Pretty Paleo Protein Power

I've been looking for a decent homemade alternative to those soy-protein isolate protein bars that fuel most athletes, and given my current eating habits, the more paleo the better for me.

I call these "Carrie Bars" in honor of my friend Carrie who gave me the recipe. She's my cooking mentor, always coming up with new and cool foods, always nutritious and fun. Seriously, she made Ratatouille the other night that was so good my teenager asked for seconds and then asked for the recipe!

To me, these bars still taste too sweet, so I'm experimenting with how much honey I can cut out and still have the bars hold together. I already cut the added sugar out of the recipe, but I think maybe the honey can be decreased still more. I also added the coconut, Chia seeds and hemp seeds, because those are nutritional powerhouses, and removed the rolled oats (1/2C) and the puffed grain cereal (1/2 C) that were in the original recipe. I have to admit, the original ones tasted better with the cereal, it made them lighter and crunchier, but I'm trying to stay away from grains right now and the kids love these the way they are so it's all good.

I usually quadruple the recipe, but that's because my kids love to pack these along whenever they need a quick snack, and hubby has turned into a mountain biking monster and so he needs lots of easily available fuel as well.



Carrie Bars

1/2 C. Slivered almonds
1/2 C. Sunflower seeds (raw, unsalted)
2 T. Flax seeds
2 T. Chia seeds
2 T. Sesame seeds
2 T. Hemp seeds
2 T. Shredded coconut

Combine all of these and spread in a large glass baking dish or edged baking sheet. Toast for 5 minutes at 350 degrees, stir and toast for 5 more minutes until the nuts are aromatic and slightly browned.

Dump into a large mixing bowl and stir in:

2/3 C. Raisins or dried cranberries
2/3 C. Dried currants
2/3 C. Dried chopped apricots

Then in a saucepan over med-low heat, combine:
1/2 C. Almond Butter
1/2 C. Honey
1 t. vanilla
1/4 t. salt

Stir well until lightly bubbling. Remove from heat and immediately pour over nut mixture, stir until blended. Press into well-greased pans and chill to set. Yummm!