With the long summer days, I’ve been trying to burn as much daylight (and calories) as possible; hiking, mountain biking, kayaking, pretty much any activity that ends in “-ing.” Here in Central Oregon, the hinterlands are often no further away than out your back door.
Of course, there aren’t many stores in the hinterlands, so any food I want or need is going to have to come with me. I had been taking store-bought power bars on my adventures, but lately I’ve been wanting to take a more healthy version of these along. Making your own energy bars isn’t difficult, but when it starts getting warm outside, baking in the kitchen is pretty low on my List of Things I Want to Do.
After digging around on the internet, I found a great recipe at This Rawsome Vegan Life that perfectly fit my hankering for a healthy snack that is good and good for you, quick to make, vegan friendly, and wouldn’t require firing up the oven.
- Dave Meddish, Healthy Goods
Ingredients
- 1 cup walnut
- 1/3 cup chia seed
- 1/3 cup ground flax seeds
- 1/3 cup hemp seed
- 1/4 cup cacao nibs
- 1/4 cup coconut flakes
- 3/4 cup pumpkin seeds
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1 cup dates (I like deglet noor)
- 1-2 tablespoons coconut oil, if needed
Directions
Throw the dry ingredients (keep a little bit of each ingredient to add in a second) in your food processor, then add the dates and raisins and process until everything starts to stick together. If too dry, add more dates or coconut oil. Put in the remaining dry ingredients you left out and mix in with your hands. Press into a lined pan and set in the fridge for an hour or more. Cut into bars and store for up to one week. Yields about 15 bars.
Notes
These are great at room temperature but can get a bit gooey on the trail. If I’m going for a longer excursion, I’ll freeze these beforehand so they stay solid longer.
