Peanut Butter Chocolate Fiber Bars

A soft, decadent tasting bar with that perfect Reese’s combination of peanut butter and chocolate and a little chewy crunch from chopped roasted peanuts. Full of fiber, nutrients and good healthy fats, sweetened with real maple syrup and a ripe banana, these bars have no added sugars, yet  they’re amazing for satisfying your chocolate peanut butter cravings.

I woke up last Saturday craving peanut butter and chocolate. And since I’m on a cholesterol lowering diet, I’m trying to reduce bad fats (trans fats and saturated fats) and sugar in my diet and introduce more healthy fats, vitamins, minerals and fiber. I wanted a homemade fiber bar that tasted good, something that would quell my craving for a scrumptious peanut butter/chocolate treat without crashing my diet. At first I thought I would make a granola bar and I laid in bed for an hour looking at various granola bar recipes on my phone, none of which really provided the fiber I wanted. So I decided to take things into my own hands and make my own granola bars. But once I started mixing things together, I scratched the granola bar idea. No, not granola bars .. FIBER bars. Granola bars are too high in sugar and not as high in fiber as I wanted. Let’s focus on the fiber and see where that takes us …

Some of the foods I’ve been turning to for fiber are chia seeds, oat bran and fiber powder.

Why chia seeds?

Chia seeds are not just a great source of fiber (over 11 g of fiber per 1-oz. serving!), they are also a great source of protein, calcium, phosphorus and manganese. Chia seeds are also an excellent source of Omega-3 fatty acids, which helps raise HDL cholesterol (the GOOD kind). (Source: Medical News Today)

What are the benefits of oat bran?

If you think back to high school science class where they talked about the layers of the grain, oat bran is essentially the layer just beneath the outer husk (which is hard and inedible). It’s got the same benefits that is touted for oatmeal, but oat bran has over twice the fiber and it’s high in protein and nutrients too, including thiamine, magnesium, phosphorus, iron and zinc, to name a few. At just 88 calories per cup (cooked), oat bran is a super nutrient dense food that’s really yummy and so versatile! ) (Source: Healthline)

You can enjoy oat bran as a delicious hot cereal or swap out oat bran for flour in baked recipes like bread, muffins, cookies or bars. You can also add oat bran to smoothies or in homemade granola. Anywhere oatmeal or flour can be used, oat bran can top it! And oat bran is naturally gluten free and one of the top grains recommended for lowering cholesterol and boosting heart health.

Are peanuts good for you?

As long as you’re not allergic, yes, peanuts are good for you! We typically think of peanuts as nuts, but actually they are a legume closely related to peas, beans and lentils. They’re an excellent source of plant-based proteins, a good source of fiber, high in fat and low in carbs, plus they’re full of vitamins and minerals, including biotin, copper, niacin, folate, manganese and vitamin E. For those of us watching our cholesterol, peanut oil is rich in phytosterols, which impairs the absorption of cholesterol from your digestive tract. Despite being high in fat, peanuts surprisingly support healthy weight and can even help you lose weight (eaten in moderation). (Source: Healthline)

Is chocolate good for lowering cholesterol?

Yes! In fact, chocolate is featured in part 2 of my cholesterol-lowering recipes series, where I explained that the cocoa bean is rich in a class of plant nutrients called flavonoids. In addition to having antioxidant qualities, research shows that flavanols have other potential influences on vascular health, such as lowering blood pressure, improving blood flow to the brain and heart, and making blood platelets less sticky and able to clot.

What kind of chocolate should I use?

Dark chocolate is best for heart health, so go for something with at least 60% cocoa. I used Ghirardelli dark chocolate chips which are 60% dark. You can go with a chocolate that is higher in cocoa, but it might affect the sweetness of the bars.

Do these fiber bars taste sweet?

There’s no sugar in the bars … so you might wonder: do they taste sweet? I was sincerely surprised at how sweet they tasted with just 1/4 cup maple syrup and 1 large (very very ripe) banana in the recipe. I honestly thought I would have to add something (like stevia or brown sugar) to boost the sweetness, but the dark chocolate helped out in that regard. I was super excited when I took my first bite of my homemade fiber bars. Yes, they are perfectly sweet, tender and so tasty!

So how much fiber is in the bars?

The recipe analyzers failed me on this report, so sorry, I’m unable to post the nutrition label on these bars. I find that frustrating, but I really really wanted to know how much fiber was in my bars, so I calculated it myself (thank you, Excel), taking the fiber in each ingredient, adding it all up, and dividing by 16 servings. I’m happy to report that each bar has 5.3 grams of fiber and about 200 calories.

Another thought I had after I made these bars is it would be even better to add powdered peanut butter to the recipe in place of some of the peanut butter, which would up the protein and reduce the calories. I might try that next time I’m craving a chocolate peanut butter fiber bar. For now, I’m quite pleased with how these bars turned out and I have enough fiber bars to last me a good while.

BTW, these make a great stress food when you’re having a crazy day and just want a sweet treat to get through it all. I may have just experienced that. Maybe several times over this week. Three-day weekends are great, but when you have to pack 5 days of work into 4 days afterwards, it always kind of makes me wonder if it’s worth it? (But yes. The answer is yes. It’s SO worth it. We can always run faster when our batteries are rested and recharged.)

Thank goodness for peanut butter chocolate fiber bars to help make crazy days just a little better.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Fiber Bars

★★ 2 from 1 reviews

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 30 minutes
• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Yield: 16 fiber bars 1x

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• Dry ingredients:
• 1 cup oat bran
• 1/2 cup chopped roasted peanuts
• 1/2 cup dextrin (Benefiber) fiber powder
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 2 Tablespoons sesame seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

To stick it together:

• 1/2 cup (4.4 oz.) natural peanut butter
• 1/4 cup real maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon real vanilla extract
• 1 banana
• 1 egg

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 9x9x2 inch square pan with parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the dry ingredients.
3. Put the peanut butter, maple syrup and vanilla in a small bowl and microwave on high for 1 minute. Stir together until well mixed. Pour into the large bowl. Mash the banana with a fork in the same bowl, then put that in the large bowl as well and crack the egg in.
4. Stir the mixture together and pour into the prepared pan. Bake at 350 F. for about 30 minutes or until the bars are set.

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Notes

If you’re highly sensitive to gluten, make sure you’re using certified gluten free oat bran, psyllium and chocolate chips.

RECIPE SOURCE: http://www.sumptuousspoonfuls.com/

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Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 bar
• Calories: 200