Mint Chocolate Power Bars

By placing two pillows under my left elbow, I can hold sleeping child Gabriel with one arm and kind this text on the laptop that is balancing on my appropriate leg with the other hand. It’s brilliant! I can even attain that bowl of soaked oats with raisins, apple and crunchy peanut butter that stands there on the sofa table as a night snack. Okay, maybe not brilliant. This balancing act is pretty tricky actually. And I suspect that my left arm will starting to go numb soon. I should probably target on my son and just wait for Luise to get back from the shower. But I did guarantee 192 people on instagram that I would publish this recipe right now. And I’ve presently spent an hour tucking the other two children to bed with a night story that was so boring that I fell asleep 14 instances, so I feel like I truly want to do this now or I’ll be starting the year by breaking a guarantee.

As a result I am at present writing this post 1-handed – sitting in a patchwork plaided sofa in a cute small airbnb apartment in Copenhagen that we’re renting for a couple of days – chewing on a peanut butter covered apple with a chubby little cherub snoring in my other hand. And Luise thinks I’m poor at multitasking. Ha!

Ahead of we left, I prepared a batch of power bars for the auto-ride down. When they don’t serve as car snacks, we use them as fast power fuel at home whenever we or the children are in require of a deal with. A chocolate bar (or two) in my fitness center bag also makes a rather compelling argument for dragging my tired daddy-of-3 body to the gym. The bars rarely final lengthy in our freezer.

Recently, I have been completely hooked on this chocolate and mint combo. Combining fresh mint flavour with rich chocolate often appeared weird to me, but all of a sudden I have changed my thoughts. It’s brilliant and for some reason additional best as work out fuel. This recipe is based on the Hemp Bars in our 1st guide but a minor easier and fresher in flavour. We top them with cacao nibs which not only make them seem wonderful but also adds a good crunch to their texture.

I asked Isac to help me when I made these but he was rather ineffective. When asked to pit the dates, he placed the dates in his mouth and the stones in the foods processor (which made the bars crunchier than meant). He also kept insisting that the cacao nibs were bombs that exploded on the bars, leaving giant craters after them. So if you consider the bars look uneven, this tiny hooligan is to blame.

By the way, I’m not writing a single-handed any longer. Halfway along this publish, I spilled some oats on Gabriel’s head so he woke up. Luise is nursing him now (and most probably also piercing an imaginary voodoo doll with my encounter on it with a thousand needles). I am not saying that I spilled on him on objective. But Luise did invest an awfully long time in the shower. And that spoon was also tiny to balance oats on anyway.

Yup that was it. 1st submit of the year. Giant craters, crying babies, voodoo dolls and eating chocolate at the fitness center. And I’m only 44 minutes late for my deadline. Not a bad begin.

Mint Chocolate Power Bars
Tends to make approx. 18 bars 

You can add a few tablespoons protein powder of decision (instead of the desiccated coconut) if you are creating them as publish-work out bars. Nuts can of course also be used alternatively of the seeds, if preferred.

150 g / 1 cup mixed pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds, toasted if preferred
5 tbsp desiccated coconut, unsweetened
4 tbsp chia seeds
3 tbsp cacao powder
50 g / 1/two cup rolled oats
two pinches sea salt
four tbsp virgin coconut oil
180 g soft fresh dates (roughly 16 dates / one packed cup), pitted
5 tbsp nut butter of option (we love using a blend of tahini and cashew butter but peanut butter also works excellent)
a handful of drops peppermint oil (or 2-three tsp dried mint leaves, crushed)

Topping
60 g / ½ cup raw cacao nibs

Line a 16 x 22 cm baking tin with parchment paper.
Add the seeds, coconut, chia seeds, cacao powder, oats and salt to a food processor and pulse on higher speed right up until coarsely crumbly. Pour into a bowl and add coconut oil, dates, nut butter, mint (oil or dried leaves) to the meals processor. Run on substantial velocity right up until entirely smooth and sticky. Include the seed and cacao crumbles and pulse quickly until mixed collectively. Help out with a spatula in case the mixture is not mixed. Taste and add far more mint flavour or salt if needed, then pulse a few far more occasions.
Transfer to the baking tin and, making use of the palm of your hand or the back of a spoon (coated in coconut oil), press the mixture down very firmly to produce an even and compact bar (roughly 2 cm large). Scatter the cacao nibs on best and use a spatula to press them down slightly into the mixture.
Allow set in the freezer for approx. 15-30 minutes ahead of cutting into approx. 18 bars.
Retailer the bars in an airtight container in the freezer and they will preserve for a few months. You can wrap them in baking paper to make them far more moveable. Thaw them ever so slightly just before serving.

NB: For a nut-cost-free substitute, replace the nut butter with a seed butter of choice.

Read More About Low Fat Recipes At NaturallyCurvy.com