No Bake Protein Bars

These are easy, fantastic, fun, healthy, and require next to no time.  If that doesn't sell you on this recipe, i don't know what will.  OH!!!  How about that these home-made protein bars are low carb, low sugar, and require only a few ingredients unlike the traditional processed ones you see on the shelf with tons of fillers.   The base is only 3 ingredients with honey as an optional 4th ingredient.  The rest is up to you if you want to add more dimension.  I added pumpkin seeds and dried blueberries, but you can easily add coconut flakes, almonds, flax, chia, raisins, gojis, whatever it is that you've got on hand.


No Bake Gratitude Bars


Your base is one very large ripe banana (or two small)
1/4 cup of creamy, unsalted peanut butter
4 scoops of sun warrior vanilla protein powder (pea and hemp protein)
and an optional Tbsp of honey (if omitting you may want to bump up the PB by a Tbsp or add a Tbsp of agave for stickiness)

In your food processor with the standard S blade, process the banana down to a pudding.  Add in the PB and process again.  Toss in the protein powder and process, adding the Tbsp of honey.  This will make what looks like a sticky crumble.   If you omit honey check the tackiness of your mixture by pinching a small amount between your fingers.  You want it to stick together tightly.  If it doesn't add a Tbsp of PB or a vegan sweetener such as agave.

This is your base.  Take any mix-ins you want to add (1/2 cup dried fruit and 1/2 cup nuts or seeds) and toss them into the food processor and pulse just a few times to distribute.  If nothing you add is salted add a pinch of sea salt and i recommend a few solid dashes of cinnamon as well.

 I added 1/2 cup of roasted & salted pumpkin seeds and 1/2 cup of dried wild blueberries, along with cinnamon.

Press this tightly together with your hands and into a square cake pan lined with parchment or saran so they are easy to remove once cut.

You can cut these into small squares, long bar-like rectangles, or like me into 6 fatty rectangles.  Here are the nutrition deets:

for the entire base recipe with honey (without mix-ins):  910 calories, 36 grams fat, and 11 grams fiber


for the entire recipe w/ pumpkin seeds and blueberries:  1530 calories, 66 grams fat, and 28 grams fiber


The way i cut mine it serves 6. 
One serving of the recipe with pumpkin seeds and blueberries has:


250 calories, 11 grams fat, and 5 grams fiber....PLUS 15 grams of protein!