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

 

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!

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!



Apple Nachos

Super sweet and healthy alternative to  traditional nachos. I had a craving for sweet and crunchy yesterday evening, and discovered these are perfect for movie nights!

 



 

 

You will need:

1 apple (I chose Gala because they are super sweet and crunchy)

1/2 tsp. of semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 tsp. of butterscotch chips

1/2 tsp. unrefined coconut oil

 

1. Start by quartering your apple, and cut out the core. Continue by slicing away thin pieces from each quarter.

2. Add coconut oil, semi-sweet chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips to  small bowl and microwave stirring frequently until all are melted together (I left a few butterscotch chips unmelted for texture).

3. Drizzle the mix over your apples and ready to serve!

Gluten-Free Cinnamon Tortilla Chips with Blueberry-Mango Fruit Salsa

Today I realized I had way more gluten free tortillas left than I could eat as wraps, so I decided to mix things up a bit. Let's just say the results were pretty amazing.

You will need:

1 pan

Tinfoil

1 tsp. of coconut oil (preferably organic and unrefined)

2 large gluten free tortillas (or 4 small ones...or tortillas of your choice)

Cinnamon to sprinkle

1/2 cup of fresh mango

1/2 cup of fresh blueberries

1 heaping tbsp. of Light Cool Whip

Steps:

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Cover your pan with tinfoil (you can spray it with cooking spray if you feel the tortillas might stick...I didn't...probably should have. Haha.)

2. Lay out your tortillas on the pan and get a teaspoon of coconut oil out.

3. Place the coconut oil in a boil and microwave until melted.

4. Spread/drizzle the coconut oil over the tortillas and then sprinkle cinnamon over them (use as much as you like)

5. Cut the tortillas into little triangle-shaped pieces about the size of average tortilla chips (triangle-SHAPED is the keyword. Mine tend to vary as the cutting goes on...haha). Place in the oven for about 5 minutes or until they have reach desired crispiness.

6. Chop up blueberries. (I put wax paper over the cutting board because it makes my life easier when it comes time to clean up)

7. Chop up the mango.

8. Place the blueberries and mango in a bowl and mix together.

9. This is optional, but I like to add a dollop of Light Cool Whip and sprinkle cinnamon on top to garnish. Yum.

10. Place tortillas on a plate and they are ready for dipping. Mmmm.

 ...and this is the result you can expect because they are soooo yummy! I could have demolished the whole pan! Good luck!

Cauliflower Crust Pizza

I tried my hand at cauliflower pizza crust last night as an alternative to my usual store-bought, gluten-free pizza crust. Turns out it's amazing, and even my gluten-eating family liked it! Definitely a must-try! 

 

 

This super easy crust takes about ten minutes to construct. The hardest part is steaming the cauliflower...like I said, super easy!

You will need:

1 cup of steamed cauliflower grated or mashed
1 egg

1 tbsp. of Parmesan cheese
2 tsp. of basil
2 tsp. of parsley
1 tsp. of oregano
1/2 tsp. of Italian spice

1 small mixing bowl

1 potato masher

1 small pizza pan or baking dish

 Precooked desired pizza toppings (the crust is not in the oven long enough to cook most toppings, but veggies can be left uncooked)

Pizza sauce of your choice

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 450F.

2. Prepare and cook all desired pizza toppings (I just cooked up some ground beef and Italian sausage and diced some green pepper, onion, and added some canned mushrooms).
3. Mash steamed cauliflower well (I started off by grating it and got lazy, and found that a potato masher is equally effective).

4. Add egg, cheese, and spices.

5. Mash mix with a fork and mix well.

6. Put the mix in a greased pizza pan (I just used cooking spray). Make sure to spread at least 1/2 inch to 1 inch thick - I made mine waaay to thin the first try)

7. Bake at 450F for 12-15 min. or until edge gold AND middle is crisp (you do not want the middle to be uncooked, bleh)

8. Add pizza sauce and PRECOOKED toppings and place back in the oven until toppings are hot  (should take about 5 minutes).
 

Super tasty! Good luck!

Fruit Salad Deluxe

I made this over the holidays and it was amazing!

You will need: 

- 4 large strawberries

- 1/2 cup of pineapple (preferably fresh)

- 1 orange

- 10 maraschino cherries

- 1 tbsp. walnuts

- 1/2 tsp. cinnamon-sugar mix. 

Slice:

- Strawberries

- Pineapple

- Oranges

- Apples

Cut cherries in half.

Mix all but 5 cherry halves together in a medium size bowl.

Sprinkles walnuts and cinnamon-sugar over top of the mixture.

Place the 5 cherry halves on top in any design.

Refrigerate and serve chilled.

Serves 4.