instead of the high cocoa percentage chocolate chips.
When shopping for nuts, keep in mind that there is a difference between raw nuts and seeds and roasted ones.
All those beneficial Omega oils in nuts and seeds are destroyed by air, oxygen, and heat. Most nuts that you buy are roasted, which turns perfectly good Omega oil into a toxic fat that is harmful to your health.
Ninety-percent of the nuts you see on supermarket shelves are roasted.
Why do roasted nuts dominate the market when they’re not nearly as healthy as raw nuts? Because they have a longer shelf life.
So make sure to look for and use raw nuts rather than roasted!
This is a great recipe for athletes looking for energy, protein and good fats during and after a workout!
Power Nut Bars
Ingredients
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
- 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
- 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
- 1/2 cup raw walnuts
- 1/2 cup raw pecans
- 1/2 cup raw cashews
- 1/2 cup raw macadamias
- 5-7 medjool dates (soak for 5 min in boiling water)
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/2 cup mixed nut butters (cashew, macadamia, almond)
- 1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
- 1/4 cup – 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips or 80% cocoa chocolate chips or cacao nibs (dairy free and sugar free and full of amazing nutrition)
Directions
- Combine vanilla, honey, nut butter and coconut oil in a medium sauce pain over low heat.
- While the mixture is heating, place the nuts and dates in a food processor and chop until the mixture resembles coarse
- sand. Add the shredded coconut, sunflower and pumpkin seeds and pulse a few times until seeds are roughly chopped.
- Remove the mixture from the stove once it has all melted together and stir in the nut mixture.
- Line 8X10 baking pan with parchment and then pour mixture into pan. Place another piece of parchment on top and use your palms to press the mixture into the pan evenly. Make sure it is pressed down as much as possible to help bind the bars.
- Sprinkle the chocolate chips on the top and press down lightly.
- Place in the freezer and set for 2 hours.
- Cut into bars when ready to serve.
NOTE: You can keep these bars in the fridge for up to two weeks and in the freezer for a few months.
Enjoy!
Dr. Peggy Malone is a Chiropractor and an
Athlete who helps other athletes to overcome injury and get back to their sport. Her weekly Television Series 'Living Well" inspires people from all walks of life to take control of their health to be as happy and as healthy as they can be.
A former varsity Basketball and Rugby player, she has since entered the world of endurance athletics where she has completed 2 Ironman Triathlons, 3 Marathons, several Half Marathons and many other Triathlons, Road Races and Off-Road Adventure races of varying distances.
Her own athletic endeavors and injuries have given her valuable insight into working with athletes in her practice for both the care of injuries as well as for the improvement of athletic performance.
