Tag Archives: snacks

Homemade Nutri-Grain Bars

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28

Who doesn’t like a Nutri-Grain bar?  I used to eat them like crazy until I wrote Nutri-Grain Bars Exposed.  If you read it as well, you probably know that they are laden with way too many chemical and artificial dyes.  So, naturally, I had to create my own!

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Sadly, it took me two tries.  The first recipe I made came out like this:

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I did some tweaking the second time around and they still didn’t look that pretty, but I thought, what the heck, I will post them!  The second time I learned from my mistakes so hopefully, these will be easy for you to make. I made them with pureed dates and also with a fruit spread. I personally liked the dates better as a filling, but use what ever you like. I may make them in the future with my Homemade Vegan Nutella.  :)

Homemade Nuti-Grain Bars

For the bars:

1 cup almonds
1 cup oats
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 egg (I used a flax egg replacer)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup applesauce
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup coconut oil
2 T milk (I used oat milk)
salt to taste

For the filling:

your favorite fruit spread or 12 medjool dates blended up into a caramel with a bit of water

Preheat oven to 350. In a food processor, grind up the almonds and oats. Measure them before grinding. Once they are ground into a slightly course consistency, add them to a bowl with the rest of the dry ingredients. In another bowl, add the wet ingredients. Add dry to wet and mix just until combined. Gather the dough into a ball. It will be a bit sticky. Wrap it in plastic and place in the fridge for about 30-60 minutes to firm up. Once firm, cut a piece of parchment paper the size of a baking sheet and lay it on the counter. Cut the dough ball in half.  I used a bench scraper to cut mine.  Take one piece and roll it out onto the parchment, putting some plastic wrap between the rolling pin and dough. Roll it until it is about 1/4-1/2 inch thick. Spread jam onto the top. Roll the second ball of dough the same way onto another piece of parchment. Place that onto the dough with the jam. I made sure all the sides were sealed up. Then slice into squares with a pizza cutter. Bake for about 13 minutes. These should last a week or two. You can freeze them too.  Save your parchment paper as well.  You can re-use the same piece over and over again.  Enjoy!

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Homemade Fig Newtons

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Before we cleaned up our diet, Fig Newtons were a big staple around here.  They are often touted as a healthy option for kids.  So when I read the label for my Fig Newton Exposed post, I was disgusted at all the nasty stuff in them!  Mine are so much healthier and a cookie you can feel good about giving your kids.

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These are made with whole grains and no refined sugars, unlike the real cookies.  The real cookies contain high fructose corn syrup. :(   You can also use the recipe as a base to add in your own fillings.  If you filled these with fruit, they would almost taste like a Nutri-Grain bar as well.  The possibilities are endless.  I also added a little cinnamon to the dough to spice it up a bit.  I think it turned out well that way.  One other thing to note is, using the coconut oil will not make them taste like coconut at all, but it does help add a sweetness to the cookies.

Homemade Fig Newtons

For the cookie:

2 cups white whole wheat flour
2 eggs (I used a flax egg replacement)
1/3 cup coconut oil
1/3 cup maple syrup
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp ground vanilla bean or extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 T milk (I used oat milk)
2 T applesauce unsweetened

For the filling:

15-20 figs (I used Turkish Figs I got at Sprouts)
1 T maple syrup
water

Preheat oven to 350. In a food processor, grind up the figs, 1 T maple syrup and a bit of water. You want the figs to be the consistency of peanut butter so only add a bit of water. I think I used about 1 tablespoon. Blend into a paste and set aside. In one bowl mix all the dry ingredients. In another bowl, mix the wet. Add dry to wet and mix only until combined. Be careful not to over-mix. The dough will be sticky and a bit wet. Gather it in a ball and wrap it. Put the dough in the fridge for about an hour to firm up. Once firm, roll the dough onto a floured surface. I tried to roll my dough as square as possible. Once the dough is rolled out, spread the fig mixture onto half of the dough. Once the fig mixture is spread, fold 1 half of the dough onto the other and cut into squares. I cut mine into about 2×2 squares and used a pizza cutter to do so.  Place on lined baking sheet and bake for about 12-15 minutes. I got about 16 out of my batch. They should last a couple of weeks, but you can refrigerate them to make them last even longer.  Enjoy!

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Save Money By Making Your Own Hummus

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Hummus is probably one of the easiest things you can make yourself.  It takes only minutes to make.

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Most store bought versions contain unwanted additives as well as GMOs.  If you look at the ingredients in Sabra’s Classic Hummus, they are as follows:

Cooked Chickpeas (Chickpeas [Garbanzos], Water), Tahini (Ground Sesame), Soybean Oil, Garlic, Salt, Citric Acid, Potassium Sorbate Added to Maintain Freshness, Natural Flavors. Classic Hummus

Why is there soybean oil in hummus?  Traditionally, it’s made with olive oil….and you certainly would not use natural flavors if you made it in your own kitchen.  According to Wikipedia, Sabra is partly own by Pepsi.  You know the soda people?  They spent a lot of money lobbying against GMO labeling.

If you didn’t know, my mother in law is Turkish and this is her hummus recipe.  It is really good!  I have not tried freezing it, but I am sure you probably could.

Homemade Hummus

2 cups cooked or 1 can chickpeas drained and rinsed
1/4 cup tahini
Juice of 1 lemon
1-2 tsp cumin (I used two)
3 cloves garlic or 2 tsp garlic powder (I use real garlic)
1/2 tsp salt
1 T olive oil

Process the chickpeas in the food processor or blender to get them started. Then add all the remaining ingredients until everything is smooth and well mixed. If it is too thick, just add a bit of water until you get the consistency you desire. That is it.  Sometimes I drizzle a bit of oil over the top.  Enjoy!

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