Chocolate Coconut Energy Bars

As they say, necessity is the mother of invention. So when I ran out of energy bars and realized that I was also out of the tahini that I normally use for these bars, I had to get creative. Luckily, I had a jar of almond butter and a craving for chocolate, so out came a new version of energy bars. The cherries of the original version would be just as tasty here, but I decided to switch things up and add in banana chips (bananas are rich in potassium, a useful electrolyte). Dark chocolate is rich in antioxidants, and is also delicious, so the touch of chocolate and cocoa in these bars will certainly encourage you to get the energy you need for running...or whatever activity you've got going on.

See the link above for my rant on how important fueling is for running (spoiler: it's very important!). These bars will help you take in the calories you need, with loads of protein, carbohydrates, and nutrients to keep you going. They are gluten-free (if you have celiac disease, make sure the oats haven't come into contact with wheat), and can be made vegan if the honey is swapped out for maple syrup. The best part of all is that they taste great, and they're cheap and easy to make, so you can feel good about yourself all around!

Ingredients

2 cups rolled oats

1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

3/4 cup slivered almonds

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup sesame seeds

2 oz good quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped

3/4 cup dried unsweetened banana chips, chopped

2 Tbsp chia seeds

1/4 cup natural cocoa

1 1/2 cups almond butter (or other natural nut/seed butter)*

1 cup wildflower honey (or 3/4 cup maple syrup if you want it vegan)

1 tsp vanilla

Directions

1. Soak banana chips in water for 20-30 min (basically until they're chewy), then drain.

2. Combine oats, coconut, almonds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, chocolate, and chia seeds
in a large bowl.

3. Stir together honey (or maple syrup) and almond butter in a glass 4 cup measure, and heat in microwave for 1 min. Stir in vanilla.

4. Add wet mixture to dry, and stir in banana chips as well until mixture is well combined. Spread mixture onto a lightly greased 13x9" baking sheet.

5. These bars can be easily eaten raw, but can also be baked for 10-15 min in a 325 degree F oven. Slice into bars (I usually cut it into 20). Store in an airtight container at room temp for 1-2 weeks, or freeze for up to 3 months.

*if you choose to use almond butter (I use it, because I have a husband who's moderately allergic to peanuts), don't go running out to the store to buy a jar, which costs $9 or more for a 1 lb jar. If you have a food processor, you can make any nut or seed butter you want. Just buy the raw or roasted nuts, roast in a 325 degree F oven if needed until fragrant, then cool and process, adding in small amounts of a neutral oil (canola or sunflower) until desired consistency is reached. You can process them raw as well if you prefer, and you can flavor it however you want. You've just saved half your money and made a much more delicious nut butter yourself!

Energy Bars

2011 was pretty horrible for me as far as running goes; with grad school it's easy for things to get in the way, and I was running inconsistently with low mileage. Over the past month or so after recovering from a fall, I've turned over a new leaf, working my way up gradually from a mere 12 miles a week (3 miles/4 days) to some serious mileage, with the hopes of being able to get back to running fast 5Ks again. I'm part of the way there (I'm up to 25-30 miles/week), and I'm starting my first speed workout today with the local running club - the first time I've done that in a good while! With an increase in training intensity, of course, also comes an increase in the need for fuel. For women who are serious competitive endurance athletes, proper fuel is especially important.

One of my favorite books on running is John Parker Jr.'s Once a Runner. However, at one point, as the protagonist digs into a huge pile of greasy food, he proclaims, "if the furnace is hot enough, anything will burn." While it is true that competitive runners can get away with consuming inordinate amounts of food (and I most certainly take advantage on occasion), not all calories are created equal, and putting the right kind of fuel in your body can make a big difference in your ability to train and compete at a high level. You can't drive a car with an empty tank, and neither can you run without any fuel. Also, a number of studies have shown that the first 30 min after a workout are the most important for refueling, and doing it the right way can speed recovery and help complement the effects of your training to make you stronger and faster. Of course, most of us are not likely to be able to whip up a meal within 30 min of working out (even assuming you have the energy after a tough workout!), so it's important to have something that's easily accessible, portable, and readily digestible. Energy bars perfectly fit this bill.

Energy bars come in all shapes, sizes and flavors, and most grocery stores have a daunting variety. However, many of them are loaded with refined sugars and processed ingredients that are difficult for non-chemists to pronounce or are prohibitively expensive for most of us. Luckily, making energy bars at home is super easy, quick, cheap, and healthier than you're likely to find in the store. The recipe that I use is adapted from this one, which I found in Running Times (click for a good explanation of why they're good for you). The recipe specifies these as a pre-run snack, but they're great both before a run and after. The other nice thing about these is that you can whip up a large batch and throw a bunch in the freezer, so that you can keep them fresh for when you need them - just take them out an hour or two before you want to fuel up. When stored in an airtight container, these will last at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

Note: These bars are all-natural, but they do have a fair amount of sweetener in the form of honey (if you want them vegan, you can probably switch out the honey 1 for 1 with agave nectar). This is great for runners who are looking for a quick energy boost going into a run, but if you're looking for a healthy, high protein snack to just get you through your day and/or can't consume very much non-fruit sugar, I'd give these bars a try instead. They're also delicious - they just need to be stored in a fridge or freezer, since they go bad sooner (a couple notes: I used soy protein powder, since hemp protein's a bit out of my price range, and you can leave out the maple syrup entirely - the bananas provide plenty of sweetness).

Ingredients

2 cups rolled oats

1 cup unsweetened coconut

1/2 cup dried cherries, chopped (or raisins or chopped dates)

3/4 cup raw sliced almonds

1/2 cup unsalted pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

1/2 cup unsalted sunflower seeds

1/4 cup sesame seeds

2 Tbsp chia seeds

1 1/2 cups tahini (or natural peanut butter)

1 cup REAL clover honey*

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

1. Mix together oats, coconut, dried fruit, almonds, pepitas, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds and chia seeds in a large mixing bowl.

2. Stir together tahini, honey, and vanilla and microwave on high for 1 minute.

3. Pout wet ingredients over dry and mix well.

4. Spread mixture onto a greased baking sheet and smooth out the top.

5. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for ~15 min, until edges have browned.

6. Allow to cool, then cut into 16 bars.

7. Enjoy, then get running!


*I mean, seriously, use real honey, it makes all the difference in the world nutritionally and flavor-wise. Honey with the pollen in it, not the processed, questionable "honey" in the teddy bear jars. Find your local apiary or farmer's market and load up (our local apiary here sells a large jar for $15). It's one thing even a frugal Dutch person like myself will not skimp on.

Tropical Granola

It's important to me to be able to sit down for dinner at home with my husband, particularly without having to go back into the lab afterwards. However, being a grad student in organic chemistry, that means that some compromise must be made, and 8 pm is a late dinner (thankfully, I have a wonderful husband who cooks during the week, otherwise it'd be even later!). Between that and working up an appetite during my afternoon runs, having a snack in lab is an absolute must. We've got a candy bowl in our group room, but I prefer something that's healthier and will give me some real energy and satisfaction to get through my day.

Granola is one of my favorite snacks - it's chock full of complex carbohydrates, fiber, and protein, plus minerals and vitamins from the nuts and dried fruits. Store-bought granola is either flavorless or prohibitively expensive (at least for a poor grad student!), but it turns out that delicious homemade granola is super easy to make, and allows for infinite variety. It's fun to explore the bulk food bins at the local natural foods store for new flavor combinations. I've recently hit upon my new favorite, and I'm excited enough about it that I thought it'd be worth sharing. The secret to this granola is the touch of ginger and orange zest to complement the tropical fruits, combining to make for a snack that's so flavorful, it doesn't even matter that it's healthy. You could easily replace the almonds with macadamia or Brazil nuts, and pick any dried tropical fruits that you can get your hands on. This stuff is great eating by the handful, and would be just as delicious sprinkled on top of some Greek yogurt.

Tropical Granola

6 cups rolled oats

1 cup sliced almonds (or macademia or brazil nuts)

1 cup pistachios

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1 1/2 cups flaked unsweetened coconut

1 tsp ground ginger

1 1/2 tsp orange zest

1/2 cup real clover honey

3/4 cup dried unsweetened mango, diced

3/4 cup dried unsweetened pineapple, diced

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Mix together oats, nuts, coconut, ginger, and orange zest in a large mixing bowl. Note on the coconut: you can use storebought flaked coconut if you're really crunched for time, but given that this is a tropical granola, I like having good and chunky coconut flakes to really impart their texture and flavor. To do this, remove the flesh from the shell (the thin brown outer layer is edible, so don't worry about trying to peel it off). I flaked the coconut using the slicing side of my four-sided grater; a vegetable peeler or mandoline will also work.

3. Heat honey in the microwave just long enough to thin it; about 20 sec will suffice. Pour honey over oat mixture and mix well.

4. Spread granola mixture onto an ungreased rimmed baking sheet (to reduce mess, I cook it in two batches in a 13x9" baking pan).

5. Bake for 25-30 min at 350 degrees F, or until granola is golden brown. Stir granola frequently, about once every 5 min, to ensure that it cooks evenly and doesn't burn.

6. Remove granola from oven and mix in dried fruit. Spread out onto newspaper and allow to cool completely.

7. Once cooled, transfer to an airtight container, and enjoy! Stored properly, granola will last for months.