Grab-and-Go Granola Bars

BY Liz September 5, 2017 6 Comments

Over the years, I’ve created a lot of recipes, but one of the toughest to nail was my Grab-and-Go Granola Bars. It took about 10 tries to get it just right, because a lot of homemade granola bars are too dry, so they crumble when you try to eat them, and some are just too sweet.

This recipe for healthy homemade granola bars is made with walnuts, dried fruit — choose from dried plums/prunes, raisins, cherries, apricots, and/or cranberries — oats, whole grain cereal, and eggs, and it’s sweetened naturally with honey. It works like a charm every time.

I’ve probably made this recipe a few dozen times over the years. Josh and Simon ate them for on-the-go breakfasts, after-school snacks, and a healthy pick-me-up during long bike rides and summer hikes. I’ve even made them for holiday cookie swaps too. So I guess you could call them really versatile!

Healthy homemade granola bar made w/#oats #walnuts a variety of dried fruit (cranberries, raisins, cherries, apricots) and sweetened naturally w/ #honey #HaveAPlant

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One batch lasts about a day in my house, but if you happen to have leftovers, you can wrap individual portions in plastic baggies or aluminum foil and freeze for later.

Grab-and-Go Granola Bars

Nutrition Information

Serves: 12

Serving size: (1 bar)
Calories: 200

Fat: 9g
Saturated fat: 1.5g
Carbohydrates: 30g
Sodium: 115mg
Fiber: 3g
Protein: 4g

Recipe type: Breakfast or Snack

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I love the flexibility of this recipe. You can use any nut -- pecans, almonds, walnuts -- and the same goes for the dried fruit. Just about anything goes.

Ingredients

1 cup quick cooking or old fashioned oats
1 cup spoon-size shredded wheat cereal
1 cup walnuts
1½ cups dried fruit (choose one or more of the following: dried plums/prunes, raisins, cherries, apricots, cranberries)
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
¼ cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly oil or coat an 8 x 8-inch baking pan or dish with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
Place the oats, shredded wheat, walnuts, dried fruit, cinnamon, and salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the mixture is finely chopped (the fruit should be the size of a dried pea or lentil).
Whisk together the eggs, honey, and vanilla in a large bowl until well combined. Add the oat mixture and chocolate chips and stir to combine.
Spread the mixture evenly in the prepared pan, and flatten gently with the back of a spoon or rubber spatula.
Bake about 18 minutes, or until the edges turn golden brown. Let cool completely in the pan before slicing into twelve 2 x 2½- inch bars.

If you have a favorite homemade healthy granola bar, tell me about it.

Gorgeous Green Smoothie Bowl – Recipe and VIDEO

BY Liz March 16, 2016 5 Comments

Energize your family’s day with this Gorgeous Green Smoothie Bowl. Made with kiwi, baby spinach (or kale), frozen banana, and other good-for-you-ingredients, you can serve this for breakfast or as an after-school snack.

I tend to get obsessed with food trends, and when smoothie bowls started popping up on Instagram, I started blending and decorating and devouring. My boys laugh at me when I go through my “little phases,” but clearly, they are the ones who reap the benefits. I became so fixated with smoothie bowls a while back that I even created a coloring cookbook dedicated to their versatility, good nutrition, and fun. Visit my Books & Freebies page to learn more about my Color, Cook, Eat! coloring e-book series.

Subscribe to my YouTube channel for more fast-paced cooking videos.

Gorgeous Green Smoothie Bowl for breakfast or #snack – #spinach #kiwi #banana #mango #GF

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If you think your kids won’t eat green food, try this gorgeous green bowl.

Get your kids excited about this recipe by having them add the ingredients to a blender. Or set out an assortment of toppings — coconut chips, raspberries, chia seeds, kiwi slices, and banana slices — and have the kids decorate their green smoothie bowls with whatever whets their appetite.

Gorgeous Green Smoothie Bowl

Author: Liz

Nutrition Information

Serves: 2 to 3

Serving size: ¾ cup
Calories: 190

Fat: 1.5g
Saturated fat: 0.5g
Carbohydrates: 42g
Sodium: 30mg
Fiber: 4g
Protein: 5g

Recipe type: Breakfast or Snack

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This smoothie bowl lives up to it's name: It's gorgeous! The color is a vibrant green thanks to the kiwi and baby spinach, but don't let the spinach freak you or the kids out, because each tiny leaf blends right in. And with mango as the star superfood ingredient, you'll get over 20 different vitamins and minerals in every spoonful. Smoothie bowls are thicker than smoothies, so pour into bowls, decorate with your favorite nutrient-rich toppings, and eat with a spoon.

Ingredients

1 cup frozen mango chunks
1 kiwi, peeled and sliced
1 cup loosely packed baby spinach or baby kale (or a mix of both)
1 sliced and frozen banana
½ cup 100% orange juice
½ cup low-fat vanilla Greek yogurt
2 teaspoon chia seeds
1 tablespoon agave nectar
Optional Toppings: Raspberries, coconut chips, kiwi slices, chia seeds

Instructions

Place the mango, kiwi, spinach, banana, juice, yogurt, chia seeds, and agave in a blender and blend until smooth.
Pour into individual bowls and garnish with your choice of optional toppings.

Notes

Check out all the bonus nutrients in our green bowl: 25% vit A, 110% vit C, and 10% calcium.

Have you jumped on the smoothie bowl bandwagon yet?

Purple Power Smoothie Bowls

BY Liz June 24, 2015 7 Comments

This Purple Power Smoothie Bowl is chock full of heart-healthy ingredients. I made it with 100% grape juice—which thanks to the Concord grapes, supports a healthy heart—as well as banana, Greek yogurt, frozen fruit, baby spinach and chia seeds. Serve with a variety of nutritious toppers for a colorful bowl of goodness for your family.

Disclosure: I created this recipe for Welch’s and was compensated for the recipe and social media outreach. All opinions are solely my own.

I am all for food trends, especially when those trends have the potential for bringing a BIG nutritional benefit to your family’s diet. Smoothie bowls are all the rage; they’re like smoothies, but instead of sipping them with a straw, you scoop them with a spoon. Perfect for breakfast or a snack, anything goes when it comes to what to put inside the bowl … and on top.

Grape juice made w/Concord grapes packs a nutrient punch in this Purple Power Smoothie Bowl @welchsRD #ad

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I used Welch’s 100% Grape Juice made with Concord grapes as the base for this smoothie bowl.

The Concord grape is a little purple berry that packs an impressive nutrition punch. That’s because Concord grapes contain natural plant nutrients called polyphenols — and research suggests that certain polyphenols may play a role in supporting healthy circulation and heart health. Purple is a cue for polyphenols, and typically the darker the color, the more polyphenols you’ll likely find.

And get this: According to a new study published in the European Journal of Nutrition, drinking 100% grape juice made with Concord grapes may boost brain health by improving attention and mood in young adults. Compared to the control group, those who consumed 100% grape juice felt calmer and experienced significant improvements in reaction time during attention-based tasks.

Hooray for PURPLE FOOD POWER

Did you know that many of the same natural plant nutrients found in red wine are also present in grape juice made with Concord grapes? Concord grapes are distinct from other grapes, including many table grapes, because they have a thick, dark purple skin and crunchy seeds.

Most people don’t eat enough purple produce. This recipe makes it a whole lot easier!

I went gangbusters with the smoothie bowl toppers choosing diced mango, kiwi, raspberries, coconut chips, and granola.

Purple Power Smoothie Bowl

Author: Liz

Nutrition Information

Serves: 2 to 3

Serving size: about 1 cup
Calories: 190

Fat: 2.5g
Saturated fat: 0.5g
Carbohydrates: 37g
Sodium: 30mg
Fiber: 4g
Protein: 6g

Recipe type: Breakfast or Snack

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Smoothie bowls can be made with a variety of ingredients. For this naturally sweet smoothie bowl, I opted for purple by blending together Concord grape juice, frozen banana and pineapple, baby spinach, and chia seeds for thickening.

Ingredients

1 cup Welch's 100% Grape Juice
1 ripe frozen banana
½ cup plain or strawberry 2% Greek yogurt
½ cup frozen strawberries
½ cup frozen pineapple chunks
½ packed cup baby spinach
1 tablespoon chia seeds
Optional Toppers: fresh fruit, coconut chips, toasted oats, no-sugar-added granola, chia seeds, hemp seeds, chopped nuts

Instructions

Place the juice, banana, yogurt, strawberries, pineapple, spinach, and chia seeds in a blender and blend until smooth.
Pour into individual bowls and garnish with your choice of optional toppers.

Notes

Each smoothie bowl provides 60% of your daily requirement for vitamin C ... and that's without the toppers!

For more info on the power of purple foods, check out this informative infographic from Welch’s.

… and for another delicious, family-pleasing smoothie bowl, check out my Peanut Butter and Banana Smoothie Bowls recipe.

Peanut Butter and Banana Smoothie Bowls + How to Make a Smoothie Bowl

BY Liz June 23, 2015 39 Comments

When you blend together frozen banana, soymilk, cocoa powder, chia seeds, and peanut butter, what you get is a rich, nutritious, and satisfying smoothie bowl with an impressive 10 grams of protein and 7 grams of fiber.

Try this Peanut Butter and Banana Smoothie Bowl for your family’s next breakfast or snack.

Smoothie bowls come in various colors (purple, green, orange, yellow, chocolate brown) and flavors but their texture is always the same: thicker than a drinkable smoothie but thinner than pudding. They’re meant to be devoured with a spoon, and the topping options are endless — nuts, fruit, seeds, coconut, crushed Graham crackers, whole grain cereal, and more!

Peanut butter, soymilk, chia seeds, banana, cocoa powder = Best smoothie bowl EVER #nutrition #breakfast

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I’ve been drooling over smoothie bowls for the past few months—they’re the trendiest eye candy right now on Instagram—and I finally got around to whipping up a few new recipes for the blog … and for my own family. I love this PB smoothie bowl for it’s simplicity, and the topping that makes me smile the most is the O-shaped cereal. Your kids will love the playfulness of this smoothie bowl.

How to Make a Smoothie Bowl:

Equipment – Blender, bowls, spoons

Blender Ingredients – Use less liquid than a traditional smoothie; add thickening ingredients; make sure you have a good protein source and a healthy fat source. (You need fat in your diet to absorb all the great nutrients from fruits and veggies.)

–> Liquid: 100% fruit juice or vegetable juice, milk, soy milk, almond milk, coconut milk.
–> Fruits and/or Vegetables: Frozen banana, strawberries, mango, pineapple, peaches, wild blueberries, raspberries, baby spinach, kale, cucumber, pumpkin puree, roasted beets.
–> Good Fats: Peanut butter, nut butters, avocado, whole milk or 2% fat yogurt, coconut oil.
–> Thickeners: Chia seeds, Greek yogurt, banana
–> Protein: Milk, yogurt, nuts, peanut butter, nut butters, cottage cheese, protein powder.

Topping Ingredients – Whole grain cereal, nuts, chia seeds, hemp seeds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, shredded coconut, coconut chips, fresh fruit, dried fruit, crumbled graham crackers

Combine blender ingredients until smooth and then decorate with your favorite toppers.

4.8 from 15 reviews

Peanut Butter and Banana Smoothie Bowls

Author: Liz

Nutrition Information

Serves: 2 to 3

Serving size: about ¾ cup
Calories: 270

Fat: 13g
Saturated fat: 2.5g
Carbohydrates: 34g
Sodium: 130mg
Fiber: 7g
Protein: 10g

Recipe type: Breakfast or Snack

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When it comes to making smoothie bowls, anything goes. This recipe could easily be tweaked. For instance, you could use cow's milk or almond milk instead of the soymilk; add some Greek yogurt to boost the protein even more; or swap out the peanut butter for another nut butter.

Ingredients

1 cup plain or vanilla soymilk
2 frozen bananas
3 tablespoons peanut butter
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 tablespoon chia seeds
¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Optional Toppers: O-shaped whole grain cereal, crushed Graham crackers, chopped peanuts, chia seeds, coconut chips, sliced banana

Instructions

Place the soymilk, bananas, peanut butter, cocoa, chia seeds, and vanilla in a blender and blend until smooth.
Pour into individual bowls and garnish with your choice of optional toppers.

Notes

Each smoothie bowl serving has 15% of your daily requirement for calcium and vitamin C.

Have you made smoothie bowls yet for your family? What’s your favorite combination of blender ingredients and toppers?

Watch me cook up my chocolate and peanut butter smoothie bowl!

Categories

Hooray for PURPLE FOOD POWER

How to Make a Smoothie Bowl:

Combine blender ingredients until smooth and then decorate with your favorite toppers.