I LOVE baking. I don’t know which I love more, the fantastic smells that waft out of the kitchen or making something fabulous with my own two hands. Since I started training for a figure competition, cinnamon buns, croissants, cakes, cookies, brownies, and many other fabulous baked treats have been banned from my oven.
But I couldn’t give it up all together, so I have created some of my own healthy recipes along the way.
My latest is a homemade granola bar that is low in carbohydrates and high in protein.
Here’s the recipe
- 2 cups quick oats
- 1/3 cup sweetner*
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1 small apple cut up into chunks (if you want to be REALLY specific 102 grams)
- 2 egg whites
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
- 2 tsp vanilla
*Despite my wariness, I have embraced the sugar replacement in my life. I don’t use it that much because in the back of my mind I am worried that it is depositing plaque on brain or something….but a girl’s got to live! Feel free to use real sugar, it will just add to the calories and carbohydrates.
First gather all your ingredients.
All the ingredients for homemade apple cinnamon granola bars.
Then put all the dry ingredients in your mixing bowl.
Putting it all together, starting to smell delicious already!
Add all wet ingredients and mix thoroughly.
Put in a lightly greased 8×8 inch baking pan, sprinkle with some more cinnamon, and bake at 350 degrees.
The house is filled with fantastic apple cinnamon goodness while they bake. Mmmm!!
Wait for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.
Who knew 20 minutes could take SO LONG?!
Cool slightly.
Hot out of the oven!
Cut into 6 squares and enjoy with a cup of fantastic Earth Coffee. Delicious!
Such a fabulous treat for a relaxing evening.
Nutritional Information for 1/6 of the recipe or 1 bar
- Calories: 137
- Protein: 5 grams
- Carbohydrates: 26 grams
- Fat: 2 grams
Let me know what you think of them if you make them. They are a good replacement for the morning granola bar or a nice evening treat hot out of the oven. Not overly sweet, but tasty!
Nom Nom Nom! I am SO going to try this recipe. Will let you know how they turn out 😉
Thank you!!
Awesome tip. Thanks! How many grams of carbs do you eat/day?
On high carb days I eat 280, on medium days I eat 130, and on low days I eat 35. It’s REALLY hard to only eat 35!
Now the challenge is eating just one!
YES! This is why I saran wrap them each separately and put them away before I eat one of them.
Wowsers, I could almost smell those as they baked. I loved all the pictures. I will definitely have to give those a whirl. They look and sound delicious. You have ALWAYS been a fabulous cook.
Here is a printable version of the recipe if anyone is interested:
HOMEMADE APPLE CINNAMON GRANOLA BARS
A nutritious recipe by Donloree
• 2 cups quick oats
• 1/3 cup sweetener* or brown sugar1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 1 small apple cut up into chunks (if you want to be REALLY specific 102 grams)
• 2 egg whites
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
• 2 tsp vanilla
Put all the dry ingredients in your mixing bowl. Add all wet ingredients and mix thoroughly. Put in a lightly greased 8X8 baking pan and bake at 350 degrees for 20 – 25 minutes until lightly browned. Cool slightly. Cut into 6 squares and enjoy. They are great with a cup of Earth Coffee. Delicious!
Nutritional Information for 1/6 of the recipe or 1 bar
Calories: 137, Protein: 5 grams, Carbohydrates: 26 grams, Fat: 2 grams
Do u have to use apple sauce?
You could use oil or butter, I just used applesauce to cut calories.
These were incredible. I used brown sugar, for an added 45 calories. I was expecting a bar and got a cake that stayed moist and delicious for about a week! I don’t have any idea how it lasted a week, but it did. Thanks, I’m going to be making this again real soon!
Mmmm! I am so glad you like them! They are rather fabulous. I was thinking about them just the other day and was contemplating making them with chocolate and some nuts too…hmmm…
Happy baking! 🙂
I’m excited to try these as I’m attempting to get back to basics as much as possible. Our family eats too much processed food for my liking. Is the only reason that you are using sweetener because of calories? Sweeteners concern me more so than sugar or honey as a lot of the ones I’m seeing on the market seem even more processed than sugar. Just wondering.
Thanks for the recipe! 🙂
I really try not to eat sugar and when I posted this, I was in the first phases of cutting out sugar. I no longer eat sweeteners either. 🙂 I would add honey or agave to it no problem now. 🙂
If you add honey or agave instead of 1/3 cup of sugar, how much do you use?
Not completely sure, but this link looks helpful. 🙂 http://www.wikihow.com/Use-Honey-in-Place-of-White-Sugar
I don’t have applesauce or time to make it. Would you substitute 1/2 cup butter?
You totally could. It is just going to add a lot of fat to the recipe and I am not sure how the consistency will turn out. If you try it, let me know!