Sunday, September 27, 2009

granola bars & a happy anniversary

IMG_4863 Thank you all so very much on your encouraging comments on my funk this past week. I think just being so tired with work and school really wiped me out, and I have to be more cognoscente of this happening. I can’t run myself ragged without sleep. I also have to make it a priority to get some kind of activity in because it always gets my energy levels up and makes me feel good. I was stuck in the cycle of tiredness, no activity and no sleep which fed the cycle of more tiredness. I always like to think that this too shall pass and I just have to pick myself up for the next week :)

Friday night wasn’t too exciting and we had good ol’ sloppy joe leftovers for dinner. I love how tomato-based dishes taste even better the next day. Boy, these were good! The cinnamon really added that extra sumthin’ sumthin’. The highlight of my night was IMG_4832 a new energy bar experiment! Getting in the kitchen always makes me feel better and I really wanted to try these when Emily had a guest post of Dan’s Pumpkin Spice Bars.

Oh my goodness, these are the BOMB! They are similar to Clif bars, but not as sweet with lots of spice, just the way I like them. The texture was superb, slightly cookie-like, but not as gooey and sticky as Clif bars.

IMG_4831 I had a few alterations: (FYI the Kashi Warm Cinnamon Cereal is out of this world, in a bar or not). I couldn’t find red flame raisins, so I just used regular ones. I used mixed nuts instead of walnuts. I only had peanut butter, not almond butter. Had canned sweet potato instead of pumpkin. I also whirled my dates & H20 in the food processor after whirling the cereal.

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The bars turned out really wonderful and I put them in baggies for us to take on our rides and have during the week as a yummy snack. Look at those nutritionals . . .

imageThis bar has a great nutritional profile, thanks to the help of the kashi cereal and all the wholesome ingredients. I got 17 bars out of this batch, well not counting the little bit I scraped from the bowl (shhh!)

Other good stuff:

18% Vitamin E, 31% Vitamin B6, 30% folate, 24% Vitamin B12, 54% Manganese, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, selenium . . . awesome!

Also for the bar about 72% CHO, 23% fat, and 14% pro, nice balance for some good energy. Yes, 12% DV of CHO! I don't know why I was thinking of the entire bar, not the %DV that is on the label, hello :) (just having a retard moment)

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Thanks Dan and Em for a great bar recipe! Chris told me that he really likes them and wants to eat them all! I will have to make a double batch next time. I’m just wondering when the next installment will be or if we can go into business together?! hehe

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Speaking of rides . . . what a better way to banish the funk than going on a nice ride?! aahhh so invigorating, tiring and I loved it. We went on a club ride for about 36 miles and it was great to get back in some activity. I just really miss it when I can’t get it in. I also had a pumpkin spice bar on the ride :) I love how it isn’t too sweet and sits well on my tummy.

That night we decided to have a nice little anniversary celebration at that pizza place we went to last weekend called Settebello. We signed up for their newsletter and they have special pizzas each week. This week was zucchini blossom pizza!!!!!! Oh my gosh, I really wanted to try this, especially since they specified it as a limited appearance!

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IMG_4861We started out with a little appetizer called the misto. It had various Italian meats, olives (they weren’t too bitter like regular kalamatas), mushrooms, artichokes, and flatbread.

It was really good, Chris was ravenous from his 62 mile ride that day so he ate most of it. It’s nice to have the bottomless pit around to eat for you :)

But on the other hand, have you seen this study? It’s surprisingly true, darn you Chris! hehe

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Along with the appetizer I had a small glass of the Danzante Pinot Grigio. This is my favorite type of white wine. Very fruity, dry, not too grassy and nicely balanced. I just wish their pour was a little bit taller :)

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The pizza was really interesting and yummy! It was a white sauce pizza (I traditionally like the tomato-based sauces), with sweet corn, ricotta, mozzarella and topped with zucchini flowers and olive oil. It did need a little something extra so I put some black pepper and chili flakes on mine for just a little heat :)

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Zucchini flowers are so neat and taste very delicate and sweet! They matched perfectly with the sweet corn.

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Overall it was a great night. We were thinking of going to see The Informant after dinner, but poor Chris was so tired from his ride that we just rented a movie to take home in case we fell asleep. We try to watch movies, but usually both of us are so tired, we just fall asleep to them! We rented Yes Man, and it was actually pretty funny. I myself am a huge Jim Carrey fan, especially Dumb and Dumber!

Today I even got a jump rope and weights class in, yay! Now about that studying . . .

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!

What’s your favorite granola/energy bar?

23 comments:

MelissaNibbles said...

So glad your in better spirits.
The bar looks yummy. I never would've thought to use sweet potato in place of pumpkin. Creative!
The pizza looks out of this world. I love a good white pizza!
Enjoy your night!

Emily said...

Sooo glad you and Chris loved the bars! I actually haven't even made them myself yet, but I've tasted them, and they are delicious. I'll let Dan know you guys enjoyed his recipe!

Tyler said...

yum!! i saw those bars in Emily's blog, too. your version looks delicious. and thanks for the nutrition info!

p.s. i think the 12% CHO is for percent daily value, not percentage of calories per serving.

Gina; The Candid RD said...

I saw that study!! I was offended, as a skinny girl who eats a lot. However, like you said, Nick eats MUCh more than me and he's REALLY skinny and sometimes I eat more just because he does..so it's probably true. Today he sat around watching football for about three hours and ate more than I did all day. OF course, they were healthy snacks, made by me :)

Those bars look fantastic! The only thing about them is that they can for so many ingredients that I don't have...but I will make them eventually. I think the CHO calculation was right. Where did you get the 195 from? I just looked at my oatmeal and it says 27 grams CHO is 9% DV....so your data must be correct, right? We've gotta figure this out. What's the DV for CHO? ahhh!! RDs need help with food label!

Happy anniversary, by the way :)

Gina; The Candid RD said...

Ok, the DV for CHO is 300 grams. So, 35 grams divided by 300 equals 11.66666, which is 12% :)

Anonymous said...

glad to know that you're feeling better!

these are great bars! I bet they taste yummy! they're also very nutritious! I need to make some for winter! :)

the pizza looks even better! I haven't had a real pizza for a long time!!!

kristen :) said...

Thanks guys!

ahhh, yes, well why was I thinking for the bar not %DV? that is on the food label hello :)

MelindaRD said...

Nice work on the bars. I am glad they turned out well. I never made it to that restaurant before we left. Looks good, wish I had tried it. I think I missed out on a lot of places in your neck of the woods.

A said...

I make my own granola bars all the time! I use oats, applesauce, flax seeds, AB or PB, raisins, coconut, sugar in the raw and some sort of vegetable puree (pumpkin, squash, whatever). I don't measure anything so they come out a little different every time. We use to buy granola bars but that was getting to expensive. Now I bake a 9x13 pan weekly and it feeds me, hubby and my son (my baby doesn't really eat them yet). Happy Anniversary again!
-A

Michelle @ Find Your Balance said...

Ooh I love the look of those zucchini flowers! Happy Anniversary :-) Oh, and my favorite granola bar type things are Lara, Pure and Dr. Weil's.

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

SO glad that you're feeling better!! And happy anniversary!! :)


My favorite bars = Pure bar, Larabar, and the honey bunches granola bar from One Lucky Duck.

Agnes Galvez, MS, RD said...

I am happy u r sleeping & exercising more! Happy Anniversary! FYI: my parents just celebrated their 45th 2 weeks ago. BTW, my fave bar is Kellogg's Fiber Plus Dark Choc Almond. It comes in handy during Sat. class @ UNLV from 9am-5pm.

Gina; The Candid RD said...

Hey KRisten!

So, my new job is with a graduate of OSU who used to work for Nestle. He is starting an "innovation" business with a wellness program for HR managers and their staff. I am the RD who will be in charge of social networking, seminar preparation and presentation, and staying on top of community events, etc. I'm very excited about this job, and I plan on keeping everyone updated with the progress of the business as I move along!

We are presenting the wellness program to about 50-100 HR managers, and I'm giving a presentation on "weight management" on OCtober 29th! It's the big launch date.

Lori said...

Never would have thought of zucchini flowers on pizza! That sounds so great. I really like the Cherry Larabars and I like making my own as well.

Just found your blog via Find Your Balance. Couldn't help but relate to you when I saw your bio. My edu background is in nutritional and exercise sciences (although not an RD) and I started my career in Cooperative Extension. :)

Shannon said...

Those bars look so good! Very ambitious of you! I have always really like balance bars and cliff bars. But I am trying out a gluten free diet to see if it helps my stomachaches. So I am trying out different Lara Bar flavors. I think I like the new peanut butter and jelly on the best.

Astra Libris said...

WOW, the bars are incredible!! You shaped them so perfectly, too - I'm very impressed! You should definitely go into business - I'll sign up to be your first customer ordering bars! :-)

Congratulations on getting more sleep and conquering the fatigue! Thank you for being such a great inspiration for finding the proper balance - I always needs reminders that sleep is important... :-)

Mmmm, zucchini blossom pizza sounds out of this world incredible! Sounds like a beautiful anniversary outing - congratulations on your 3rd anniversary!!! Wishing you endless happiness, joy, and deliciousness together...

Thank you so much for your incredibly sweet comment about my battle with the fence post! :-)

RunToTheFinish said...

I am pretty sure I couldn't get a bar to look that pretty...ever! I think maybe I need to practice more patience with my cooking

http://runtothefinish.blogspot.com/2009/09/pepper-dog-salsa-giveaway.html

Nicole, RD said...

Beautiful bars! Happy Anniversary, and that pizza...it looked incredible!

Nicole

Anonymous said...

YAY that you're back to your chipper self! I'm glad! I hope the good mood continues to grow! :D

Oh, and THAT'S what I'm gonna do with my zucchini flowers! YES! I've been seeing them in my grocery store and SO wanted to buy them, but didn't know what to do with them....YES YES YES!

p.s. Bought my tickets for Foodbuzz Fest! yahoo! :D

Mimi said...

Wow, I want a zucchini flower! They look super tasty! Glad you had a great anniversary!

Naomi(Onefitfoodie) said...

OMG those bars look amazing!

let me just say that you have the exact career I want to have haha...well I majored in exercise science in undergrad and want to become a registered dietician at somepoint with a focus on sports nutrition and possibly a masters in ex. phys, sooo I will live vicariously through you for now!

hmm fav bars would have to be lara bars i also really enjoy the GNU bars and making my own as well!

Sweta (My Indian Dietitian) said...

Wow-those bars look SO yummy.
Zucchini flowers and pizza-great!! We just discovered a similar pizza place here-we had their pesto pizza with artichokes and loved it. Must check out if they have a newsletter :)

Meal Makeover Mom Janice said...

These bars look so good. I'll make them for my kids' lunchbox next week! Glad you are feeling better. When I don't get enough sleep I am terribly moody and cranky!