Vegan and Gluten-Free Energy Bars

Many of you wrote us a few weeks ago saying that you enjoyed the homemade energy bar recipes that we put up. Well we have plenty more where that came from. For those interested in a Vegan and/or Gluten-Free bar, we’ve got you covered.

Most store-bought bars are packed with ingredients that are good for you like: dried fruits, seeds, nuts, grains, and nut & seed butter. Even though store-bought bars make a delicious and convenient mid-morning snack or post workout treat, they can be costly and some have as much sugar as a candy bar. It also can be hard to find Gluten-Free or Vegan options when you are in a rush. So, why not make them yourself? It’s really easy to do and hey, food usually tastes better when it’s homemade, right? Listed below is an easy (and tasty) recipe:

Vegan, Gluten-Free No-Bake Energy Bars

These no-bake bars are thrown together in minutes and make the perfect snack to store in the freezer for a quick burst of energy. Feel free to use sunflower seed butter to make these nut-free. I used an unsweetened/unflavored protein powder, so if you are using a sweetened protein powder, you will likely have to reduce the liquid sweetener (and make up for the lack of liquid by adding some non-dairy milk). Play around with it if necessary and aim for a cookie dough texture. You can also roll the dough into balls and add in chocolate chips if you don’t wish to make them into bar form.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups gluten-free rolled oats, blended into a flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened/unflavoured vegan protein powder
• 1/2 cup rice crisp cereal
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt, to taste
• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter, almond butter, or sunflower seed butter
• 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 tablespoons mini dark chocolate chips
• 1/2 tablespoon coconut oil

Directions:

1. Line an 8-inch square pan with a piece of parchment paper. Mix the oat flour, protein powder, rice crisp, and salt together in a large bowl.
2. Add in the nut/seed butter, maple syrup, and vanilla. Stir well to combine. If the mixture is a bit dry, add a splash of non-dairy milk and mix again.
3. Press into pan and roll out with a pastry roller until smooth. Pop into the freezer.
4. Melt the chocolate chips and coconut oil together in a small pot over low heat. When half of the chips have melted, remove from heat and stir until smooth.
5. After freezing the bars for about 5-10 minutes, remove from freezer and slice into bars. Drizzle with melted chocolate and freeze again until set. Store in the freezer for a week or longer in an air-tight freezer bag or container.

Whether you use them for a pre-workout snack, to aid in your weight loss mission, or to just provide a dose of complete protein, these healthy energy bars will keep you full. If you have a long day ahead of you (like a canyon bike tour with Escape Adventures), you definitely want to fill up on something other than multiple cups of coffee.