When you want a little something sweet...

Hey guys - it's Lindsay. Wow - I think I went on a serious baking binge on this stormy Saturday! It's no secret I have a sweet-tooth and am always on a mission to find "healthier" versions of my favorite sweet things! By healthier - most of the time, I just mean putting together NATURAL ingredients: no high fructose corn syrup, no weird, pre-packaged stuff. Sometimes, this means they are higher in calories or {good} fat or sugar (like honey), but I know that my body can actually process and use natural ingredients even if they are higher cal/fat/etc., as opposed to being unable to digest the fake crap.

That being said - here are the yummy goodies I made today:

No-Bake Natural Energy Balls

• 1 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/3 cup of chia fiber (you could you chia seed, ground flax, anything really)
• Handful of dark chocolate chips
• 1/2 tsp. of vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. of cinnamon
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup of natural, no-salt peanut butter (just ground peanuts, period.)
• 1/3 cup of honey 

Mix all the ingredients together, roll into balls, and place on parchment in the fridge! YUM!

Protein Reese Peanut Butter Cups

• Approximately 4 tablespoons of natural, no-salt peanut butter (more or less, depending on preference)
• 2 Scoops Chocolate protein powder (I used egg-white chocolate whey protein powder)
• 1 tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder
• 5-7 grams of Stevia or some other zero/low calorie sugar substitute 
• Baking muffin cups (foil or rubber)

Put your unsweetened cocoa powder, chocolate protein powder, and your Stevia/sugar substitute together in a bowl and mix.

Slowly add in small amounts of water until you get a batter-type substance. 

Add a layer of this batter into the bottom of the muffin cups and place into freezer for 25-30 minutes. Afterward, remove from freezer and add a layer of natural peanut butter onto each cup, then place back into freezer for another 15-20 minutes. 

Lastly - take out of the freezer and add your final layer of batter over the now hardened peanut butter. Place back in the freezer for another 25-30 minutes at least or leave in the freezer until you're ready to eat! 

Cinnamon Swirl Protein Bread

• 1/3 cup Xylitol (if you can't find, use Stevia in the Raw)
• 2 tsp. of cinnamon (I use more like 2 tablespoons because I REALLY like cinnamon!)
• 1.5 cups of oat flour
• 2 scoops of vanilla whey protein powder
• 1 tablespoon of baking power
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup of Xylitol or 1/4 cup of Stevia in the Raw
• 2 egg whites
• 1 cup of unsweetened almond milk
• 1/3 cup or 1 4 ounce jar of babyfood applesauce
• 1/4 cup of plain, non-fat greek yogurt (optional - but I always use it for extra moisture and extra protein!)

Preheat oven to 350 and spray an 8x8 Pyrex dish with non-stick spray. 

In a small bowl, combine the 1/3 cup of Xylitol and 2 tsp. of cinnamon and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the 1/5 cups of oat flour, 2 scoops of vanilla whey protein, 1 tablespoon of baking powder, pinch of salt, and 1/2 cup of Xylitol (or 1/4 cup of Stevia in the Raw).

In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 egg whites, 1 cup of unsweetened almond milk, 1/3 cup of applesauce, and 1/4 cup of plain, non-fat greek yogurt, then combine to ingredients in large bowl. 

Pour a shallow layer of batter into the loaf pan (about 1/4 of the batter). Sprinkle heavily with half of the cinnamon/xylitol mixture. Then add the remaining batter on top and sprinkle the last of the cinnamon/xylitol mixture on top. Draw a knife through the batter to marble.

Bake 24-28 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes. Bread will be dense.

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Hope everyone enjoys these recipes!! If you have a fun recipe, please leave it in a comment below! Have a wonderful rest of your weekend!

In Health, 

Lindsay