Apricot Energy Bars
Author: 
Prep time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 27
 
Ingredients
Dry ingredients:
  • 1 slightly scant cup almonds (5 oz.)
  • ¾ cup shredded coconut (2.5 oz.)
  • ⅓ cup hemp hearts (1.7 oz)
  • ⅓ cup protein powder (I used Soy-Free Veg)
  • ¼ cup (4 Tbsp.) chia seeds
  • 1.5 Tbsp. cinnamon
  • 2 tsp. cardamom
Wet ingredients:
  • 9 oz. Medjool dates, pitted (13 dates)
  • 9 oz. dried apricots (1.75 cup not packed)
  • ¼ tsp. almond extract (I used Frontier almond flavor)
Instructions
  1. You will need a food processor for this recipe. The wet dates and firm apricots are too much for a blender to handle,even my Vitamix.
  2. Process dry ingredients.
  3. Transfer the meal from the food processor to a bowl and set aside.
  4. Process the apricots first since they are the hardest to chop. Then add the dates, almond extract and the dry ingredients and process until the mixture coheres.
  5. Using a Cuisinart, the final product will be moist, shiny, and fairly homogenized though the chia seeds will not have blended.
  6. Place a parchment paper in a baking pan or on a baking sheet.
  7. Roll/pat the mixture out to a flat sheet.
  8. Chill in the refrigerator for at least half an hour.
  9. Cut into bars. (alternatively, shape into balls or cookie shapes).
  10. Yield: about 1# 11 oz. (perhaps slightly more, there was a little snacking involved before I got out the scale)
  11. This will make about 27 0.8 oz. small bars or balls of about 100 calories each, or 16 1.7 oz. bars of 200 calories each.
Notes
Per 1.7 oz. serving: 203 calories, 9.8 g fat, 3.3 g saturated fat, 5.8 g protein, 20.4 mg sodium, 27.2 g carbohydrate, 5.6 g fiber, 20.1 g sugar, calcium 77.7 mg.
Recipe by Fit and Fed at http://fitandfed.net/2014/04/02/apricot-almond-chia-energy-bars/