Baked Banana, Oat and Peanut Butter Bars
These bars are a brilliant snack about 1-2 hours before a run. The oats, banana and honey all provide fast-release carbohydrates to fuel the body and avoid early onset fatigue (something all runners dread no matter how short or long the run!). Whilst the touch of peanut butter and chia seeds add a little bit of protein and healthy fat, but not too much. You can also swap the dark chocolate for dried fruit such as raisins or dates if you prefer.
Time: 30 mins
Ingredients
2 medium-ripe bananas
4 tbsp smooth peanut butter (eg Pip & Nut)
3 tbsp coconut oil
2 tbsp raw honey (or maple syrup if vegan)
200g rolled oats
1 tbsp chia seeds
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp sea salt
40g dark chocolate (4x squares 70-85% Lindt), chopped into small chunks
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180C fan and line a baking dish with parchment (8 inch x 8 inch).
- In a mixing bowl mash the bananas then stir through the runny peanut butter with a wooden spoon.
- Gently melt the coconut oil and honey in a pan over low heat until just runny. Pour this over the banana mixture and combine well.
- Add the oats, chia seeds, ground cinnamon, sea salt and 30g of the chopped dark chocolate (3 squares).
- Stir everything together then pour the mixture into the baking dish. Spread evenly with a spatula and sprinkle over the remaining chopped dark chocolate.
- Bake in the oven for 25 minutes until golden then remove and allow to cool completely before cutting into square or rectangular bars (depending on your preference!).
