S'mores Protein Balls

I HATE s'mores. Always have, always will. Whenever I was at a summer bonfire and someone said, "Who wants s'mores?" I was the party-pooper. Seriously. Who wants to eat a gooey, hot mess of chocolate and marshmallow sticking all over your hands? Okay, I understand how that sounds appetizing to some (maybe even most) people...but GROSS!

That is exactly why when I saw this the other day, I was skeptical. Maybe even a little perturbed. Who thinks that a s'more would ever be tasty as a protein ball? LIKE REALLY?! But since my husband is currently obsessed with me getting enough protein in my diet, I thought, What do I have to lose by making these? (Other than my precious chocolate chips, haha.)

Well, I will tell you what...I was WRONG! Sorry s'mores protein ball gods for ever doubting your wisdom! First bite turned into first love, which turned into obsession. I promise that if you make these, you will LOVE them! (Yikes, they better be as good as I think they are...)

S'mores Protein Balls

no bake, gluten free, low sugar, high protein

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups rolled oats (gluten free)

1/2 cup oat flour (gluten free, you can simply grind oats in a blender)

1/2 cup gluten free graham cracker crumbs (or any neutral tasting gluten free cereal)

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups vanilla protein powder

1 1/4 cup creamy nut butter of choice (I used peanut butter)

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup milk of choice (I used almond milk)

1/4 cup mini marshmallows

1/4 cup chocolate chips (dark or milk chocolate)

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, combine oats, oat flour, graham cracker (or cereal) crumbs, protein powder, and salt. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl, combine nut butter and honey. Microwave for about 1 minute or until melted.
3. Stir together wet mixture and dry mixture. Once this is well combined, add in milk.
4. Slowly stir in mini marshmallows and chocolate chips. (You may want to let the mixture cool down for 1-2 minutes before, as the marshmallows and chocolate may begin to melt.)
5. Form mixture into bite-sized balls, in the palm of your hand.
6. Store balls in a gallon baggie. You can place these either in the refrigerator or freezer. Personally, I like storing them in the freezer because they last longer and are easier to store.

Makes about 24 balls.

Nutrition Information (per ball)

Protein: 8g       Sugar: 4g       Fat: 8g       Calories: 130

Sarah's Best Homemade Granola Bars

Let's talk.
Granola bars.
They look yummy and they taste good too (hopefully!).
Sadly, they are often full of processed ingredients and refined sugars...since when is it okay to add in high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oils?!! NEVER!
Naughty, naughty, Quaker Chewy Granola Bars. They should know better.
And we should know better than to put that nasty stuff in our bodies. Ew! Ack! Guck!
Lucky for you, these granola bars are completely wholesome and 100% delicious.
Double whammy.

Homemade Granola Bars

• 2 cups oats (I like the combo of 1 cup quick oats and 1 cup whole oats)
• 2 1/2 cups puffed rice cereal
• 1/2 cup raisins 
• 1 tablespoon flax seed (optional)
• 3/4 cup honey
• 1 cup peanut butter (non-hydrogenated, all natural kind)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

In a large bowl, mix together rice cereal, oats, and raisins. 

In a smaller bowl, stir together honey and peanut butter, and heat in microwave until warm and slightly bubbly. Remove bowl from microwave and stir in vanilla, salt, and cinnamon.

Pour peanut butter mixture over dry cereal mixture. Mix well. Pour this granola mess into a sprayed 9x13 pan. Squash the granola down with your hands, as hard as you can.

Put this pan into the freezer and cool for about 30-45 minutes. Remove from freezer and cut granola into squares. Transfer to ziploc baggies and store in the freezer. By keeping them in the freezer, they will stay together easier and last longer.

Peanut Butta and Choco Chip Granny Bars

I am obsessed with peanut butter.
And chocolate.
And granola bars.

And the three of them together? DIVINE.

These "no-bake" little guys are incredibly simple to make. Just mix together and put in a pan.
My mouth is watering just at the sight of them.


Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

(makes one 9x13 pan...about 15 bars, depending on how much you eat yourself...)

• 2 1/2 cups crispy rice cereal
• 2 cups oats
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup flax seed
• 3/4 cup honey
• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1. In a large bowl, stir together the rice cereal, oats, and flax seed. Set aside. Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
2. In a medium size bowl, heat the honey and peanut butter in the microwave for 30 seconds to a minute (just until bubbling), then remove from microwave and stir in vanilla, salt, and cinnamon until smooth. Pour over the cereal and oat mixture, and mix well. Stir in the chocolate chips (I put them in at the end so they do not melt!)
3. Press into the prepared pan using the back of a large spoon. Allow to cool (I put them in the freezer), then cut into squares.
4. Eat as many as you can.

Ideas for add-ins: toasted coconut (favorite!), peanuts, almonds, walnuts, white chocolate chips, raisins, dried cranberries, sprinkles :)

You wanna know something sort of embarrassing?
I used to have another blog back in the day.
Yep, I did.
It was called Hinckley Health and Happiness  (dork alert!)
Please don't judge me for it's layout. I was just a baby when I started it!
Okay, it was only 2 years ago...
But being 19 makes me a baby, right? :)
But seriously. Every time I look at it I just laugh. My recipes were great. My food photography skills and overall layout = not my greatest work.
Not saying that I am amazing at photography now...that is most definitely not true.
But I have come a long way since then.
Yay me :)

I started making these granola bars over a year ago and I haven't been able to stop since. AND I haven't even gotten sick of them yet! It's a miracle. Here is the link to them on my old blog.

My good friend Jessica is serving a mission for the LDS Church right now, so I just had to send her some in the mail...food is meant to be shared with those you love :)

And these cute little guys just had to be bagged up.
Off you go!

Okay, so this is a little random and silly, but I want to start asking questions to all my readers...

So today's question is:

What is your favorite kind of granola bar?

(Feel free to reply in the form of a comment on this post)