"Power Hungry": making the bars from recipe #1

[rotuts]

re Nut Chopper :

I have one of these, after seeing in the Gadget Corner at America's test kitchen. it has the advantage of 'passing' the nuts through only once:

http://www.amazon.com/Prepworks-Progressive-GFNC-2-Chopper-Non-Skid/dp/B00833DQCU/ref=sr_1_1/188-3202717-0476807?ie=UTF8&qid=1391199982&sr=8-1&keywords=progressive+nut+chopper

fine and coarse

mine is in Black.

did not see a Red Option back then ...

[Darienne]

7. Citrus-Seed-Fruit Bars, p. 62. Had only ground Chia seeds, so I simply upped the sunflower seeds. Absolutely scrumptious. Lowest caloric value of the bars so far and a fairly large bar for only 105 calories. My one problem was that my food processor refused to mix the batter but simply whirled around below the batter which clung to the walls. Not insurmountable. And I'm just thrilled with the bars.

[Darienne]

Back to work. Ed is afraid we'll be inundated by power bars with no one to eat them. Not a problem. I'll freeze some of the already made ones.

Have to replace the Citrus-Seed-Fruit Bars because I've eaten them all for breakfasts. Each recipe makes only a very limited amount and so far I am not doubling/tripling anything. This time around I had the called-for chia seeds and used them. Next time I'll use half figs I think. They are cooling in the garage currently.

Today I tried the Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Bars, p. 110, 271 calories per bar, 12 servings. Ran out of chocolate protein powder and so it was mostly vanilla and not sweet enough really. Plonked in a whack of sugar (don't tell on me please. I was a tad distracted at the time and just reached for the nearest sweetener. This whole thing of protein powders, whey and non-whey, sweetened and unsweetened I think will have to be considered before I opt for one of the recipes based on one of these.) Didn't have liquid Stevia for the 'icing', but subbed (allowed) maple syrup instead. Ooops. Just realized I was supposed to reduced the amount of milk called for. But it didn't matter anyway.

What have I learned? My food processor, a Kitchen Aid, which replaced a larger Cuisinart when it finally gave up the ghost, is neither large enough nor powerful enough to do this kind of work.

The other thing, which I think I mentioned earlier is that I don't like nuts and seeds as finely ground as some of the recipes call for. I like recognizable little chunks to chomp on in my bars.

I'll report back on the taste of the chocolate/peanut butter ones. The mixture tasted good and so did the 'icing'.

Next time I think I'll go for the Mega Marathon Bars (the names get a bit repetitious and meaningless), p. 98, because it appears to be the only recipe which calls for egg and flour. The accompanying blurb says they are perfect for book clubs, knitting circles and Ultimate Frisbee, none of which I belong to. Alas.

Forgot to note that I added ground cardamom to the Citrus-etc bars.

Edited February 7, 2014 by Darienne (log)

[Darienne]

Back to making power bars.

Report on the Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Bars, p. 110. They tasted pretty good but the texture was not really suitable. Made them again today, and again I didn't like the texture. Too oily. Next time I'll cut down on the coconut oil called for. You can't just grab one of them when they are oily in your hands.

I said I would make the Mega Marathon Bars. Sorry, I didn't. I made another batch of the Citrus-Seed-Fruit Bars because I really like them and they were all gone. This time I used half figs/half dates. They were fine.

My food processor will work if I am very careful about ;what I put into it. Not a good way to have to make things, but then I'm not ready to invest in a bigger more powerful machine at this point.

[CKatCook]

I have been watching this thread closely while looking for the book. I agree, out of all the different "power bars" I have tried they are mostly vitamin pills with sugar. YUCK! I am going to see if this book is in my local library if not, just buy it. I cannot wait to try some of these recipes!

edit to add: That whole blog looks good. Thanks for posting that!

Edited February 27, 2014 by CKatCook (log)

[Darienne]

Hi CKatCook. Should add that the book is inexpensive: USA: $16.95 and Canada: $18.95.

We are almost out of Citrus-Seed-Fruit Bars, p.62 and so this time I'll make a double batch. They are definitely the favorite and interestingly enough, the lowest in calories at 105 per bar. The entire ingredient list is as follows: pepitas, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, orange zest, lemon zest, orange juice, lemon juice, chia seeds, dried apricots, figs &/or dates, sea salt. Of course you could make them subbing a number of ingredients or leaving them out. Next time, I'm going to add finely chopped nuts to my take. Saulbury does list variations for this bar using nuts.

Now, if my food processor can't handle one batch of this mixture, it sure as shootin' ain't gonna handle two. I think I'll pulse the seeds and nuts separately and put them into a bowl. Then pulse the fig/date combo separately and then using hands, mix it all together. I was already using my hands for the final mixing. Couldn't possibly use a spoon.

I will also make something new this time. (Have to say that I don't like the 'fudgy' consistency at breakfast. ) (Oh, but they are fine later in the day.)

Edited February 27, 2014 by Darienne (log)

[jcg]

What page was the "No Bake Oatmeal Energy Bars with Cherries and Almonds recipe on?

[Darienne]

http://powerhungry.com/power-bars/ The No Bake Oatmeal, etc bars are not in the book, but are in Salusbury's blog at the URL as noted. On this page you'll find all the bars which were published before the book was out.

[jcg]

http://powerhungry.com/power-bars/ The No Bake Oatmeal, etc bars are not in the book, but are in Salusbury's blog at the URL as noted. On this page you'll find all the bars which were published before the book was out.

OK, I just got the book and looked through it twice trying to find the recipe. Anyways I think I'm going to start by making the Lucy bars as I like Laura bars. The other bars I like are Cliff bars, so wondering have you made the Nick bars? From the recipe ingredients it doesn't look like they would be that similar to Cliff bars?

[Darienne]

I haven't made the Nick bars. We once tried a Clif bar in Utah and neither of us liked it. But one try is not enough to form much of an opinion. I seem to recall that there is more than one kind of Clif bar.

As for the Lucy bars, I did make the variation out of the book, Carrot Cake Bar variation, p.51, and we found them just fine.

I'll try a Nick bar for sure. Today I made a double batch of Citrus-Seed-Fruit bars, my current go-to favorite.

[jcg]

Alright I made my first homemade energy bars yesterday, and they came out really good. I made 2 versions that both started out with the the Lara bar as the foundation to the recipe. The first was a peanut butter / chocolate chip version and the 2nd was an espresso dark chocolate version (both recipes below).

 

1 cup (10-11) dates (pitted and soaked in warm water)

1/4 cup mixed dried fruits

1/2 cup cashews

1/2 cup walnuts

1/2 cup chocolate chips

1 cup rolled oats

1T cocoa powder

2T peanut butter

1T honey

1/4t salt

 

Add everything to the food processor and pulse 5-10 times and then press into a 4"x8" bread pan. Freeze for 15 minutes and cut into 8 bars & wrap.

 

 

1 cup (10-11) dates (pitted and soaked in warm water)

1/4 cup mixed dried fruits

1/2 cup cashews

1/2 cup walnuts

1/2 cup grated dark chocolate

1 cup rolled oats

2T ground coffee

1T honey

1/4t salt

 

Add everything to the food processor and pulse 5-10 times and then press into a 4"x8" bread pan. Freeze for 15 minutes and cut into 8 bars & wrap.

[Darienne]

Those two variants sound really good and I think I might try the second one.  With my own twist, of course.... .  I find it easier to heat the date in the microwave. and I think I'd like the fruits, oats and dates finer than the nuts.  Just bought some fresh ground espresso and that should perk it up for morning.  Thanks, jcg.

Hmmm...my mixed dried fruits are also candied.  Could cut back on the dates a bit. 

Glad the recipes turned out well for you.

[jcg]

Actually when I made them I pulsed the dates / dried fruit by themselves a few times to get them down to a paste type consisitency. I also forgot in the recipe I posted that when everything was pulsed together I mixed in 1/2 cup of puffed rice cereal. For some reason I can edit my posts now (maybe the site is doing maintenance) but once I can I'll edit the recipes I posted to correct them.

[Darienne]

I expect the puffed rice would make the bars less sticky...if they were sticky in the first place.  Some of her bars are and they need to be wrapped.  At this point, I'm not interested in having to wrap bars because so far we're just eating them at home. 

What 'dried fruit' are you talking about? 

[jcg]

I used the mixed fruit from the link below, and I bought it at Costco where you can get a good deal on the 24 oz bag. I originally bought it to add to homemade granola, but it also works great for these energy bars. The lara bar recipe ends up with kind of a sticky bar that doesn't have much "stiffness" to it (at least compared to a real Laura bar), so that is why I mixed in the puffed rice at the end. Also the puffed rice I got is bigger than say rice krispies, so next time I would give them a very rough chop to make most of the pieces a bit smaller so they integrate better when you mix them in. I just wrapped the bars in saran wrap and leave them in the frig, so I can bring them with me when I want a snack.

 

https://www.madeinnature.com/product/organicantioxidant-fusion-blend/

 

jcg

[Darienne]

So I said I'd try every recipe in the book and eventually I will but now that I've found a delicious one for daily breakfasts, it's become less of an imperative to keep trying new ones right now.  Basically I'm working on perfecting making a double batch of the Citrus-Seed-Fruit Bars.

 

My food processor is not up to the job as described by the author, particularly not for a double batch, and so I've worked around the directions.

 

First of all I quit roasting the seeds.  Inherent laziness and honestly I could not tell the difference between roasted and unroasted.  I dump all the seedy things into the processor and chop them really lightly.  I like the pieces as big as the mixture can manage.  Then I heat the apricots in the microwave to soften them and chop them.  Then heat the dates in the microwave to soften them and chop them into a paste.  Each processing gets dumped into a large bowl.  This is all mixed by hand  and then I add the wet/citrus stuff (eliminating the salt) and mix well by hand.  Into a 9"x11" pan, lined with an inexpensive silicone mat cut to size.  Smoothed with a silicone spatula and into the oven it goes.  Done.  Oh, and I cut them into 16 instead of 20.  They are the lowest calorie of the power bars at 105 each for 10 in a single recipe.  Two bars is 210 at 10/recipe and that's not enough for breakfast. 

 

Not elegant.  But done quickly and with two of us eating them for breakfast they don't last long.  Not to mention the occasional mid-day snack.  Just love 'em.

[Darienne]

Finally did a variation on the Citrus-Seed-Fruit Bars, Cardamom Fig Bars.  Did not toast the walnuts (how lazy can you get?) and added a whole teaspoon of ground cardamom.  Delicious.  Great.  Loved them.  The only problem is that the cheapest figs I can buy cost double the best dates. 

 

And as for the basic Citrus-Seed-Fruit Bars, I process only the pepitas.  Don't bother with the smaller seeds.

 

I really do have to try something completely new.

[Darienne]

So, in keeping with my solemn promise, I made a brand new recipe from Power Hungry: Morning Maple Bars, p.68-69, using the maple syrup given to us by maple syrup producing neighbors just on Friday.  Followed the recipe pretty religiously except, of course, leaving out the salt (high blood pressure dictates) and using peanut butter instead of another seed butter which would have been preferable.  Alas we live way out in the middle of nowhere and if you don't have, you don't get.

 

The results were very nice, except, as warned in the 'tips', the maple syrup was somewhat overwhelmed by the peanut flavor.  I even did the prescribed toasting which the tips said you could ignore. 

 

Not nutty or seedy enough for my taste, although very nice. Still useful for breakfast.

Edited May 18, 2014 by Darienne (log)

[paulraphael]

Do the recipes in the book include nutritional information? People eat bars for different reasons, and I find that some are suitable for one purpose while being useless for another.

 

I'm kind of a clif bar addict but have developed some digestive problems and am starting to suspect the soy isolate. If this turns out to be the case I'll play with making my own with other ingredients. This book looks like it might have some good starting points.

[Darienne]

The Clif bar substitutes are called Nick Bars and the nutritional breakdown per bar is:  Calories 195, Fat 7.5 g (Saturated  1.8 g), Cholesterol 1 mg, Sodium 41 mg, Carbs 29.8 g (Fiber 3.2g, Sugars 19.8 g), Protein 4.9 g.  The recipe does not contain soy.  I have not made the Nick Bars.

 

As noted above, I am stuck on the Citrus Bars and in fact, just made another double batch today, one of the variants, further varied by my own fair hand, of course.

 

Good luck with the book.  It's pretty good.

Edited June 19, 2014 by Darienne (log)

[paulraphael]

Thanks Darienne. I'm just glad the book includes the breakdowns. Not really trying to clone a clif bar, but I'd like to be able to work with her recipes without having to do all the math myself.

 

On another note, does anyone remember the original power bars? I've had the misfortune of trying to eat them in cold weather, miles from other food. I think the main ingredient is fiberglass.

[Prabha]

All these bars sound delicious! One question though - can these be stored at room temperature, and for how long? DH would like some snacks to keep around at work.

[Darienne]

Hi Prabha,  I flipped through the book looking at the storage information and the bars will keep at room temperature from 2 days to 1 week.  (In the refrigerator from 1 to 2 weeks.)  I owuld imagine that this is based on the ingredients.  There are no preservatives in the bars so that's where the short room temperature storage lies.