Homemade Made Easy

Matt and I have made significant changes in our household in regards to the food we consume. I’d bare false witness if I said Colorado wasn’t the main influencer. To live in a state that has consistently owned real estate on lists like, “Healthiest State” and “Most Active State”, has been an intimidating, exciting and challenging experience.

I’m surrounded by vegans, vegetarians, cyclists, climbers, marathon pros, extreme skiers and weekend warriors. My peers, paired with the 360 days of sunshine forces me to be an athlete on some level. In conjunction with yoga, running and hiking, I’ve made a conscious decision to influence a difference in my household. The best part, my husband was totally on board!

Not only are these multiple at home concoctions good for your soon-to-be bangin’ body, they save you a lot of money. We were used to buying protein bars and creamer once a week. I put an end to that with learning how to make them myself. Does it not bother you that creamer has a shelf life of a month? Same with protein bars. Do you really know what goes into your protein bars? I was done taking that risk, it only made sense to make them myself. I also make my own applesauce when apples are in their peak season, my husband loves applesauce and it’s a heart healthy snack.

Below are the recipes I use. Skinnytaste, Women’s Health Magazine and Deliciously Organic were my sources for these base recipes. I of course modified them to match our lifestyle. (We also Juice and make Green Smoothies every day, stay tuned for a blog on benefits and recipes).

1-cup soy nuts
1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats
1/4 cup almond milk
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg, beaten
1 1/2 cups plain nonfat Greek Yogurt
1 tbsp orange zest
1 cup dried cranberries
1 scoop protein powder (optional)
1/4 cup cacao nibs (I suggest these over any other chocolate, cacao is very healthy for you. A great source of Vitamin C and Omega 6 fatty acids)

You can add whatever you like to these bars to add variety. This past time we added pistachios, almonds and hemp seeds. Add whatever makes you feel good.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 13”x9” baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.

In a food processor, pulse soy nuts and pumpkin seeds until roughly chopped, about 30seconds.

In a large mixing bowl, combine chopped soy nuts and pumpkin seeds, oats, brown sugar,salt and cinnamon.

In a small bowl, whisk together egg, yogurt, milk, vanilla extract and orange zest.

Pour wet mixture into large bowl containing dry ingredients. Add cranberries. Mix well until all ingredients are combined. Pour into prepared baking dish and smooth with knife or spatula until batter is evenly distributed.

Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.  Cut into equal size bars, roughly 3×2.

*We store our bars in the freezer and pull them out 15 minutes before eating. They have greater longevity that way. 

8 medium apples (Use a combination of Golden Delicious, Honey Crisp, Fuji, Gala, etc.)
2 peaches
2 pears
1 strips of lemon peel – use a vegetable peeler
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
2qty 3 inch cinnamon stick
5 tsp light brown sugar (unpacked)
1 tbsp Agave

Core and slice the apples & pears. Keep the peels on as they are a great source of vitamins. Place them in the slow cooker and add the cinnamon sticks, lemon juice, lemon peel and brown sugar.

Set crock pot to low and cook for 6 hours. Stir apples occasionally, apples will slowly become a delicious applesauce.  Remove cinnamon stick and use an immersion blender to blend applesauce mixture and peaches until smooth or if you prefer a chunky sauce, leave sauce intact.

Source, Skinnytaste