Energy Bars from Tate's Bake Shop Cookbook

I'm starting to run again. I decided to set myself some running goals, such as a certain number of miles to be run/week, irregardless of how much I run in any one given session.

The treadmill is my preferred mode of running. Maybe it's the control freak in me, but I like knowing exactly how fast I'm running, and I like to be pushed to maintain the pace I set by the belt moving continuously. No stoplights, crazy drivers, slow-walking pedestrians, random 15% gradient hills (!!), or my own inertia to distract and slow me down.

My Achilles heel many a day has been going running right after work (basically, dinnertime) but not eating a snack or something to tide me over and give me some energy to run. Which sometimes then results in me cutting my workout short because I fall victim to mild acute hypoglycemia and become lightheaded and nauseated.

So my purpose in making these energy bars is two-fold: 1) in preparation for my increasingly-frequent running workouts as I work up to my goals, and 2) to test-run tasty recipes to bring in my survival pack for the crazy Rachel Carson 1/2 Challenge (18 miles of cross-country hilly terrain hiking in ~8 hours) that I just officially registered for yesterday.

Yeah, I could just buy granola bars or energy bars from the store...but what would be the fun in that? Plus, I can put all my favorite things in, leave out all my non-favorite things, and you guys get the inside scoop on yummy granola bar/energy bar recipes! You know, to prepare for your own crazy exercise regimens. Or just to eat as a healthy snack.

So here is a picture-recipe for the energy bars from the Tate's Bake Shop Cookbook, which look really promising as a delicious and effective snack. The measurements I give will be of a doubled recipe--if you halve all the measurements below and use a 8X8 inch square baking pan, you will basically have the original recipe.

The main grain source (Kashi 7-grain puffed cereal) and the main binders (brown rice syrup, which is sold in natural food stores, and good ol' peanut butter). The puffed brown rice in the grain mix makes this recipe very nostalgic for me on two levels: 1) when I was little, my mom used to make a healthier version of rice krispie treats using puffed brown rice and marshmallows, and 2) in Taiwan, there is a traditional snack that is basically equivalent to the rice krispie treat except it uses puffed brown rice and some sort of sweet binder that is stiffer than melted marshmallow--the resulting treat, "mbe-pahng," is crispy and often studded with peanuts (you can find it in Asian groceries here).

Heat 1 cup of brown rice syrup (I threw in a couple of tablespoons of honey to make the full 1 cup because I like the taste of honey...) and 1 cup of peanut butter together on the stove until boiling, stirring constantly. Remove from heat after it boils for 30 seconds. Pour this mixture over the pre-combined cereal/nuts/fruit mixture (pictured below).

Pictured above: 6 cups Kashi 7-grain puffed cereal, 1 cup chopped almonds, 1/2 cup dried cranberries, 1/2 cup raisins. Also in the above picture but not in the recipe: handful of chopped raw cashews that I toasted in the oven, some roasted unsalted peanuts, about 1/4 cup chopped dried mango. Not pictured above but in the original recipe: pitted and chopped dates (you would need 1/2 cup in the doubled recipe).

After pouring the peanut butter and rice syrup mixture over the cereal mixture, stir to combine evenly, then dump everything into a 9X13 inch rectangular pan lined with a bit of parchment paper and sprayed well with non-stick spray. Wet your hands and flatten the mixture evenly into the pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes. Cool completely before cutting.

Makes 24 bars. Wrap individually and freeze, thawing as you need them.