Homespun Quinoa Almond Butter Power Bars
I'm embarrassed to admit how many rehearsals and shows have been fueled by nothing more than a Clif bar and a cup of coffee. This is not good nutrition (ok maybe it's better than a candy bar and a diet coke), nor is it cost effective. When I'm organized and looking after my nutrition, I'll bring a salad or a meal of quinoa and veggies with me to the theatre. Being somewhat hypoglycemic, I definitely can't make it through the evening without some form of calories. And when I'm not organized, well I do my best, but even the most pristine "meal replacement" bars are chock full of bizarre ingredients you would never stock in your own kitchen.
The first ingredient in a Clif bar is brown rice syrup. Certainly better than high fructose corn syrup, but let's face it people: this is sugar. You'd be better off doing as the anorexic girls and sucking on packets of honey. The next ingredient is "ClifPro" some soy protein amalgam that includes soy protein isolate, rice flour, rice starch, barley malt extract, and, more soybeans. News flash: soy protein isolate is not a whole food, and soy may even be associated with hormonal disruption and cancer. Now I'm not trying to disparage the good people at Clif, and certainly brown rice syrup and soy protein isolate are the lesser of some evils. But I like to put real foods in my body, not the cheap conveniences of the processed food industry.
So I've had this idea rolling around in my head for some time now, and I finally decided to give it a "whirl:" make my own power bars using quality ingredients and superfoods. The basic idea was almond butter and quinoa, dressed up with dates, goji berries, cocoa, or use your imagination! I made two flavors, and they both turned out pretty great - Spirulina Goji Berry and Chocolate-Maca.
Amounts are fairly roughly estimated:
Base:
1/2 cup almond butter (mine was raw & organic)
1 cup cooked quinoa
6 dates, pits removed
Additions:
1 tablespoon spirulina
2 tablespoons soaked goji berries
or 3 tablespoons cacao (mine was raw but you could use baking cocoa)
1 tablespoon maca
capful of vanilla extract
- Process almond butter and dates in the food processor
- Add additional ingredients/superfoods/flavors to your liking, pulse
- Add cooked quinoa and pulse - quinoa is fairly delicate and fluffy so I didn't want it totally lost in the mix
- Roll into logs then flatten onto your dehydrator sheets or baking sheet
- Dehydrate at 115 degrees for 16 hours or so, flipping once
- Bake? I didn't bake, but you could attempt to dehydrate in the oven on the lowest setting, or it might work to bake at 350 for 10-15 min? You'll have to be responsible for your own experimentation if you bake these - but please, let me know if you try!
In the food processor with spirulina and goji berries. Spirulina certainly doesn't look all that attractive, but this lake algae is one of the finest plant sources of protein (it is complete in all 8 amino acids) and is incredibly rich in vitamins and antioxidants. I find that this supplement gives a boost to my energy and mood, and spirulina has been found to correct anemia in undernourished children and protect against hay fever!
The chocolate batch, with quinoa thrown in at the end and processed.
I added goji berries to the chocolate batch too! Oh, and you may have been wondering about the ingredient maca. Maca is a root vegetable native to the high Andes mountains, where it has been used as a traditional food and medicinal plant for centuries. Maca is said to increase strength and endurance, and also act as an adaptogenic hormone stabilizer and natural aphrodisiac. Mmm hmm. You can find it in powder form at most health food stores.
The bars are ready to go into the dehydrator.
After dehydration they still maintained a remarkably fudge-y texture, I think the almond butter is to thank. Each batch made four big bars, you could probably get 6-8 out of it if you sized down. A poor man's version with peanut butter and brown rice would probably be pretty tasty too!
The first ingredient in a Clif bar is brown rice syrup. Certainly better than high fructose corn syrup, but let's face it people: this is sugar. You'd be better off doing as the anorexic girls and sucking on packets of honey. The next ingredient is "ClifPro" some soy protein amalgam that includes soy protein isolate, rice flour, rice starch, barley malt extract, and, more soybeans. News flash: soy protein isolate is not a whole food, and soy may even be associated with hormonal disruption and cancer. Now I'm not trying to disparage the good people at Clif, and certainly brown rice syrup and soy protein isolate are the lesser of some evils. But I like to put real foods in my body, not the cheap conveniences of the processed food industry.
So I've had this idea rolling around in my head for some time now, and I finally decided to give it a "whirl:" make my own power bars using quality ingredients and superfoods. The basic idea was almond butter and quinoa, dressed up with dates, goji berries, cocoa, or use your imagination! I made two flavors, and they both turned out pretty great - Spirulina Goji Berry and Chocolate-Maca.
Amounts are fairly roughly estimated:
Base:
1/2 cup almond butter (mine was raw & organic)
1 cup cooked quinoa
6 dates, pits removed
Additions:
1 tablespoon spirulina
2 tablespoons soaked goji berries
or 3 tablespoons cacao (mine was raw but you could use baking cocoa)
1 tablespoon maca
capful of vanilla extract
- Process almond butter and dates in the food processor
- Add additional ingredients/superfoods/flavors to your liking, pulse
- Add cooked quinoa and pulse - quinoa is fairly delicate and fluffy so I didn't want it totally lost in the mix
- Roll into logs then flatten onto your dehydrator sheets or baking sheet
- Dehydrate at 115 degrees for 16 hours or so, flipping once
- Bake? I didn't bake, but you could attempt to dehydrate in the oven on the lowest setting, or it might work to bake at 350 for 10-15 min? You'll have to be responsible for your own experimentation if you bake these - but please, let me know if you try!
In the food processor with spirulina and goji berries. Spirulina certainly doesn't look all that attractive, but this lake algae is one of the finest plant sources of protein (it is complete in all 8 amino acids) and is incredibly rich in vitamins and antioxidants. I find that this supplement gives a boost to my energy and mood, and spirulina has been found to correct anemia in undernourished children and protect against hay fever!
The chocolate batch, with quinoa thrown in at the end and processed.
I added goji berries to the chocolate batch too! Oh, and you may have been wondering about the ingredient maca. Maca is a root vegetable native to the high Andes mountains, where it has been used as a traditional food and medicinal plant for centuries. Maca is said to increase strength and endurance, and also act as an adaptogenic hormone stabilizer and natural aphrodisiac. Mmm hmm. You can find it in powder form at most health food stores.
The bars are ready to go into the dehydrator.
After dehydration they still maintained a remarkably fudge-y texture, I think the almond butter is to thank. Each batch made four big bars, you could probably get 6-8 out of it if you sized down. A poor man's version with peanut butter and brown rice would probably be pretty tasty too!
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ReplyDeleteHi Maryssa. Thanks a lot for this recipe. Great idea! I made a batch using the raw almond butter and cacao powder with vanilla but i added 1/2 cup of dehydrated coconut to the mix. And a little bit of salt. And i didn't dehydrate them, i just rolled it into balls and put it in the fridge (as energy balls). The texture is perfect just the way it is (for me). Thanks!
ReplyDeleteAriana