If you want to make one of the easiest, most nutritious snack bars around, these Protein Bars are for you!
Several years ago I went through a major “bar phase”. No, I wasn’t getting smashed all over town, I was consuming Luna, Lara and other similar types of protein bars at a rapid rate. It became such an obsession that two of my girlfriends and I actually set out to form our own bar company — just imagine getting to cook one of your favorite foods all day, every day. We had a name, a mission statement, and developed recipes for every flavor of bar under the sun and they were delicious (I think).
But unlike the majority of bars on the market that are jam packed with additives and sugar, our goal was to make something completely organic, packed with protein, devoid of sugar, and full of flavor. The bigger goal was to do all this using as few ingredients per bar as possible. The bar business became a casualty of our busy lives, but I still produce them for my friends and family.
Which got me thinking. Breakfast can be a real challenge when you’re trying to get your entire family out the door and sending your little one to school with a healthy snack can be just as hard. This Protein Bar recipe is a treat that everyone (over the age on 1 and no history of nut allergies) in the family will love and since the recipe makes 16 bars and they stay fresh for weeks. You’re set!
More Bar Recipes
Wrap them individually and toss them in snack bags or bring them along for an easy, on-the-go treat that you and your family will love. They’re the perfect thing to be sending along with your kids to school as well!
Protein Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup cashews, raw and unsalted
- 1 cup almonds, raw and unsalted
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries or chocolate chips
- 2 1/4 cup dates (about 20)
- 3/4 cup rolled oats
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon honey or agave
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 170°F (or put your oven on it’s lowest setting and adjust the cooking time).
- Place the nuts in a bowl and cover with COOL water and soak for 1 hour.
- Cover the dates with HOT water and soak for 30 minutes. After soaking, drain off the water and pit the dates.
- Place the oats in a food processor and grind to a powder. Place in a separate large bowl.
- Drain the water off the nuts, place on a towel to remove excess water. Place the nuts in a food processor with the dried cranberries (chocolate chips) and pulse until nuts are in small pieces (the nuts will be uneven pieces which is fine. Just make sure they are all chopped.
- Place the nuts in the bowl with the oats.
- Place the dates, vanilla and honey (agave) in food processor and pulse until it makes a puree.
- Place the date mixture with the oat mixture and thoroughly combine all the ingredients (mixture will be thick and sticky).
- Place the date nut mixture on a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet.
- Shape into a long rectangle about 1/2 inch thick and measuring about 8 x 10 inches. Make sure the rectangle is flat and even.*
- Bake for 4.5-5 hours or until the log is firm, but not hard (If the lowest setting on your oven is 200 degrees, cook for 4 hours).
- Cool, cut into bars and wrap individually.
Video
Notes
- If using a dehydrator, heat at 135 degrees and dehydrate for 6-8 hours
How much protein is in each bar? Have you ever added protein powder to the ingredients?
hi, ws going through the recipe of protein bars, i want to ask you that its written that we ll have to bake it fir 4 hours, is it?
Yes!
Can I use raw peanuts as alternative for almond ?
You can definitely soak the nuts overnight… I do that when I make almond milk. I wouldn’t soak the dates for too long because they could get too waterlogged and end up mushy!
I’m going to make these later today – thanks for the great idea and recipe! I spend a small fortune on the Kit’s Organic bars for my children. I have a question regarding soaking the nuts and dates: is it okay to soak them longer than the respective 1 hour and 30 minutes called for? Like overnight even?
So far my favorite recipe! Thanks so much. Big hit with everyone! Thanks for the freezer tip! Next time ill try a nut free version so I can send to school. I really prefer sweetening with dates and honey over stevia and the rice malt so this works out so great for us.
That should work out just fine. I would keep it to about 1 tablespoon so that you don’t affect the texture of the bars!
Hi Catherine,
My husband is a big fan of whey protein. Can I add a scoop of vanilla whey protein when mixing things up? Is there any downside to this?
Do the almonds and cashews need to be raw? If not, would I still need to soak them?
Thanks for sharing this recipe. I have 4 kids and they all love them, do did I and my hubby. I didn’t have cashews today and wanted to make them so I subbed in Pumpkin seeds and they worked great. Yum! Yum!
Yes! They freeze beautifully! I freeze them for about 30 minutes on a flat surface, and then transfer to a ziploc baggie. I pack them in school lunch at night, then by lunchtime the next day they are thawed. Freeze for up to 4 months!
Thanks Catherine. These look great! But I’m wondering if I could freeze them and use little bites for the kids’ lunch boxes over several weeks. Ever tried freezing them?
Just made these today. They are delicious!! Thanks for all the great recipes. I just bought Weelicious the cookbook and like it very much.
Thank you so much for the dehydrator instructtions. Cannot wait to try them!