Peanut Butter Protein Power Bars

This recipe was inspired by two sources:  the Yummy Banana Oat Bar found in Dr. Fuhrman's Website and the Chocolate Chip Banana Love Bars found in the Chocolate Covered Katie blog.   I have been attending several classes at Webb's Fitness Club in Penn Hills and all of them are at a time wherein it is too soon to eat lunch or dinner before they are held so I have been eating store bought granola bars before I start the classes.  These bars have healthy ingredients but they also are filled with additives I can live without.

I needed a healthy bar recipe that is similar to the Yummy Banana Oat Bar but uses Rice Krispies instead of oats.  I seemed to be allergic to oats since they sometimes start the gout in my middle right finger (or so I think). 

The recipe of the Chocolate Chip Banana Love Bars inspired me to try to tweak the banana oat bar using Rice Krispies and adding whey protein.  I decided to add the cranberries and nuts since they are part of the G-BOMBS diet postulated by Dr Fuhrman for diabetics and for preventing cancer and other diseases.

The bars can be eaten raw as Katie suggested with hers but I decided to bake it so they will be easier to carry in my handbag in case I am traveling straight from work to the fitness club.  The result is a little bit less sweet than the raw version but one can add the optional chocolate chips to take care of this.

Peanut Butter Protein Power Bars

(Adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie and Dr. Fuhrman's Website)

Ingredients:

• 1 ripe banana, mashed (about 2/3 cup)
• 1/4 cup peanut butter 
• 1/3 cup whey protein powder (chocolate flavored or any other flavor)
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 2 cups Rice Krispies
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup cranberries
• 1 apple, peeled and chopped
• 2 tbsps mini chocolate chips (optional)

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl.  Pour into a 9 x 9 baking pan and bake for 15 minutes in a 350 oven.

Cool and cut into bars.