Coconut Cashew Protein Balls Recipe

I love LARABAR Original Fruit & Nut Bars. What's not to love about dates, nuts, and spices?  These bars are rich and decadent with good for you ingredients.  I often reach for a LARABAR when I'm craving something sweet and trying to be good.  Emphasis on trying.  Even though LARABARs are often sold among protein bars I would argue they are not a protein bar considering they average 3-5 grams of protein per bar.  However, what they lack in protein they more than make up for in flavor and texture.  LARABARs are soft and moist and not the protein bar bricks I grew up with that my mom used to share with our family dog during long runs.  Totally not making that up.  My former dog loved peanut butter flavored PowerBars.  She also loved GU gel, which at the time was the only soft protein product around.  Who else remembers the weird goodness that was GU?

I've been experimenting with recipes in search of making my own protein treat that's not a dry brick.  After a few failures (I gave up on protein cookies) I believe I finally achieved what I set out to do with this recipe.  These protein balls are soft and moist (I have to stop saying "moist") and don't have that artificial protein taste found in so many commercial protein goods.  I would describe them as LARABAR Cashew Cookie meets Trader Joe's Coconut Cashews.  And if you have tried either, they are both equally awesome.

You can still make these protein balls even if you don't have coconut flavored protein powder lying around.  Vanilla would be a substitute with a similar taste.   I'm sure chocolate would also be good, however, I'm more of a vanilla gal.  Actually I'm more sprinkles, but I've completely lost track of the direction of this post.  Just remember the flavor profile will be different if you use a different protein powder or nut butter flavor.  If you do go rouge, and we all know I'm a fan of going rouge, let me know how your protein balls turned out in the comments below.

Coconut Cashew Protein Balls 

Ingredients:
1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal
1 scoop coconut flavored whey protein powder, approximately 1/4 cup (I like and use ISOPURE Low Carb Protein Powder in Toasted Coconut)
3 tablespoons hemp seeds
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
4 tablespoons cashew butter
1 tablespoon agave nectar*
2-3 tablespoons water
Optional: extra coconut flakes to roll balls in

Directions:
1.  Put all ingredients except optional coconut flakes into food processor.  Pulse until ingredients are incorporated and dough is soft.  If dough is dry and crumbly add one tablespoon of water at a time until desired consistency is achieved
2. Roll dough into 1 inch sized balls
3. Optional: roll formed balls in extra coconut flakes

Enjoy immediately or bring these protein balls with you for an on the go delicious, protein-packed treat.

* For a sweeter protein ball use 2 tablespoons agave and 2 tablespoons water in above recipe

1 week down, the rest of my life to go!

So yesterday marked one week.  No pictures to post today, because change takes time.  Last week was an experiment.  I'm the type of person who does all or nothing, which can be hard because when I feel like I've failed I tend to say f-it and just eat whatever, without control, and with later regret.  From Wednesday night through Friday I just gave in to nightly craving.  Why is it so hard to maintain control at night?  Friday night I ate Domino's and it made me feel horrible for the rest of the night and all day Saturday.  As a result I woke up Saturday with determination.  I focused on eating protein, protein, and more protein and felt much better Sunday.  Yesterday I tried to focus on protein, but add in some veggies, because home girl feels plugged up.  Not sure if it is from all the crap I ate Wednesday through Friday, the high protein and low carb diet Saturday and Sunday, or a combination of both, but I don't like feeling this way.  I'm on the search to find some happy medium.  It's all about balance and moderation.

Today is Monday and a new week with new goals.  My goals are:

• To continue eating high protein
• To limit processed carbs as much as possible
• To eat more vegetables
• And to track my water intake to make sure I'm drinking at least 8 glasses (Something tells me I've been consuming more caffeine and less water)

I'm feeling positive about this week because my husband is willing to eat low carb with me for dinners and I have some fun meals planned.  Plus, I weighed myself today and despite not feeling like I did my best (I'm terribly hard on myself if you couldn't tell) I'm down 1.1 lbs!  Here is to week 2! *raises water bottle and chugs, chugs, chugs*

Let the journey begin

I normally would never do something like this, but I feel like I need to be open for accountability.  I've been trying to get back to my pre-mom body since my son was born, or at least around the 8-12 week mark, and while I am back to my pre-pregnancy weight, maybe even a few pounds less, everything just looks different from the me I remember.  By no means am I overweight, but I guess by today's standards one could argue a whole bunch of things about my body, but that's not my point or the direction I want to go with this post.  I'm working on making me happier with me and more comfortable in my own skin.  My body has changed a lot in the last few years, but the biggest and hardest change for me was when I was diagnosed with PCOS a few years ago.  I stopped taking birth control in an attempt to get pregnant and at first everything was fine, but then my period just got longer, and longer, and eventually stopped coming.  And somewhere during that time I started putting on weight especially around my midsection and found it extremely hard, no matter how much I dieted to lose the weight.  It really hurt my self esteem.  I saw my OBGYN and was diagnosed by ultrasound and blood work with PCOS with insulin resistance, which was confirmed by a Endocrinologist.  I went on Metformin to get a period and control the pre-diabetes and it only did the later.  If you are wondering Metformin did not make me lose any weight.  

Fast forward to today.  My son is almost 9 months old!  I can't believe.  Time goes by so fast.  I'm still fixated on my stomach and those damn love handles.  However, while I blamed them on PCOS in the past my recent blood work was normal.  Go f-ing figure.  I did try going back on Metformin, but this time could not deal with the stomach bloating and constant feeling of nausea.  I last almost 2 weeks on it, but had to stop taking it a few days ago and already feel so much better!  Luckily for me since I've been tracking what I eat I was able to analyze what I believe I'm doing wrong.  Scratch that... what I believe I could be doing better.  (I'm channelling that positivity yo!)  I've definitely changed how I exercise and frankly do a lot less of it than I did in my 20s, but my diet could definitely be improved and that is going to be my focus.  And today is the day.  Today is the day I start take steps in the direction I want.  

Exercise

Getting exercise in has been a challenge.  I went through a phase where I got up at 5 am to work out, but it's hard and I like... no, need... no, like and need sleep so my option becomes exercising at night or going on walks at lunch (I do that often).  And while I could go workout right after work and leave my son longer at daycare, I don't even consider that an option.  I get so little time with him during the day that those few hours we get together before he goes to bed are really important to me.  I need time with him and I'm not willing to sacrifice that at this point.  And I also have a dog who deserves more than being put in the backyard to do his business.  So my exercise generally involves going for a mile or 2 walk with both my boys (yes fur baby and human baby).  Lucky for me my baby is entertained by being outside so this is my main exercise these days.   Working out at home can be more of a challenge, however, I do find that if I can get in about 20 minutes of home exercise when Carter is in his walker with some toys.  

Plus we get to spend some time together and he often thinks me trying to get in shape is hilarious.  You're welcome kid!   

I truly believe that every little thing you do during the day adds up so if I can only do 10 minutes here or 20 minutes there I'm happy.  I did something and something is better than nothing.   

Diet

This is sitting on my counter right now:

I love dessert.  LOVE.  I'm pretty sure I asked my husband last night why cupcakes can't make me skinny.  Seriously, why can't they.  They're just so good.  And I'm so addicted.  I eat dessert every single night.  That's one thing I want to work on.  

Counting calories hasn’t been working for me in terms of changing how my tummy looks.  Everything I've read says:

     1. Cut the sugar (I'm trying!)

     2. Watch the carbs (but carbs make me happy!!)

     3. Stop eating 2 hour before bed (but how else will I stay awake?)

     4. Eat more protein

My goal for this week is to try this low carb thing.  Not sure if I can do Keto style low-carb. Let me rephrase that: I have absolutely no desire to do that.  I need some carbs and being extremely restrictive has never worked for me.  I haven't really decided what version of low carb I want to do in terms of macros other than trying to reduce sugar and sweets in my diet while eating more vegetables.  I'm about sensibility and moderation.  Also, my goal is to eat more protein.  The other day I read that you should eat the number of grams in protein as your desired goal weight.  120 grams of protein seems like a lot of protein, but I'm going to trust my research on this one and reevaluate my short term goals in one week. 

So stick with me as I document this journey and please be nice, because it is not easy to put yourself out there.

Steak Salad

Day 2 and more veggies consumed.

LUNCH

For lunch I ate last night's leftovers.  Wasn't really craving fajita filling, but I hate throwing food away and the whole point of this week is to eat all the items in my CSA box, not waste.  More about my week's goal here.

Thus I took one for the team. 

DINNER

Starting around the third trimester I started craving red meat, which is not my norm.  My husband is in heaven.  We eat a lot of steak salad because it is quick, easy, and relatively healthy.  Plus we get a lot of different lettuce types since getting our first CSA box and the lettuce is delicious.  It tastes so much better than the packaged (and washed) lettuce you buy at the grocery store.  The only thing I dislike about the lettuce is it is not washed so I have to make an extra effort to get rid of the dirt and creepy crawlies.  Easiest way to clean lettuce is to submerge it in cold water.  

 

I repeat this a number of times until the dirt and bugs settle to the bottom of the bowl before I transfer the lettuce to a salad spinner.

 

 

We generally don't finish a bag of lettuce in one sitting so I make sure to spin, spin, spin the lettuce in the salad spinner, dump out the water, and then spin, spin, spin the lettuce again.  And dump out more water repeating this process until I get the lettuce as dry as possible.  If you thoroughly dry your lettuce it will stay crisp in an airtight container for up to a week.  You're welcome.   

So dinner was delicious.  We made DIY salads using the fresh Jersey corn in our box warm off the grill, mini heirloom tomatoes, filet mignon, and red onions and feta for me and blue cheese for him.

Happy Campers!  Now since we ate "low carb" we theoretically should be able to have dessert right?  Let's be real, we would have had dessert either way.

Remaining veggies:

- A few mixed greens leftover from tonight
- Yellow squash and 2 zucchini
- Some purple onion
- Bag of Swiss chard / spinach (not sure yet what it is)
- Bag of basil
- 2 cobs of corn

Oat Bran Protein Pudding

I'm not a vegetarian since I do eat meat.  I go through phases, however, were meat really grosses me out.  Expect for bacon.  I always love bacon.  Unless I'm making a conscious effort, I often do not eat a lot of protein in my diet, which leaves me tired and hungry.  I could live off cereal, both cold and hot, and found a way to make cereal more filling, which leads me to today's post.

My friend turned me on to Isopure protein powders since I kind of have an obsession with protein powder in general.  I've tried lots of brands, which are decent (Syntrax Nectar, Designer Protein) and others that are just plain disgusting (Raw, Organic Protein).  Currently I'm all about Isopure Zero Carb protein powders.  They are rich, luxurious, come in a number of mouthwatering flavors, and leave me full and content.  Plus I can cook with them.

When I'm home, or have time in the morning, I make oat bran.  What can I say, I like old lady cardigans and old lady food.  Oat bran is cheap and full of healthy carbs and fiber, but it is boring on its own.  And like oatmeal, it doesn't always fill me up for long.  This is my take on making oat bran protein packed so I can stay full and have a productive morning.

Oat Bran Protein Pudding

Ingredients:
1/3 cup of dry oat bran
3 ounces liquid egg whites
5 ounces liquid (water, milk, nut milk)
1 packet stevia (or other sweetener of your choice)
Pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1/4 tsp cinnamon (depending on the protein powder I'm adding I sometimes omit this)
1 scoop protein powder
Toppings of your choice (fruit, milk, half and half, shredded coconut, chocolate chips, etc.)

Directions:
1. Combine oat bran, egg whites, liquid, stevia, and spices in a microwave safe container, mix well.

2. Cook oat bran mixture in the microwave on high for 30 seconds, remove and stir well.
3. Continue cooking for a total of 2 minutes or until liquid is absorbed making sure to stir the oat bran mixture every 30 seconds.
4. Once cooked mix in protein powder.

You can eat the oat bran as is or with the toppings of your choice.

But do not, and I repeat, DO NOT forget to mix the oat bran mixture every 30 seconds.  The goal is creamy, well blended texture.

Currently I've been making Strawberries and Cream Oat Bran Protein Powder using Isopure Zero Carb Strawberries and Cream.

That color!  It reminds me of the awesome, and oh so sugary, oatmeal I used to love as a kid.  

For those who follow Smart Points this breakfast is 4-6 Smart Points depending on how you make your oat bran and the protein powder you use.  Not bad for a filling, healthy meal.

Plus see that yummy creation in the top corner?  Any idea what it is?  Recipe here.

Enjoy and happy, healthy eating!