Raw Food Alchemy by Amie Sue
The aroma of the Almond Banana Brittle Bars drying in the dehydrator is equivalent to baking chocolate chip cookies in the oven! One of two things almost happened… I would pitch a tent in my pantry to camp out below the dehydrator or I was going to bring the machine into my bedroom. It was just heavenly. One thing I noticed when I had switched to a high raw diet was that my sense of smell really developed and trust me, this bar caused my nose to go into hyperdrive mode!
When I created this bar I used up my almonds that I had already soaked and dehydrated. If you are running a bit short of time and want to shave off a little time on this recipe, you can just soak the almonds overnight. The next day, drain and rinse them well. You can use them this way in the recipe. BUT I really want to encourage you to use soaked and dehydrated almonds. The reason is this process really changes the nature of the almond. It gives it a lighter and crunchier texture which works perfectly with this recipe. If you are not in the habit of soaking and dehydrating your nuts, I encourage you to try it. Just make your nut purchase, bring them home, and immediately throw them in a bowl to soak. Then dehydrate and store the nuts in a glass jar. That way they are ready to go when needed and if you ever need a quick snack, they will be so much easier on your digestive system.
These bars are firm, crispy and chewy all in one. My husband loved the ones with chocolate the most, but then he does love chocolate. The combination of the almonds, bananas and chocolate created a wonderful medley of flavors. Bob and I bantered back and forth a bit as to what to call them… bars? cookies? He thought they were too thin to be bars and well, I didn’t think the square shape reminded me of a cookie. We playfully duked it out… we met in the middle… Almond Banana Brittle Cookie Squares. LOL He walked away smiling as he went to eat another one. :)
So call them bars, call them cookies, call I’ll want one when you make them.
Wet Ingredients:
Dry Ingredients:
I did one tray with chocolate and one without just for variety.
For a packaging idea, I made up these treat bags with both types of bars. One with the chocolate
and one without. I alternated them, stacking them with a square of wax paper in between.
I then pushed the bars to the left side of the bag and in the empty space I filled it with
banana chips. Since the bars are made with bananas as one of the main ingredients, I thought it was appropriate.
Hi AmieSue, this looks wounderful. I also like the others you have with dried bananas. My question is can I use fresh or frozen bananas? I don’t have dried, but I do have frozen. Tina
Tina, I haven’t used frozen bananas before in a recipe like this. I am sure it would be fine, though they would bring more moisture so you may need to add a bit more flax meal. You will have to experiment. :) Merry Christmas, amie sue
Are the banana chips simply slices of banana that have been dehydrated and then rehydrated? Do these bars ever need refrigeration after they’re made? I’ve made protein bars that weren’t baked or dehydrated, but they get moldy if no kept cold. Can’t wait t try these.
Thank you.
Lesley,
Yes, I started the recipe with dehydrated bananas and rehydrated them a bit. These bars should be ok on the counter for several days… so far mine are and Bob and have been nibbling on them daily. To expand the shelf life, you can always store them in the fridge or freezer. Merry Christmas, amie sue
Your recipes look amazing. I also love the care you take in presenting them in the photos. Always exquisitely enticing!
I eat a high raw diet and I stay away from sugars of all kinds, even fruit sugars. So I have a hard time finding filler ingredients for the volume, bulk & stickiness that dates,
banana & syrups offer most dessert recipes. My sweetener of choice is stevia. I use liquid drops & powdered as well as the crushed dried stevia leaf. So I feel so limited :( Can you help???
Thanks,
Suzette
Hello Suzette….
I understand the situation about any and all sugars. You are right in saying that the different fruits are used for different flavors and textures which are needed for certain recipes. I use Stevia myself but it simply can’t replace everything. Are you asking me directly about this recipe or just in general? In this recipe, the main flavor and reason for this recipe is for the bananas. As far as recipes in general, it will depend on each and every one. If you have other recipes that you want to try let me know and I will try to help. amie sue
Secado en horno 20 á 24 horas 115 grados horno normal? Gracias!
Google translates…”Drying in oven 20 to 24 hours normal oven 115 degrees? Thank you!” Are you asking me if you dry this in a normal oven at that temp? If so… I doubt your oven gets low in temperature. Do you have a dehydrator? That is what I use for my recipes. amie sue
Question… after you soak the almonds and before drying them… do you take their skinn off or is it not important at this point? There is a school of thought taht says that the brown skin in not good for the intestines… but… I’m not sure.
Your thought????
Thank you.. just found your site! Very nice. Now returning to see more of your pages :D
Good afternoon Amyah,
If you have a hard time digesting nuts, you can pop this skins off. I too have read that sometimes the skins of almonds can cause irritation. It is necessary though. It’s up to you at this point. For my own consumption, I remove the skins but my digestion is sensitive. If you want to remove them, here is a post that I did on how to, http://nouveauraw.com/raw-techniques/skinned-almonds/.
I am thankful to have you here and I hope you find a lot of inspiration here! Have a wonderful evening, amie sue
I messed up a bit on this recipe but it STILL turned out unbelievably delicious & more like a cookie. I was out of almonds so I used pecans and walnuts instead….I also processed the nuts to a finer texture & used my vitamix to make a creamy sauce out of the rehydrated banana chips, dates, and soak water. Wow, unbelievable. We can not stop eating them!!!
lol Catherine… it doesn’t sound like you messed up at all! :) Isn’t that just the beauty of raw really? Thank you for sharing. Your making me hungry. hehe Many blessings and don’t get a tummy ache from eating to many at one time. :) amie sue
A request from a friend to provide a healthy muesli bar for her young children , who were only used to a wrap ,sugar infested concoction , lead me to your website. As someone who will not compromise on good nutrition, I prepared the children your almond banana brittle cookies. A little nervous at presenting the most harshest of critics, a 6 year old who declared my apple pineapple juice as ” disgusting” , these were an instant hit. I was worried that, too their trained palettes , the cookies would not be sweet enough. But, no worries , they are all gone. Thank you for all you do for the raw food world.
That is sooooooo wonderful!! When I get the approval from a 6 yr old critic, I am in heaven! You made my day Barbara! Thank you so much for taking the time to share that with me. Wheeeee! *dances in the kitchen* Many blessings, amie sue
question: I was wondering how do you figure out the amount of calories your intaking?? I’m trying to do the “raw food diet” for health reasons but also need to be causious of calories! Ideas on how I can figure this out? I’d appreciate any advice, Thank you!
Hi Rachel,
I don’t count calories. There are some great programs on line that allow you to plug in ingredients from a recipe and it will tally up the nutrients for it. Google “recipe calculator”. Have a great day, amie sue
Hello, me again! I am finding recipes I can make to bring along with me on a trip to Europe so I can have SOME control over my food options! I really don’t enjoy the taste of banana (I know- inconvenient for a raw foodie….) Is there something else I might use instead? Thanks again.
Hi Cheynne, I would look for another recipe all together if banana isn’t your thing. :) I hope you enjoy your trip to Europe! I hope to visit there one day. :) amie sue