Thursday, April 30, 2015

Easy Homemade Larabars




 Who doesn't like saving $$$$.  It's much more cost effective to make your own.  I buy most of my ingredients from Winco in the bulk section.  There is no magic amounts to this recipe.  Be brave and play around with the ingredients till you find your favorites.


LARABARS
Ingredients:
1 cup Pitted Dates
1 cup Unsalted Almonds
2 tbsp. Almond Butter
1 tbsp. Chia Seeds
2 tbsp. Cocoa
a pinch of salt

CHANGING the flavor- 
- unsweetened coconut
- replace almond butter for peanut butter or cashew butter.
- You can use pecans, cashews, I add 1/2 cup of almonds and 1/2 walnuts sometimes
- Cacao Nibs, or dark chocolate
- 1tsp Vanilla,
- Lemon or lime juice
- Spices {Cinnamon}
- Banans
- Dried fruit Blueberries, cherries, apricots, craisins
 {play around with it}

If your Dates are old you can either soak them or add water till the ingredients stick together.  

HOW TO MAKE THEM:
- In a food processor chop up almonds until smooth {but not too much to where it beings to start making actual almond butter}, set aside in a bowl
- In a food processor chop together the dates, cocoa powder, chia seeds, almond butter, and pinch of salt. It will want to clump together in a ball while doing so, so just continue to break it up with a spoon and mix more.
- Add back in the almonds and mix up all is smooth together.
- Line an 8×8 dish with parchment {or wax} paper, and press the mix in until even. Set in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- After 30 minutes, take out and cut in to desired size pieces. I make mine a little smaller than the actual Larabars sold, since I don’t feel like I ever need the whole thing. Wrap in press-n-seal, wax paper, whatever you have on hand.
I refrigerator about half my batch and freeze the other half. They will last about 4 days in the fridge, but much longer if frozen. Simply let then thaw out in the fridge before eating the frozen ones!

{{{{Honest truth---Somedays I have zero energy so I put everything in the food processor and mix it, You will get some big chunks of nuts rather then an even chopped batch of them.  BUT I don't mind}}}}

Here are the official LARA Bar flavors

  • Apple Pie
  • Banana Bread
  • Blueberry Muffin
  • Carrot Cake
  • Cashew Cookie
  • Cherry Pie
  • Chocolate Chip Brownie
  • Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
  • Chocolate Coconut Chew
  • Cinnamon Roll
  • Coconut Cream Pie
  • Ginger Snap
  • Key Lime Pie
  • Lemon Bar
  • Peanut Butter & Jelly
  • Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip
  • Peanut Butter Cookie
  • Pecan Pie
  • Tropical Fruit Tart
 

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Oven Roasted Asparagus

This is the best Oven Roasted Asparagus I have ever had.  Oven roasting the asparagus kills the natural bitterness.  This is also good on fresh green beans.


Prep time: 5 min.
Cook time: 12-15


1 Bunch of Asparagus
3 Tablespoons of Olive Oil
1 1/2 Tabelspoons grated Parmesan Cheese
1 Clove Garlic, Minced
1 Teaspoon Sea Salt
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice

Preheat Oven to 425 Degrees (220 degrees C).
Wash asparagus, place everything in a bowl and mix till asparagus are coated. Arrange in a single layer on baking sheet.
Cook 12-15 minutes.
Eat while they are still warm.