Hello again, and welcome back to the garden! With Spring officially having sprung, its that time of year once again when the sun is shining and the outdoors beckons us to come out and play. A more active lifestyle brings with it the need for a variety of healthy on the go snacks. Quick and easy oat bites, filled with energy, and an extra boost of protein, are a great way to fuel our busy lives. I like to make them up in big batches ahead of time, and then pre-portion them out for easy access on those “grab and go” days. So, with the use of a mini muffin tin this week, we add a nutty flair to our garden fare!

The addition of a protein powder is a nice way to boost your nutritional yield, but with so many different ones to choose from on the market, the protein sources can seem daunting. As a Vegan, I usually steer clear of the whey proteins, but even without using a dairy source, the protein choices can still be extensive. So, here are a few of the most popular.

Soy or pea protein, and Sprouted Brown Rice (spirulina) protein, raw or flavored, all have favorable calorie to protein ratios. With a nice balance of protein and fiber, Hemp protein is also a good choice for those steering away from dairy.The one I have been using as of late, is a vanilla flavored pea based protein from “Alive”.

Here is what you will need:

Nutter Butter Banana Oat Bites

Yields 24 individual oat bites, or 6 servings with 4 oat bites per serving

Shopping List and Ingredients-

Rolled Quick cook oats- 2 cups

Unsweetened applesauce-1/2 cup

Bananas-2 medium ripe

Nut butter of your choice- Almond butter/ Peanut butter -1/3 cup

*(optional) Protein powder of your choice (I use a vanilla flavored pea protein)-1 serving

Almond milk (vanilla)- 1 TBsp

Vanilla extract- 1 TBsp

Pumpkin pie spice- 1 TBsp

Cinnamon- 1 tsp

Coconut Palm sugar/Brown sugar- 3 TBsp for mixture and 1 TBsp for sprinkling on the bites

Blue Agave Nectar- 2 TBsp

*Chia, or Flax egg (1 TBsp seeds to 3 TBsp warm water. Stir and refrigrate for 10-15 min to gel). Chia/flax egg replacement will become gelatinous after sitting.

Step 1: Oat mixture

Add all wet ingredients into one bowl. Mash up both bananas with all of the following.Vanilla extract, blue agave, applesauce, almond milk, and almond butter. Mix well, and set aside.Then, in a separate bowl mix all dry ingredients including oats, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, coconut palm sugar (or brown sugar) and protein powder if desired. Add all of the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and incorporate until all of the dry mixture is sufficiently moistened. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.Then make your *chia/flax egg and also put it into the refrigerator so that it may gel.Once the dough and the Chia/flax egg are chilled, remove both from the refrigerator and add together.

Step 2: Scooping and baking the bites

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.Pull out your non stick mini muffin tin, and using a 1 Tablespoon measure, scoop out the dough using a spoon to drop the scoops into the mini muffin cups. Once they are all filled, sprinkle all of the unbaked bites with coconut palm sugar or brown sugar. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes.

Step 3: Voila!

Serve Nutter Butter Banana Oat Bites warm out of the oven with a small schmear of (non-dairy) butter or almond butter, or even refrigerate for a quick on the go snack.

No matter how you eat them, you will enjoy the big yummy nutty naner flavor packed inside each one of those little bites!

So as always, “lettuce” know what you think, and plant your questions and comments here in the garden.

Thanks for visiting The Enchanted Garden Goddess, see you next time!

*Weight Watchers PPV for 4 Nutter Butter Banana Oat Bites= 5 PPV