Another weekend. Over too soon.
It was a fun one! My friend Kat was in town from South Korea.
She moved there a few years ago to teach, which I think is incredibly cool. It’s good to see old friends so happy and fulfilled. We used to be concert buddies, so naturally we caught up over a show.
Michelle Malone was playing the Sunday night 99X Unplugged in the Park show. Unplugged in the Park is a summer-long free music series put on by a local radio station. They pull in some great musicians at these!
The weekend was also punctuated with…
a baking WIN!!!
I’m not gonna lie – my ego needed this one after last week’s baking fail(s).
During my weekend trip to the Farmer’s Market I found coconut flour on the cheap. $1.36
Normally I hoard the stuff because… well, do you know how much it costs at Whole Foods? Hint: more than $1.36.
Click here for some of the benefits of coconut flour (and for an awesome coconut chocolate chip cookie recipe).
I was so excited to use it with reckless abandon in Coconut Chocolate Banana Bars! Low in sugar and high in fiber, these tasty little chocolate bars can be eaten as breakfast OR dessert.
To bake them, I used my square pan, but you could also bake them in cookie-like form on a baking sheet.
The texture coconut flour gives baked goods is so silky it’s downright luxurious. I also love the notes of sweetness from the banana with the rich cocoa.
Tip: use a good cocoa powder in dishes like this – the difference in taste/quality is worth the splurge!
Recipe at the end! First a bit ‘o fitness.
Here’s the weekly recap. I’m happy with last week because I worked out every day! Usually there’s one day that I simply cannot motivate (unintended “rest” days).
Whatever happened, it worked well because I landed a new PR in Saturday’s hill-filled 5K. 🙂
Workout Recap (8/15-8/21)
- Monday – Kickboxing
- Tuesday – 4 mile run, P90X Ab Ripper X, 84 push-ups
- Wednesday – Biceps/Back, 84 push-ups, 6 Minute Plank Sequence
- Thursday – 4 mile run, P90X Ab Ripper X, 84 push-ups
- Friday – Triceps/Chest, Plank Sequence, 84 push-ups
- Saturday – 5K, + 1 mile run, 84 push-ups
- Sunday – 4 mile run x2, 100 push-ups
Coconut Chocolate Banana Squares
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 10-12 mins
Keywords: bake snack dessert vegetarian low-sodium nut-free low-sugar sugar-free banana coconut flour cocoa greek yogurt healthy cookie
Ingredients (9 squares)
- 2 ripe bananas, mashed
- 2 T Greek yogurt
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 egg
- 1/4 C unsweetened apple sauce
- 1/4 C NuNaturals’ More Fiber Stevia Baking Blend
- 1 C whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/3 C coconut flour
- 2 T cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Place muffin cups in muffin tins
Whisk together NuNaturals, applesauce, and egg until creamy and light yellow
Add mashed bananas, yogurt, and vanilla, and whisk to combine
Add flours, cocoa, baking soda, and salt, and stir until smooth.
Spoon the batter into tins
Bake for 10-12 minutes
Approximate Nutritionals: 108 calories, 1.9g fat, 21.3g carbohydrates, 6.1g fiber, 3.9g sugar, 3.8g protein.
***
I’m already excited to eat one of these for afternoon snack.
How was your weekend? Anything exciting?
Do you have a favorite flour to use?