It all began with me replacing my snack bars with fresh fruit and this allowed me to cut down on all the empty starches and exuberant amount of sugars. However, I found that eating just fruits for snacks isn't always enough. Every day around three o'clock (especially on school days), I feel so drained of energy and I nearly fall asleep in whatever class I'm in at that time. I drink a ton of water and fill up between every class.
I tried eating during the class but it did little to help so I decided to try making my own protein-packed snacks like these yummy No Bake Cookies and Snack Squares. I still have a bit of trouble staying awake but these snacks sure are delicious!
I've been raving to a lot of you about these No Bake Cookies for months now and I still stand by them. I keep to this exact recipe and it's tried and true. If you're going to give them a try for yourself, I highly recommend not eating more than one or two in a day. Because of the high levels of fiber from the ground flax seed, too much would lead to very painful gas cramps. Cramps are still possible even with one cookie so I suggest you drink lots of water to help prevent constipation (you should be drinking lots of water anyways!).
More recently I've tried something a little different. They are inspired by Crazy Healthy Granola Bars I discovered through Pinterest (oh wonderfully-supportive-of-procrastination Pinterest).
My version of the recipe is:
- 3 large over-ripe bananas, mashed to mush
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup of peanut butter
- 2 cups quick oats
- 1 cup raisins
- 1 cup tropical dried fruit mix
- 2 tablespoons of cinnamon
- Mix it all together until completely incorporated
- Spread into a greased pan (whatever shape or thickness you desire-- just remember that thicker ones will require more time and thinner ones will require a little less).
- Bake in the oven at 375 for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.
- Let cool for 10 minutes then cut into squares. Allow to cool completely before storing. I store mine in a Tuppa-ware but wrapping each one in plastic wrap works too.
The only changes I will be making next time is adding more peanut butter for extra protein and putting 2 cups of raisins while kicking out the other dried fruits. The dried fruit mix has added sugar and I'd really like to avoid extra sugar. Other than that, these are positively delicious and I think anyone would enjoy them. They are reminiscent of banana bread; I'm sure if you add whole nuts it would be spot-on!
