Power bars

[Beirut]

(This should probably end up with SwordsMaster's sticky thread.)

You eat 'em? Which? When? Why?

I eat breakfast around 6AM. By 9AM (and by 4PM), I'm famished. Used to eat a Nutribar with my coffee in the truck but found they sat in my stomach like a lump. The Powerbar brand with chocolate chips tastes good and are unlumpy, yet don't pack much protein. (Some Powerbar versions are so hard on the teeth as to be inedible.) Tried an organic powerbar made from sesame paste but it had little protein and the texture of gyprock.

Now I make my own. "A dash of this... a sprinkle of that..."

The basic idea is organic oats, quinoa (a grain), buckwheat flour, lots of chopped nuts and raisins, some dark chocolate, a bit of Brown sugar, and a big whack of pure hemp protein powder. Eggs, molasses, and vegetable oil hold it all together.

The end result is a dense, heavy bar that tastes good, is chewy (but doesn't break your teeth), and packs a good punch. One bar (3"x1"x3/4) is sufficient to keep you going for a while. I figure it costs me about a buck for each of my homemade bars. Haven't figured out how many calories in each bar, but probably about 6 to 8 grams of protein just from the hemp powder. Not sure what the rest of the ingredients offer other than they're healthy and they taste good.

Anyway, chirp in if you're a power bar person.

[The Blind King of Bohemia]

I've had a few on occasions, some sort of choc variety, not bad. I prefer protein drinks more though. Always try to pick 'em up when they are reduced in holland and barrett, from 20 to 10 quid. They can help to take away the pian you feel after getting back into more intense exercises. I could do with one as i'm trying new exercise on back and neck and save to say i'm slightly sore to say the least

[naut]

Power bars, of the musli choc variety! Their great, I have about three a day. Your homemade ones sound good too.

[Sjakihata]

I prefer to eat a red steak than a powerbar if I lack protein.

[naut]

I prefer to eat a red steak than a powerbar if I lack protein.

Steak , but I wouldn't have the time to have one as a snack.

[SwordsMaster]

The basic idea is organic oats, quinoa (a grain), buckwheat flour, lots of chopped nuts and raisins, some dark chocolate, a bit of Brown sugar, and a big whack of pure hemp protein powder. Eggs, molasses, and vegetable oil hold it all together.

The end result is a dense, heavy bar that tastes good, is chewy (but doesn't break your teeth), and packs a good punch. One bar (3"x1"x3/4) is sufficient to keep you going for a while. I figure it costs me about a buck for each of my homemade bars. Haven't figured out how many calories in each bar, but probably about 6 to 8 grams of protein just from the hemp powder. Not sure what the rest of the ingredients offer other than they're healthy and they taste good.

Thats pretty impressive. Good job!

I don't really know what works for you and how much of everything you put in, but I would give up the brown sugar, seeing as you already have raisins and chocolate, use just egg whites (you should get enough fat into you with all the nuts already), and try to balance the nuts so that you get some but not all almonds into the mix.

Pretty solid bar, there. If you have that with a pint of coffee with milk, its a meal in itself.

As a guidance, you want about 25% fat, 50% protein and 25% carbs. Also, if you want a burst of energy, you'll want simpler carbs (raisins, chocolate, sugar), and if you want longer lasting energy you will want more complex ones (oats, wholemeal wheat, you get the drift).

I tend to use smoothies to cover all my needs. My typical smoothie has bananas, raspberries, blackberries, milk, orange juice, oats, almonds and protein powder. Keeps me going all morning.

[Sjakihata]

I dont get it. Why do you people care SO much about excat energy and what you eat? I mean, I wouldnt want to spend 1/10 of my life speculating what to eat, then cook it and eat it. The two first takes enough time already.

[SwordsMaster]

I dont get it. Why do you people care SO much about excat energy and what you eat? I mean, I wouldnt want to spend 1/10 of my life speculating what to eat, then cook it and eat it. The two first takes enough time already.

Well, if you are cooking anyway, and shopping for food anyway, why not do it right? It doesn't take so long. And don't tell me you'd rather have a McDonalds burger over a nice lean steak....

[naut]

Well, if you are cooking anyway, and shopping for food anyway, why not do it right? It doesn't take so long. And don't tell me you'd rather have a McDonalds burger over a nice lean steak....

Oh the joy of being young and having a fast metabolism .

[Togakure]

I've been eating Power Bars for many years. I started using them for backpack trips as they are light, small, and nutritious. Now I eat them during my breaks at work, one along with a Silk soy smoothie makes for a great energy boost and provides almost half of my RDA in a number of vitamins and minerals.

Lately I've been eating Clif bars instead of Power bars. They taste better and the texture is less gummy.

Incidentally, the guy who invented Clif bars started by making his own after becoming dissatisfied with what was available. Now he is rolling in dough.

[English assassin]

The basic idea is organic oats, quinoa (a grain), buckwheat flour, lots of chopped nuts and raisins, some dark chocolate, a bit of Brown sugar, and a big whack of pure hemp protein powder. Eggs, molasses, and vegetable oil hold it all together

Beruit in Recipe Not Involving Tabasco or Chillis Shocker...film at 11.

[The Stranger]

i dont eat m, are they of any use?

[naut]

They are a great long lasting energy snack.

[doc_bean]

Just eat a bar of chocolat !

[The Stranger]

and when you look at your boss/teacher (female one for me...) youll finally be able to feel more but emptiness

[Alexanderofmacedon]

They don't taste too bad. I like 'em alright.

[Beirut]

Thats pretty impressive. Good job!

I don't really know what works for you and how much of everything you put in, but I would give up the brown sugar, seeing as you already have raisins and chocolate, use just egg whites (you should get enough fat into you with all the nuts already), and try to balance the nuts so that you get some but not all almonds into the mix.

Pretty solid bar, there. If you have that with a pint of coffee with milk, its a meal in itself.

Glad you like the recipe. I only used the brown sugar because the recipe called for it, but I'm trying different variations, both for fun and to see what feels best after eating.

I'm going to try the egg white idea, I like that. I used a lot of almonds in this mix because she told me to. The next batch will be cashew heavy. Want to try another batch with blueberries. Nice thing is it's easy to muck about with the recipe.

As a guidance, you want about 25% fat, 50% protein and 25% carbs. Also, if you want a burst of energy, you'll want simpler carbs (raisins, chocolate, sugar), and if you want longer lasting energy you will want more complex ones (oats, wholemeal wheat, you get the drift).

I want both. I need something that I can eat fast, will hit fast, and carry me through about two hours of work. I like the mix of the grains and the chocolate. (Who wouldn't?)

I tend to use smoothies to cover all my needs. My typical smoothie has bananas, raspberries, blackberries, milk, orange juice, oats, almonds and protein powder. Keeps me going all morning.

We're on the same road you and I. Every morning I dump four bananas, half a litre of yogurt, a bunch of blueberries, a whack of organic flax seed, some strawberries and a big spalsh of OJ and whizzzzzzzzzzzzz! The kids get a glass after a light breakfast and she has a big glass before work. I drink mine on the way out the door. Believe me, feeding kids a good breakfast can be... trying. Give them something that looks like a milkshake and it makes life (mine) much easier.

You put oats in your smoothie? You must have a helluva blender to make that drinkable. Also, I tried putting the hemp protein powder in the smoothies this morning but it made them a bit too earthy.

[Duke Malcolm]

On the point of Swordmaster's thread... why was this unstickied? Isn't it still useful?

Anyhoo...
I find shop-bought power bars quite disgusting -- I bought one once for the Silver Duke of Edinburgh's Award Expedition and it sat in my rucksack for 3 weeks...
Home-made ones might be interesting...

[Beirut]

On the point of Swordmaster's thread... why was this unstickied? Isn't it still useful?

Very useful. One of the best.

It wasn't un-stickied, it was put in the sticky "Links to popular threads" because the stickies needed cleaning.

[Big King Sanctaphrax]

Homer: "By turning food into bar form, you release its awesome power. Watch as I concentrate two pounds of spaghetti and meatballs into one handy bar... " (eats bar.... walks over to phone....dials operator)

"Hospital please..."

[SwordsMaster]

We're on the same road you and I. Every morning I dump four bananas, half a litre of yogurt, a bunch of blueberries, a whack of organic flax seed, some strawberries and a big spalsh of OJ and whizzzzzzzzzzzzz! The kids get a glass after a light breakfast and she has a big glass before work. I drink mine on the way out the door. Believe me, feeding kids a good breakfast can be... trying. Give them something that looks like a milkshake and it makes life (mine) much easier.

You put oats in your smoothie? You must have a helluva blender to make that drinkable. Also, I tried putting the hemp protein powder in the smoothies this morning but it made them a bit too earthy.

Actually I bought the cheapest blender I could find in an emergency (best buy, EVA), but it manages to reduce the oats to a size that is small enough to swallow without getting teary eyes...

Protein... yeah, well, a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do... I tried putting eggs in (tried raw, tried fried, tried boiled... one of those screwed up my previous blender because I also added black pudding - don't ask -), but that didn't work out, so because I still need the protein in the morning and eggs just refuse to cooperate, I had to resort to powder. On the plus side, I picked one that tastes like strawberry so it goes ok with all the rest of the fruit.

[Beirut]

Glad you posted, was just thinking of you and this thread.

I checked out a cookbook that has an index of the nutrient specs of all the foods and it shows that my power bars are giving me about 15 - 20 grams of protein and run about 400 calories each. Curious what you thought about that. (I did cut back the brown sugar by 1/2, might lose it completely - your suggestion - and see if I can add fruit juice instead to sweeten the bars.)

I think I can lose the 1/4 cup of oil and replace it with yogurt, I've done that with muffins. Also, if I use rye flour, I get lots more protein than buckwheat flour for the same calorie count, more of less. That looks good.

For me I need the protein and at least some calories to smack down the hypoglycemia and keep me going. No food + work = shaking, sweating, dizzy, going-to-barf feeling. Gotta keep that stuff away. Must eat. Mmmmm.... power bars.

[Vladimir]

Have you thought of adding honey to the mix? It might be better than the sugar but I suppose you nutrition buffs might know more. Oh and the hemp protein, so Canadian . But really, why don’t you use egg or whey protein?

[SwordsMaster]

Glad you posted, was just thinking of you and this thread.

Yeah, I'm working shifts now, so I don't get as much free internet time... On a day off now, so can do all the stuff I've been putting on hold for the last 5 days.

Have you thought of adding honey to the mix?

It is pretty much the same thing. Although I would take honey over white sugar, brown sugar is not so bad.

I checked out a cookbook that has an index of the nutrient specs of all the foods and it shows that my power bars are giving me about 15 - 20 grams of protein and run about 400 calories each. Curious what you thought about that. (I did cut back the brown sugar by 1/2, might lose it completely - your suggestion - and see if I can add fruit juice instead to sweeten the bars.)

I think I can lose the 1/4 cup of oil and replace it with yogurt, I've done that with muffins. Also, if I use rye flour, I get lots more protein than buckwheat flour for the same calorie count, more of less. That looks good.

For me I need the protein and at least some calories to smack down the hypoglycemia and keep me going. No food + work = shaking, sweating, dizzy, going-to-barf feeling. Gotta keep that stuff away. Must eat. Mmmmm.... power bars.

15 g of protein is not too bad for a bar, although a proper meal should have almost twice that if you are working hard physically. I take about 70g after a heavy gym session (I'm putting on fat too, so maybe that is too much). 400 cal is good. A man should be taking about 2500 cal a day, but that is an average for your average male, meaning he sits on his ass in the office and then sits some more when he gets home, so I reckon some 3500 cal should be the target for someone who is outdoors and working hard.

About the flour, you might want to go for the one that gives you most fiber, as fiber is what makes complex carbs and a slow, long energy release period. With choc, raisins and juice you should get your kick anyway, and a little extra fiber never hurt anyone.

I got the same problem. No food, I get cranky, sweaty, shaky and tend to slack until I'm fed. Good thing the boss learned that, and is ok with me taking periodical "coffee-fried-eggs-sausages-rashers-beans" breaks. No need for bars this far as I have no "portability" problem.

[Beirut]

Have you thought of adding honey to the mix? It might be better than the sugar but I suppose you nutrition buffs might know more. Oh and the hemp protein, so Canadian . But really, why don’t you use egg or whey protein?

Honey is a good idea. Easy to get good organic honey here.

I like the hemp protein because it's Canadian grown, organic, and I like to support the hemp industry because it annoys The Powers That Be.

[Beirut]

15 g of protein is not too bad for a bar, although a proper meal should have almost twice that if you are working hard physically. I take about 70g after a heavy gym session (I'm putting on fat too, so maybe that is too much). 400 cal is good. A man should be taking about 2500 cal a day, but that is an average for your average male, meaning he sits on his ass in the office and then sits some more when he gets home, so I reckon some 3500 cal should be the target for someone who is outdoors and working hard.

I never figured out my daily protein intake. I'll give it a look. As for calories, I guess 3000 to 4000. I eat well during the week but weekends are ice cream and cookies and TV on the couch. Which I refuse to give up under any conditions.

About the flour, you might want to go for the one that gives you most fiber, as fiber is what makes complex carbs and a slow, long energy release period. With choc, raisins and juice you should get your kick anyway, and a little extra fiber never hurt anyone.

Good idea. (Especially at my age, eh?)

I got the same problem. No food, I get cranky, sweaty, shaky and tend to slack until I'm fed. Good thing the boss learned that, and is ok with me taking periodical "coffee-fried-eggs-sausages-rashers-beans" breaks. No need for bars this far as I have no "portability" problem.

Ha! The guys I work with (as well as my woman) have the same educated opinion, "Oh just... go away and eat something."

[The Wizard]

Nope, never. Eat breakfast, lunch on the go, and then dinner, with little to no snacking in between.

[GoreBag]

I stuffed my face desperately with Power Bars years ago at my black belt Karate grading. I haven't been able to eat them since.

[yesdachi]

I don’t normally eat them but I have noticed that store bought ones are poor tasting and have way too many calories. I typically just want something filling with as little calories as possible.

Related side note: a buddy of mine works at a local county jail as a cook and makes “bars” for the inmates who are confined to their cells and can’t mix with others during meal time. He said that the “bar” is typically whatever the regular meal is just smashed into a “bar” or sometimes a loaf shape. From what he says the breakfast ones (pancakes or French toast with eggs and bacon or sausage) sound pretty good, but some of the others… not so much.

[Lehesu]

I would eat power bars before cross-country races and street races. The much better thing is Power Gel or Gu, which is much easier to swallow during a race for an energy burst. Gu has saved my life on some of the longer races.