My kids always ask me why they can’t have store bought muesli bars in their lunchboxes and my answer is because they are full of junk! There are so many awful ingredients added to store bought snacks, especially the ones our kids like the most (the flavour enhancers are to thank for this!). I am ok with my children having ‘those’ lunchboxes where everything is homemade and actually tastes good! I make a batch of these and they yield enough for over 3 weeks of lunches, give or take a day in between where the kids want a break from them! They are so much better than store bought, taste incredible and have a high amount of protein, carbohydrates and good fats. Plus, they are an allergen friendly godsend, so make a double batch; one for your children and one for you!
Makes 32 Lunchbox Sized or 16 Adult Sized Bars
GF, RSF, DFO, VO, SF, NF, EF
Ingredients
- 75g (¼ cup + 2 tbsp) Coconut oil or ghee, measure melted
- 120g (¼ cup + 2 tbsp) raw honey or maple syrup
- 100g (¼ cup + 2tbsp) Toasted Coconut Tahini butter
- 1 tbsp Vanilla Bean Paste
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 50g (¼ + 2tbsp) cup coconut sugar
- 120g (1 cup + 1tbsp) Rolled oats
- 40g (¾ cup) Rice bubbles
- 40g protein powder (I use a good quality whey protein but you could try with a dairy free)
- 100g dark chocolate (75% or darker)
- ½ cup flaked coconut
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 160° and grease and line a 28cm x 20cm rectangular slice tin with baking paper.
2. Place the melted coconut oil or ghee, honey or maple syrup, coconut tahini butter, vanilla bean paste and salt in a microwave safe bowl and stir to combine.
3. Add the cinnamon, coconut sugar and whisk until mixture is well combined, about 2 minutes.
4. At this point change to a wooden spoon, and add in the rolled oats, rice bubbles, flaked coconut and protein powder and stir to combine.
5. Gently fold through the chocolate pieces, being careful not to overmix to avoid the chocolate melting; I find it easiest to just use my hands, or a thermomix on reverse speed 3 for 20 seconds.
6. Transfer the mixture into your prepared tin and gently use wet hands to firmly push it down; you might want to place a piece of baking paper on top and run your hands over to flatten the surface.
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until just golden. Allow the slice to cool completely before cutting into 16 bars or 32 mini bars.
