I have been finding it difficult lately to address relevant topics for my blog while attempting to keep my small readership entertained. But when my brother/most frequent backcountry travel companion had the idea to test a variety of homemade protein/energy bar recipes, it seemed like the right topic for this time of year. With the days getting longer and the snow melting, most backpackers and backcountry paddlers are gearing up for their adventure travel season. So, what better time to perfect your backcountry menu. The recipes we tested were chosen because they appeared delicious and the list of ingredients addressed the 4 components of nutrition required to be an effective backcountry bar; Protein, Carbs, Omega 3's, and Antioxidants.
Protein: Just because you're not weight lifting doesn't mean the muscles don't need to be fed. Sometimes we focus way too much on the carbohydrates, and we forget what's responsible for not only maintenance and repair, but nearly every chemical reaction that takes place in the body.
Carbohydrates: It is common for athletes to refuel after a strength or endurance workout only with protein. However, without a source of carbohydrates post-workout, your body will not be able to produce insulin, the hormone that drives muscle building. Carbohydrates also help to replace muscle and liver glycogen to refuel your energy stores. The current recommendation is a ratio of 2:1 carbohydrate to protein following strength workouts and 4:1 after endurance workouts.
Omega 3's: Redness, pain, heat and swelling are the four symptoms of chronic inflammation, the root cause of disease. Over-exercising can take its toll on not just the muscles and joints, but the organs of the immune system, and when combined with stress, chronic illness and poor eating habits, you're left with a large recipe for inflammation. Because the typical American diet contains pro-inflammatory foods high in omega-6 fats, the body needs the anti-inflammatory omega-3 fats to
maintain a sweet balance. Because the body doesn't make them on its own, these fats are considered essential, which means we must get them on our plate.
Antioxidants: Antioxidant rich foods help reduce inflammation and decrease muscle soreness and also aids athletic performance and comes highly recommended for recovery foods.
Alright, enough about the details, lets get to the food.
Protein: Just because you're not weight lifting doesn't mean the muscles don't need to be fed. Sometimes we focus way too much on the carbohydrates, and we forget what's responsible for not only maintenance and repair, but nearly every chemical reaction that takes place in the body.
Carbohydrates: It is common for athletes to refuel after a strength or endurance workout only with protein. However, without a source of carbohydrates post-workout, your body will not be able to produce insulin, the hormone that drives muscle building. Carbohydrates also help to replace muscle and liver glycogen to refuel your energy stores. The current recommendation is a ratio of 2:1 carbohydrate to protein following strength workouts and 4:1 after endurance workouts.
Omega 3's: Redness, pain, heat and swelling are the four symptoms of chronic inflammation, the root cause of disease. Over-exercising can take its toll on not just the muscles and joints, but the organs of the immune system, and when combined with stress, chronic illness and poor eating habits, you're left with a large recipe for inflammation. Because the typical American diet contains pro-inflammatory foods high in omega-6 fats, the body needs the anti-inflammatory omega-3 fats to
maintain a sweet balance. Because the body doesn't make them on its own, these fats are considered essential, which means we must get them on our plate.
Antioxidants: Antioxidant rich foods help reduce inflammation and decrease muscle soreness and also aids athletic performance and comes highly recommended for recovery foods.
Alright, enough about the details, lets get to the food.
Coconut Chocolate Energy Truffle Bites
Recipe Link: http://dailyburn.com/life/recipes/coconut-chocolate-truffle-recipe/
The true definition of "good things come to those who wait", the 5 hour prep time generated the highest taste score of the recipes tested. The recipe link above gives a nutritional breakdown, however, based on the information we had, the values looked a little more like this.
One half batch created 20 bites - each bite averaging 117 calories with 2.3g of Protein, 6.4g of Fat, 12.4g of Carbohydrates and 3.6g of Fiber. The Carb : Protein ratio was more than 5 to 1, meaning it was a little deficient in necessary protein levels, but that may be supplemented with a protein powder addition to the recipe.
The true definition of "good things come to those who wait", the 5 hour prep time generated the highest taste score of the recipes tested. The recipe link above gives a nutritional breakdown, however, based on the information we had, the values looked a little more like this.
One half batch created 20 bites - each bite averaging 117 calories with 2.3g of Protein, 6.4g of Fat, 12.4g of Carbohydrates and 3.6g of Fiber. The Carb : Protein ratio was more than 5 to 1, meaning it was a little deficient in necessary protein levels, but that may be supplemented with a protein powder addition to the recipe.
Sesame Date Bites
Recipe Link: http://www.backcountry.com/explore/6-next-level-backcountry-snacks
Be advised, in the quick 15 minutes of production, I botched the recipe by adding the sesame seeds to the processed mixture instead of rolling them in the seeds afterward. Therefore, they appear a little different than the link picture. I have made similar bites before, and they were excellent, but this time they only garnered a second to last place taste score. Nutritionally speaking, these bites hit a homerun. It addressed all 4 components and had a Carb : Protein ratio of 1.22 making it more protein dense than a Clif Builder Bar. A batch created about 20 bites at 72 calories, 4.4g of Protein, 4.2g of Fat, 5.4g of Carbs, and 1.3g of Fiber per bite.
Be advised, in the quick 15 minutes of production, I botched the recipe by adding the sesame seeds to the processed mixture instead of rolling them in the seeds afterward. Therefore, they appear a little different than the link picture. I have made similar bites before, and they were excellent, but this time they only garnered a second to last place taste score. Nutritionally speaking, these bites hit a homerun. It addressed all 4 components and had a Carb : Protein ratio of 1.22 making it more protein dense than a Clif Builder Bar. A batch created about 20 bites at 72 calories, 4.4g of Protein, 4.2g of Fat, 5.4g of Carbs, and 1.3g of Fiber per bite.
Ginger Vanilla Protein Crunch Bars
Recipe Link: http://spabettie.com/2012/09/24/ginger-vanilla-protein-crunch-bars/
This recipe was kind of a wild card for me. It used a number of ingredients that I was unfamiliar with, and along I am a fan of ginger, I wasn't sure how it would present itself in this bar. A very close third in tasting and second in nutrition along with its relatively painless preparation put this wild card on top of my list to make again.
The 9x9 pan can be divided into whatever size bar you would like, but for purposes of nutritional values, I went with a 3x3 bar. These bars contained 272 calories, 11.5g of Protein, 11.9g of Fat, 30.1g of Carbs, and 3.7g of Fiber.
This recipe was kind of a wild card for me. It used a number of ingredients that I was unfamiliar with, and along I am a fan of ginger, I wasn't sure how it would present itself in this bar. A very close third in tasting and second in nutrition along with its relatively painless preparation put this wild card on top of my list to make again.
The 9x9 pan can be divided into whatever size bar you would like, but for purposes of nutritional values, I went with a 3x3 bar. These bars contained 272 calories, 11.5g of Protein, 11.9g of Fat, 30.1g of Carbs, and 3.7g of Fiber.
Raw Banana Bread Breakfast Bars
Recipe Link: http://www.thesweetlifeonline.com/2013/01/03/raw-banana-bread-breakfast-bar/
These no bake, minimal ingredient bars were easy to make, with the only difficult part of the process was due to a lack of a rolling pin in our kitchen. On a side note, if you find yourself in need of a rolling pin, but don't have one, a wine bottle works great. Unfortunately, these bars scored the lowest among our tasters. We found the banana flavor to be minimal. This can easily be remedied by ensuring you use the ripest and freshest bananas. We would suggest trying a fresh banana instead of dehydrating them, as we found the need to add moisture to the mix as well.
The nutrition values also landed it at the bottom of the list. The 9x12 sheet cut into 12 pieces yielded 189 calories, 2.8g of Protein, 14g of Fat, 16.2g of Carbs, and 3.2g of Fiber per piece. This had the worst carb to protein ratio at more then 5.8 and it had the highest fat content among the 5 bars tested.
These no bake, minimal ingredient bars were easy to make, with the only difficult part of the process was due to a lack of a rolling pin in our kitchen. On a side note, if you find yourself in need of a rolling pin, but don't have one, a wine bottle works great. Unfortunately, these bars scored the lowest among our tasters. We found the banana flavor to be minimal. This can easily be remedied by ensuring you use the ripest and freshest bananas. We would suggest trying a fresh banana instead of dehydrating them, as we found the need to add moisture to the mix as well.
The nutrition values also landed it at the bottom of the list. The 9x12 sheet cut into 12 pieces yielded 189 calories, 2.8g of Protein, 14g of Fat, 16.2g of Carbs, and 3.2g of Fiber per piece. This had the worst carb to protein ratio at more then 5.8 and it had the highest fat content among the 5 bars tested.
Blackforest Cake Bars
Recipe Link: http://www.backcountry.com/explore/6-next-level-backcountry-snacks
For those with a sweet tooth, the name itself makes this recipe worth trying. Even though this bar required baking, the total preparation time was well worth the outcome. Second place in tasting and third in nutrition and preparation, these bars were the most all around good bar addressing all areas of testing adequately.
The 9x9 pan was divided into 9 pieces again with values as follows: 291 calories, 9.3g of Protein, 19.8g of Fat, 23.8g of Carbs, 5.2g of Fiber. With a carb to protein ratio of 2.5, this bar was ideal for muscle recovery with out the use of a protein powder.
For those with a sweet tooth, the name itself makes this recipe worth trying. Even though this bar required baking, the total preparation time was well worth the outcome. Second place in tasting and third in nutrition and preparation, these bars were the most all around good bar addressing all areas of testing adequately.
The 9x9 pan was divided into 9 pieces again with values as follows: 291 calories, 9.3g of Protein, 19.8g of Fat, 23.8g of Carbs, 5.2g of Fiber. With a carb to protein ratio of 2.5, this bar was ideal for muscle recovery with out the use of a protein powder.
Final Results
When looking at Preparation, Nutrition, Taste, and Cost we created a common denominator of 500 calories. The list below is based on this common factor and allows us to compare a number of factors.
| Recipe Coconut Chocolate Truffle Bites Sesame Date Bites Ginger Vanilla Crunch Bars Raw Banana Bread Bars Blackforest Cake Bars Clif Builder Bar | Preparation 5 1 4 2 3 1 | Nutrition 4 1 2 5 3 1 | Taste 1 4 3 5 2 3 | Cost $2.07 $2.12 $1.83 $1.19 $1.63 $3.89 |
Preparation is not an issue if you buy commercial produced bars, but a number of the tested bars and bites performed just as well or better in taste and nutrition, and at a more affordable price point, they are worth the extra effort to make at home. The truffle bites, date bites, cake bars, and ginger bars were nearly identical in final tally, so the final decision is up to you. Give them a try and add your favorite to your backcountry menu.
Photo credit and special thanks to my brother, Josh Kufahl, for the idea and taking the time to create these recipes with me. http://joshkufahl.com/index.html
Also, some of the information given was collected from active.com and outsideonline.com, both great sources of information.
Photo credit and special thanks to my brother, Josh Kufahl, for the idea and taking the time to create these recipes with me. http://joshkufahl.com/index.html
Also, some of the information given was collected from active.com and outsideonline.com, both great sources of information.
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