No Bake Gluten Free Energy Bites - 2 Kinds! (Easy to make in a dorm room!)

 

I don't know why, but I have had the worst craving for granola bars lately. 

 

 

Most granola bars contain gluten, so that means they are out for me. I have taken a liking to a couple gluten free varieties, but you have to really watch the sugar levels in the nutrition info. My favorite brand is "All-But-Gluten" and my second favorite is "Enviro-Kidz". Both can be found at Walmart.

Though these are great when on-the-go, gluten free granola bars can be really expensive (like 4-5 dollars per box). On a student budget I find it's sometimes easier to make my own 'packaged' types of food.

I love peanut butter and was looking for a high-protein snack so one variety I made is peanut butter. The other, of course, since it's autumn and I have a ton of pumpkin in my fridge, is pumpkin spice.

These are super tasty. The batter was good on it's own! The best part is I have tried and tested making them on a piece of wax paper on my dorm room floor, so I know it is possible for EVERYONE.

 

 

Before getting started I should note not to be afraid to experiment with these. If the consistency isn't right I just rearrange the mixture a bit (it's really difficult to mess these up). ;)

Also, if you want to shape them into bars rather than bites, just place the mix in an 8"x8" square baking dish or pan, chill, and then slice into bars. Good luck and enjoy!

 

For Peanut Butter Energy Bites

You will need:

1 cup gluten free oats

1 medium-sized extra ripe banana (make sure it is ripe...it's difficult to mix if it's not soft)

2 tsp. ground flax

1 small handful of raisins

1 small handful of unsweetened coconut

3 heaping tbsp. of organic peanut butter (or nut butter of your choice)

 

1. Put all ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl

2. Stir/mash together the ingredients with a fork. (They may seem dry, but the more you stir, the more the oats soak up the moist ingredients)

3. One the mix is stirred well and at desired consistency, scoop tbsp.'s full and squeeze firmly in hand to make dense before rolling into balls.

4. Place on wax paper (or in containers) and refrigerate...or freeze for a delicious frozen treat

 

 

For Pumpkin Spice Energy Bites

You will need:

1 cup gluten free oats

1 medium-sized extra ripe banana (make sure it is ripe...it's difficult to mix if it's not soft)

2 tsp. ground flax

1 small handful of raisins

1 small handful of unsweetened coconut

3 heaping tbsp. of pumpkin puree

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 packet of Truvia

 

1. Put all ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl

2. Stir/mash together the ingredients with a fork. (They may seem dry, but the more you stir, the more the oats soak up the moist ingredients)

3. One the mix is stirred well and at desired consistency, scoop tbsp.'s full and squeeze firmly in hand to make dense before rolling into balls. - This is especially important since the pumpkin will make these bites extra moist

4. Place on wax paper (or in containers) and refrigerate...or freeze for a delicious frozen treat

 

Early morning wake up

 

I have a busy weekend ahead of me...

 

 

...so I got up early to get a head start on my homework. Aside from my usual green smoothie and yoga practice, I've started beginning my day with a mug of warm water with lemon.

At first I found it extremely pungent, I've grown to find it extremely refreshing...(dare I say, even more so than my morning cup of coffee).

The digestive benefits have been incredible! Bye-bye heartburn and bloating. My skin has been amazing. I can't complain. It's almost like it glows.

Some people go the whole nine-yards with juice straight from a lemon, but going to university, I don't always feel like making a big mess in my room cutting stuff up. I just use bottled lemon juice. I still see incredible benefits. Just make sure it's 100% lemon.

 

 

You will need:

1 cup boiling water

1 cap of lemon juice or juice of half a lemon

 

 

Good luck! Try it as part of your morning routine and see how amazing you feel!





On-The-Go Healthy Lunch - Half Second Cup, Half DIY

 

Today I was really hungry, but really low on time.

 

I had a couple classes back to back and a short break in which I had to catch up on readings. I knew I would probably just sit in my room and eat junk since I didn't have a lot of time to prepare anything, so between classes when I stopped at Second Cup for a Green Tea (my favorite!) I picked up an Asian Spinach Salad to go.

The salad had spinach, carrots, edamame beans, purple cabbage, and mango (which was a pleasant twist). I tossed the high-calorie, high-fat, high-sugar balsamic vinaigrette that came with it and added some feta cheese for protein and extra flavor.

I'm on (another) feta kick right now, so I've been putting it on everything possible.

I had a sweet craving, but did not want to eat junk food for dessert so I made my watermelon feta salad for dessert instead.
Just an example of how you really can be healthy on-the-go. ;)

Movie Snack-Time! - Watermelon Feta Salad

Okay. So I was definitely a bit skeptical about this at first...

 

 

...but my skepticism quickly faded.

I am not a fan of ordering in high sugar, high fat foods for movie nights. My boyfriend used to love to order pizzas for movies, and I happily participated, until all my food allergies erupted. Not that I'm complaining. It was these allergies that taught me that I had to take a healthier road.

I really wanted sweets this past movie night, but at the same time I wanted the saltiness of a bag of chips, and the satisfying feeling that comes from protein rich meals.

I was Pinteresting it up for snack ideas...(surprise)...when I came to a watermelon feta salad. I had watermelon, I had feta...why not?

I just crumbled a tiny bit of feta over a few pieces of melon to start...but that quickly turned to giant chunks (as you can see) upon tasting it.

The tangy-saltiness of the feta and the sweetness of the watermelon are so complementing to each other. I have been eating this all week...(I even ran out of feta and had to get more just for this salad). The best part is it's high in fiber and protein and is super hydrating. Guilt free!

If you like watermelon and you like feta, you will love them together! Let me know what you think. Yum!

Afternoon Walk and Veg Session

After classes the weather was just too perfect not to go for a walk...

 

 

I have been sooo tired lately. Early semester readings have had me bogged down, but I couldn't help but take advantage of this beautiful day. This time of year I feel like my exercise regime kind of plateaus...or drops. School becomes all consuming.

We had to take a trip to the post office, so we decided to detour down through a small community and then took a short walk down a nature trail (I forgot my phone so I didn't get any pictures).

It was sooo hot by the time we got back to campus so I stopped at Second Cup for a sugar-free sparkling green tea lemonade and came back home to veg with some mindbodygreen.com

Sounds like a pretty good afternoon to me. :)



Gluten Free Parmesan-Herb Pasta

The other day I just really wanted pasta, but I didn't feel like doing anything elaborate. This dish was inspired by a discussion with another gluten-free friend of mine. Thanks, Kristy!

 

 

 

You will need:

1 cup spiral rice pasta

1/4 cup quartered cherry or grape tomatoes

1/4 cup of parmesan cheese

1/4 tsp. basil

1/2 tsp. oregano

A sprinkle of Italian spice

2 tsp. extra virgin, cold-pressed olive oil

 

1. Cook pasta

2. Drain pasta and pour drained pasta into bowl to serve.

3. Mix in oregano, basil, olive oil and parmesan.

4. Place tomatoes in the middle on top of the pasta.

5. Sprinkle Italian spice over the tomatoes.

 

It's that easy! If you like salt add a bit of sea salt for extra flavor! You will not believe how amazing this tastes!



Coconut Rainbow-S'more Oatmeal

I had a sweet tooth midday today, and wanted something pretty, so I put a spin on s'more oatmeal and changed it up a bit into something I thought was even more delicious!

 

 

 

 

You will need:

1 tbsp. rainbow mini marshmallows

1 tbsp. semi-sweet chocolate chips

3/4 cup oatmeal (I used gluten-free)

2 tbsp. unsweetened, shredded coconut

 

1. Boil 1/3 cup water in the microwave for 1 minute.

2. Stir in oatmeal, semi-sweet chocolate chips, rainbow mini marshmallows and coconut>

3. Serve and enjoy!