Pumpkin Spice Energy Bites

 

from the Healthline Editorial Team found on healthline.com 

6 pitted dates

3/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

2 tbsp flax meal

1 tbsp maple syrup

2 tbsp protein powder

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice

3/4 cup almond butter

1/2 tbsp coconut oil

Place all ingredients in a food processor and blitz until well combined. (Add a little extra coconut oil if very crumbly.) Place mixture in the fridge for 30 minutes. 

Form batter into 1-inch balls. Store in sealed container in fridge. 

I used my blender (instead of a food processor) and it worked fine.

Peach Slice Plus Twin

3/4 c almond milk (you could use coconut milk if you prefer that)
3/4 c guava juice
1 c frozen strawberries
1 c frozen peaches
1/2 tsp turbinado cane sugar (optional)
1/2 tsp ground flaxseed (optional)

Add ingredients to the blender. I always put the liquids in first. Blend until smooth.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Balls

adapted from blessthismessplease.com

2 ripe bananas (but not so ripe they are gross!)

2 cups dry old fashioned oats

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (I used 70% dark chocolate or semi sweet chips)

1/3 c organic creamy peanut butter 

In a medium bowl mash the peeled bananas. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir to combine.

Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Squish a small amount of the mixture in your hands to create a ball. 

Store the balls covered in the refrigerator for a day or two. I haven't tried freezing them yet because the boys always eat them before I'd need to freeze them!

The boys give this two thumbs up!

Oatmeal Cookie Energy Balls

from blessthismessplease.com (lightly adapted)

1 cup dry old fashioned oats
1/4 cup almond butter or peanut butter
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup raisins or craisins
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
dash of salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

In a medium bowl stir all of the ingredients until combined well. The mixture should be a bit sticky. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Grab about a tablespoon of the mixture into your hand. Squish into a ball. Repeat with remaining mixture. This makes about 10-12 oatmeal energy balls.

Store the balls covered in the refrigerator for up to a week or in the freezer for much longer.

Blueberry Blast

adapted from ninjakitchen.com

1/2 c white grape juice
1/4 c vanilla greek yogurt
1/2 banana
1/2 c frozen blueberries
around 6 ice cubes

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

My rating: 4 stars
Boys say: wow! thumbs up

Caramel Toffee Fruit Dip

from ourbestbites.com

1 8-oz. package cream cheese (you can use light cream cheese)

3/4 c. brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla (you can add more to taste)

Toffee bits (look by the chocolate chips and try and find the chocolate covered ones if you can!)

assorted fruit

Allow cream cheese to reach room temperature. With an electric mixer, combine cream cheese, brown sugar, and vanilla. When ready to serve, stir in about 1/2 a bag of toffee bits.

This dip is so sweet it really is more of a dessert than an appetizer or side dish! I think it's best with apples. 

Boys say: thumbs up!

Fruit Dip

from allrecipes.com, submitted by RNACSHHS

INGREDIENTS:

2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup brown sugar 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

1.	In a medium bowl, blend the cream cheese, brown sugar and vanilla extract. Chill in the refrigerator 1 hour before serving.

I followed some suggestions from other reviewers.  I added a little lemon juice and wish I'd added some of the zest from the lemon.  I also added two spoonfuls of strawberry yogurt.  I thought the strawberry yogurt was a little overpowering for the flavor I was expecting.  

The kids loved this!  As if you couldn't make fruit any better, give the kids something to dip the fruit in and it kicks things up a notch!  

This does make a lot of dip.  I would cut it in half for personal use or use the normal amount for a party.  

Boys say:  thumbs up

California Smoothie

from allrecipes.com, submitted by Janice

INGREDIENTS:

7 large strawberries 1 (8 ounce) container lemon yogurt

1/3 cup orange juice

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Place strawberries in a plastic container and freeze for about an hour.
2.	In a blender, combine frozen strawberries, yogurt and orange juice. Blend until smooth. Pour into a tall glass and serve. I didn't bother to freeze the strawberries.  I just added about half a dozen ice cubes to the ingredients.  The lemon yogurt intrigued me because I'd never used it before.  This is good, but I think I'll try vanilla yogurt next time and may even toss in half a banana.

Healthy Snack Ideas

I had the chance to celebrate my grandmother's 95th birthday with her this last weekend!  95!  It was such a treat.  So this week I will give you some great healthy snack ideas instead of meal plans.  All the plans I'd made for the husband and kids ended up being used this week since they decided to let some fast food places cook for them while I was gone!

We have found these Aussie Bites at Costco.  They are all natural and filling.  They were great for a relay I did last year.  We were running off and on all day and these gave me some energy and were easy to toss in the car!

These aren't really healthy, but they are tasty!  Some friends had a long road trip to get to our place and they kept themselves full and awake by munching on these!  

This is a great twist on trail mix.  It's hard to feel good about eating trail mix with chocolate chips!  This one has yogurt chips and they have a great flavor with the dried berries and nuts.

Greek yogurt is popular now.  I like Dannon's light and fit vanilla greek yogurt.  Topped with fresh raspberries or strawberries this is pretty much the perfect snack!  This is also good topped with granola in place of the fruit or with the fruit.  That would make it almost a meal!

I like to mix a carbohydrate like fresh fruit with the protein of something like nuts, yogurt or cheese.  Sometimes I'll have a string cheese and an apple.  Or deli turkey slices and a veggie or fruit is also a good snack.