Peanut Butter Protein Bars

I love having protein bars at home to snack on, but the shop bought ones tend to be really expensive (especially the plant-based ones) and not very easy to find! I haven’t actually made any in a while and recently I’ve felt like I really need a good protein snack at home now that I’m finding less and less time to meal prep.

Since starting college again I feel like my life is so out of control! Some of you may know that I started a three year nutrition course back in 2014, mid way through I found that my business was suffering because I was spending a lot of time studying an preparing for exams and writing up assignments that I neglected my blog and social accounts. So I decided to take a year out, which turned into two years.

Now that I’ve returned to college I feel the same thing is happening, only now I feel both my business is suffering AND I’m not finding much time to study! I spend every Friday at college and spend a good chunk of Thursday preparing for college and clinics. So that’s two days less of work. Saturdays I tend to be so drained and fatigued that I get very little done, apart from some home chores, food shopping etc. So that leaves me with 4 days to focus on work and almost no time to actually study! 

Needless to say I’m not spending anywhere near as much time recipe creating and my meal prepping has gone out the window. My diet is no where near as good as it used to be as a result. I always make sure I have a good breakfast, otherwise my blood sugar levels and appetite suffers later on, but come lunch and dinner time I just grab the easiest thing I can get my hands on! My snacks have been particularly bad in that I’ve been eating a lot of processed sweet treats and even crips which I rarely used to crave. I think the stress is getting to me and making me crave salty, greasy treats! 

But now, I’m at a point where I know I need to start making changes before this period turns into a long-term habit. I’m starting off by creating more healthier snacks and treats that are lower in sugar, like my chocolate mug cake, chocolate ganache cupcakes and sugar-free hot chocolate.

Today I’m showing you how to make these plant-based protein bars which are low in carbs and with no added sugar. A great grab-and-go treat to have in the fridge for those mid-morning craving attacks. 

Peanut Butter Protein Bars

Makes – 8 bars

Ingredients

2 scoops (70g) protein powder
6 tbsp oat flour
2 tbsp stevia
1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter – or you can use smooth
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp milk of choice
80g dark chocolate, melted
handful of peanuts, finely chopped 

Method

In a bowl, mix together the protein powder, oat flour and stevia. 
Add the peanut butter and milk, then mix to combine.
Press down into a loaf tin (I used a 22×12 cm loaf tin).
In a separate bowl, mix together the melted chocolate and chopped peanuts. Spread over the protein mixture then refrigerate for 30-60 minutes.
Slice into 8 bars